RECAP: Panthers 3, Maple Leafs 2

TORONTO – The balance of power in the Atlantic Division remains unchanged.

Helping the Florida Panthers pick up two more crucial points, Sam Bennett scored a pair of power-play goals in a 3-2 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena on Thursday.

Improving to 41-22-3, the Panthers now hold a four-point lead over the Maple Leafs for the top spot in the division with one more game played and 16 remaining in their regular season.

“I had some family and friends in town,” said Bennett, who grew up in Ontario. “It’s always nice to play in my hometown. Obviously, it was a big game. It’s two teams that could definitely meet in the playoffs. That was a playoff-like game.”

Breaking the ice, John Tavares took a pass from William Nylander and buried a one-timer from the right circle to put the Maple Leafs up 1-0 just two minutes into the first period.

Soon after, Nate Schmidt dropped the gloves with Toronto’s Max Domi.

Earning a power play after Oliver Ekman-Larsson, a member of last season’s Stanley Cup-winning squad, punched Mackie Samoskevich, the Panthers made the Maple Leafs pay.

Following a nifty drive to the net by Samoskevich, Bennett crashed into the blue paint and sent a rebound past Anthony Stolarz to make it 1-1 at 17:51 with his 21^st goal of the season.

A strong start, the Panthers led 10-3 in scoring chances after 20 minutes.

After two power plays for Florida in the first period, Toronto had two in the second.

Keeping the Maple Leafs off the scoresheet during both of their trips to the man advantage, the Panthers allowed just one shot on goal and two scoring chances during their four minutes on the kill.

Since returning from the break, Florida is 25-for-26 on the penalty kill.

“I think we’re playing on our toes, giving hard pressure and blocking shots,” defenseman Niko Mikkola said of the success on the kill. “Both goalies have been unreal. That’s the key.”

Giving the Panthers the lead in the midst of a growing “Go Leafs, go!” chant, Mikkola took a pass from A.J. Greer and rifled a shot right past Stolarz’s glove to make it 2-1 at 13:56.

“It’s been a while,” laughed Mikkola, who’s already set new career highs in goals (5), assists (16) and points (21) this season. “I just try to enjoy every goal I get. It was a nice play by A.J., and then just a quick shot on the net.”

Back on the power play, Bennett found the back of the net again when he took a sweet dish from Sam Reinhart and ripped a shot into the back of the cage to make it 3-1 at 17:13.

Prior to the goal, Seth Jones made one heck of a play to keep the puck in the zone.

“That was an incredible play,” Bennett said of the strong effort from Jones. “I was just praying he kept it in because I was dead tired and didn’t want to backcheck there. It’s a great second effort by him, and it led to a goal.”

Cutting into the deficit for the Maple Leafs in the third period, Max Domi, shortly after a power play had expired for Toronto, sniped a shot from the slot to make it 3-2 at 4:26.

From there, Sergei Bobrovsky shut the door.

Finishing with 24 saves, the two-time Vezina Trophy winner stopped seven of eight shots he faced in the third period to help the Panthers hold on and secure two big points on the road.

Making history in the process, Bobrovsky earned his 424th career win to break a tie with Tony Esposito (423) and claim sole possession of 10^th place on the NHL’s all-time wins list.

“At 3-1, he’s not going to like the 3-2 goal, and then you’re thinking you’re going to have a hard time beating him now because now he’s angry in the net,” head coach Paul Maurice said of Bobrovsky’s milestone. “He just totally fits our team. He’s so calm in that net.”

THEY SAID IT

“He’s a great player and he’s going to be a great player in this league for a long time.” – Sam Bennett on Mackie Samoskevich

“It takes some courage to hard-gap a game, and we were pretty good at that.” – Paul Maurice on Florida’s defensive effort

“We kept them to the outside and let Bobby (Sergei Bobrovsky) do the rest.” – Niko Mikkola on containing Toronto’s attack

CATS STATS

- Sam Bennett has posted 13 points (six goals, seven assists) over his last 12 games.

- Mackie Samoskevich has logged at least one point in five of his last six games.

- Aleksander Barkov won a team-high 10 faceoffs.

- Seth Jones blocked a team-high three shots on goal.

- Eetu Luostarinen produced a team-high five hits.

- The Panthers controlled 78.26% of shot attempts when Nate Schmidt was on the ice at 5-on-5.

- Sergei Bobrovsky earned his 166th career win following a loss.

WHAT’S NEXT?

The Panthers will stick around in Canada for one more game, a matchup against the Montreal Canadiens at Bell Centre on Saturday at 7 p.m. ET.

To find a place to watch the game in South Florida, click HERE.