RECAP: Panthers 6, Maple Leafs 2

TORONTO – The Florida Panthers are heading home on a high note.

Closing out their final road trip of the season, the defending Stanley Cup champions snapped out of a four-game slide with a 6-2 beatdown of the Toronto Maple Leafs at Scotiabank Arena on Saturday.

“That’s as good as we can play with the guys we have,” head coach Paul Maurice said. “We played our butts off. Really proud of them.”

Called up from the AHL on Friday, Wilmer Skoog made his NHL debut in the win.

Skoog, the seventh player to debut for the injury-plagued Panthers this season, registered two shots on goal and three blocked shots in his first taste of NHL action.

“That was awesome,” said Skoog, who's in his third pro season. “Just being around everyone and being a part of this, winning the game, it was awesome. Really fun.”

Ushering in some groans from the home crowd just 23 seconds into the first period, Eetu Luostarinen corralled the puck after it went off the end boards and fired it off Maple Leafs goaltender Joseph Woll and into the back of the cage to put the Panthers up 1-0.

Keeping that lead intact a few minutes later, Daniil Tarasov denied Max Domi on a breakaway.

Lighting the lamp in his second straight game, Cole Reinhardt doubled the lead for the Panthers when he charged the net with a Maple Leafs defender tugging him down and still managed to power the puck past Woll to make it 2-0 at 5:32.

The Maple Leafs challenged for goaltender interference, but the goal was upheld after a review.

After 20 minutes, the Panthers had surrendered only five scoring chances.

Not letting the Maple Leafs get up off the mat, the Panthers extended their lead in the second period when Tomas Nosek took a pass from rookie Marek Alscher and sniped a shot past Woll to make it 3-0 at 1:32.

Missing the majority of the year after undergoing surgery this past summer, the goal was Nosek’s first of the season.

"It's been a roller coaster season and tough times sometimes,” said Nosek, who was a key part of Florida’s run to a second straight Stanley Cup last June. “ It was a long time without the games. You’re wondering what’s going to happen when you come back, and I’m just happy I did it before the end of the season.”

Appearing in just his second NHL game, Alscher earned the first point of his career with an assist on the goal.

As a fellow native of Czechia, Alscher said Nosek was a huge help to him during his debut on Thursday in Ottawa.

“He made a pretty good play,” Nosek said of the young defensemen. “He won the battle, passed to me, and he gets his first NHL point. All I can do is help those guys. I’m happy they get chances to play. Happy for him.”

On the power play, William Nylander got the Maple Leafs on the board when he when beat Tarasov with a glove-side shot from the slot to make it 3-1 at 10:55.

Less than three minutes later, Nylander, who entered the night already sitting atop Toronto’s scoring leaderboard, struck again to make it 3-2 at 13:16.

Regaining the two-goal cushion for the Panthers in the third period, Mackie Samoskevich teed up a pass from A.J. Greer and buried a one-timer from the slot to make it 4-2 at 4:13. Ending the season with a hot stick, Samoskevich has scored five times in his last eight games.

Coming up with another big stop, Tarasov shut down John Tavares on a breakaway just past the midway point of the period.

“Huge win for new faces on our team,” Tarasov said. “We set a tone right away.”

After the Maple Leafs pulled Woll for the extra attacker, Greer cashed in on the empty net to make it 5-2 15:56

On the goal, Luostarinen (1G, 2A) and Samoskevich (1G, 2A) each recorded their third point of the game.

“Played big minutes,” Maurice said of the duo. “Played the right way.”

Capping off an impressive performance, Nosek added one more empty-net goal to lock in the 6-2 win with his second goal of the game at 18:07.

“It was a team effort,” Nosek said. “We played pretty good. We didn’t give up much except the two goals there. I think we played a pretty decent game today. I’m happy with the two goals. It’s been a long time. It feels good."

THEY SAID IT

“Great mentor, great leader, but just a really great human being.” – Paul Maurice on Gustav Forsling

“I think the skill is obviously different. You kind of have to adjust your game to the opponents.” – Wilmer Skoog on his first taste of the NHL

“It’s not easy to come here, especially at this time of the season. But it’s big for them. They get a chance to play.” – Tomas Nosek on Florida’s rookies

CATS STATS

- Marek Alscher is the ninth rookie defenseman to record a point within his first two NHL games in franchise history.

- Cole Scwhindt won a team-high seven faceoffs.

- Luke Kunin and Cole Reinhardt each had four hits.

- Tobias Bjornfot blocked a team-high three shots.

- The Panthers led 24-21 in scoring chances at 5-on-5.

WHAT’S NEXT?

The Panthers will return to South Florida to kick off their final homestand of the season with a matchup against the New York Rangers on Monday at 7 p.m. ET.

The game will also serve as the team’s annual Fan Appreciation Night.

For tickets, click HERE.