By Bill Whitehead

It’s the day after Thanksgiving and time to consider and be grateful for all we have, and Florida Panthers fans have plenty to relish. The Panthers (12-6-3, 27 pts.) are atop the Southeast Division and sit second in the Eastern Conference. The club has also feasted during its annual Thanksgiving homestand, winning its first three contests against Pittsburgh, New Jersey and the New York Rangers.

Upon reflection, here are just a few more things fans can be grateful for at Thanksgiving:

The organization — The old saying goes like this: “The fish rots from the head down.” But the Panthers aren’t rotting anymore; they’ve been resurrected and transformed into the high-priced, Catch-o’-the-Day. The sad state affairs for a few seasons — well, more than a few, perhaps closer to a decade — has been shelved for a new attitude around BankAtlantic Center. Heck, the place is hardly recognizable. Red-themed improvements can be found in the stands, on the boards and pretty much everywhere. Up next on the list is a new scoreboard. Most importantly, though, the brass brought in…

Dale Tallon — When Florida hired him, fans expected great moves by Tallon, and he hasn’t disappointed. The moves he made in St. Paul in June at the NHL Draft appear to be the club’s foundation, but the transactions he made around the trade deadline nine months ago left Florida in position to do what he did with Brian Campbell, Kris Versteeg, Tomas Kopecky — all players he had in Chicago — and others. Tallon wears his emotions on his sleeve — slightly reserved but with a trace of a smile when Florida wins, evidently upset on the elevator ride down to the dressing room when the club loses (see the home shootout losses earlier this month). He also puts a premium on how players are performing currently, not what they did last season, and doesn’t play favorites. Just ask David Booth.

Kevin Dineen — Not enough can be said of the job done in such a short time by the 48-year-old Dineen. He had the tough task of not only being new to the NHL, but also having to assemble talented players quickly. He has also been patient and doesn’t make kneejerk reactions when times get tough, which was the case Monday when starting goalie Jose Theodore gave up three goals midway through the first period. A year ago, Pete DeBoer would’ve yanked Theodore, but Dineen stood by his No. 1 guy and Jose responded by holding the Devils scoreless the final 48 minutes. When the hunt was on for Florida’s next coach, a Buffalo hockey scribe told me Florida should’ve hired Dineen the previous time instead of DeBoer and that teams were failing by not hiring Dineen. Looks like that guy was right.

The top line — If you would have polled most NHL fans before the season, the first line of Kris Versteeg-Stephen Weiss-Tomas Fleischmann would’ve likely rated in the bottom third. But that shows how much faith you put in polls. Through 21 games, the trio has tallied 69 points. Versteeg (12 Gs, 14 As) is on pace for a staggering 102-point year — 47 goals, 55 assists — and is TSN analyst Marty Turco’s choice for the Hart Trophy. Fleischmann is the sniper of the bunch, and Weiss simply makes it all run. The line seemingly plays possessed, and future Hall of Famer Martin Brodeur had nothing but glowing praise for the group, especially Versteeg, after Florida’s 4-3 win Monday.

Those constitute much of the core of the Panthers, and the defensive corps and goaltending have been just as important. Intagibles also have made this first quarter of the season a success, including role-playing depth, AHL call-ups and players whose contributions don’t translate to the scoresheet.

And as is typical of the day after Thanksgiving, there is still King George-style eating to be done. I mean, who devours everything in the house on Thanksgiving and has to go out for food on Black Friday? The BAC, Florida’s fridge, will be rocking again tonight one final festive time. Fans can come in, see all the red they want and enjoy the last leftover of this Thanksgiving feast.

The Tampa Bay Lightning.

By Bill Whitehead
NHLHS Florida Panthers Credentialed Correspondent
Twitter: @BillWhiteheadFL
Email: BillWhiteheadFL@hotmail.com

Patrick Powell
Salary Cap Analyst 

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/ File: David_Booth.jpg

In analyzing this deal , the proverbial “elephant in the room” is the disparity in age and potential upside of the players involved. Booth is 26, Reinprecht is 35, Samuelsson is 34, and Sturm is 33. The latter two seem on the downsides of their respective careers whereas Reinprecht, who has probably peaked as well, will remain dead weight in the AHL. Booth clearly has the highest potential of any player in the deal, but he arguably also carries the greatest health risk due to his 54 game campaign in 2009-2010 after suffering multiple concussions.

Reinprecht had been playing in the AHL, and recently reported to Vancouver’s AHL affiliate, the Chicago Wolves. As a result, his full season cap hit of $2.05 million will not adversely affect the Canucks, who are now within $87,000 of the cap. Booth carries a full year cap hit of $4.25 million versus $2.5 million for Samuelsson and $2.25 million for Sturm.

The Panthers still have over $9 million in salary cap space, and they now have the maximum of 23 players on their active roster. GM Dale Tallon added experience to a young roster with this move but moreover cleared future cap space. He was not afraid to make a move that sends away potential in return for flexibility, which begs the question: Will we see more deals like this?

Booth is currently signed through 2015 as he previously committed himself to the Panthers just one season before Tallon took over the team. He was traded before his production severely dropped off, which makes the deal somewhat unique. A similar deal in length, like Shawn Horcoff‘s pact with the Edmonton Oilers, certainly would not relate since the pivot lost most of his trade value when he signed his new deal. The same should be said for Scott Gomez, whose contract extends through 2014 but is already the most discussed topic in Montreal.

A similar deal to the Booth trade could be the Calgary Flames moving players like Curtis Glencross, Rene Bourque or less likely Olli Jokinen, David Moss and Niklas Hagman. GM Jay Feaster would be willing to sacrifice potential (let’s face it outside of Roman Horak, Mikael Backlund and T.J. Brodie there are no young options) for added salary flexibility for the future. Building around their younger players looks like the right way to go as the front office in Calgary finally understands cap efficiency.

Another interesting option is left wing Blake Comeau, who may have permanently found coach Jack Capuano’s doghouse. The former 47th overall pick scored more than Booth last season and as Chris Botta of The New York Times hinted, via Twitter, Comeau’s value is severely decreasing with decreased playing time. This scenario may perfectly mirror that of Booth’s as Comeau could help a contender in need of secondary scoring while preventing GM Garth Snow from investing further resources on a depreciating asset down the line.

The next option for another blockbuster could involve the currently held out Kyle Turris. We know he wants to be traded and GM Don Maloney may be forced to trade him at below his market value in order to get some usable assets for him this season. Furthermore, his subtraction would clear salary cap space for the future as the team would not have to pay him in excess of $4 million this year and likely more down the road — especially when considering his unproven talents.

Then again, the Panthers and Canucks could hook up once more. In fact, one would be foolish to rule out Mikael Samuelsson getting sent back to Vancouver once healthy as he did work in coach Alain Vigneault‘s system. Of course, this trade would not be the second, or the third even between these teams in recent years.

This deal marks the second blockbuster involving these clubs but fourth transaction in recent memory. In 2006, the Canucks acquired starting goalie Roberto Luongo, defenseman Lukas Krajicek, and sixth round draft choice (Canucks drafted Sergei Shirokov) in exchange for forward Todd Bertuzzi, goaltender Alex Auld, and defenseman Bryan Allen. Other players like Keith Ballard, Michael Grabner and Christopher Higgins have also switched jerseys over the last couple of seasons.

As Bill pointed out in his piece, Tallon sought to send a message to his young Panthers’ club with this move: you need to perform to stay. Will this message reverberate to other teams in the league? For example, the Blue Jackets (0-7-1) Sharks (3-3-0), Flames (2-4-1), Canadiens (1-4-2), and Bruins (3-5-0) have all performed below expectations in the early going. Players with these teams, particularly those earning over $4 million per season, may feel the heat from Tallon’s move. Perhaps GMs from these teams will ensure to cite David Booth as an example to demonstrate that subpar efforts will not be tolerated, and that no player is safe.

Alexander Monaghan also contributed to this article.

By Bill Whitehead

SUNRISE, Fla. — No one can ever accuse Florida Panthers general manager Dale Tallon of doing things in a small way.

Tallon, who pulled the strings on the biggest makeover in club history in the summer, rocked everyone once again Saturday night by trading away fan favorite David Booth to the Vancouver Canucks just before the puck dropped on the Panthers’ game with the New York Islanders at BankAtlantic Center.

Also being shipped to the Canucks was center Steven Reinprecht and a 2013 third-round draft pick, which actually came from Vancouver last year in a trade that sent left winger Chris Higgins to the Canucks. In return, the Panthers received veteran forwards Mikael Samuelsson and Marco Sturm. Samuelsson, a Stanley Cup winner with Detroit, was a member of the Panthers during the 2003-2004 season,

Speaking to the media 10 minutes before the game, Tallon said he was trying to do two things — increase production and send a message to the team.

“A lot of things come in to play, but we’re in the performance business. We’re not happy with our team’s performance in the last two games, and we weren’t going to let this fester. I wanted to send a message and we wanted to get better,” said Tallon, whose club was blanked at Washington on Tuesday and at home Thursday by Buffalo.

“You better play to your capabilities. I don’t care who you are, you’ve got to perform. I’m not going to sit back and watch two performances like the last two games.”

From a performance-standpoint, the struggling Booth was an obvious choice as anyone. The 26-year-old was scoreless and a minus-6 in six games this year and a team-worst minus-31 last season. He didn’t tally a point in Florida’s 7-4 win over Tampa Bay Monday when seemingly everyone scored. The trade came almost two years to the day of the former Michigan State standout receiving a concussion after a vicious hit by then-Philadelphia Flyer Mike Richards.

“If you don’t perform, there’s a good chance you’re not going to stay here,” added Tallon. “I just had a feeling on what I’d seen in the last year that we needed to make a move to make our team better. We needed some stability in the organization and on the ice. (Samuelsson and Sturm) are guys with good hockey sense. They’re both plus hockey players who play both ways and can contribute offensively.”

Tallon added that he didn’t expect visa problems with Samuelsson and Sturm. The Panthers play Monday in Montreal and Thursday in Ottawa before heading to Buffalo on Saturday. The two players will meet the Panthers in Montreal.

Booth was in the second year of a six-year, $25.5 million contract while Reinprecht was loaned to a club in Germany last year. The team learned of the trade shortly before the game, and it appeared to affect them early as the Islanders scored just 61 seconds into the game.

Center Stephen Weiss, who stole the puck from Evgeni Nabokov to set up Florida’s first goal by Kris Versteeg, is in his tenth season with the Panthers and watched Booth debut with the club in 2006.

“I didn’t get a chance to see him,” Weiss said. “I came in after warmup and he was gone. That’s the worst part. He’s gone and you don’t get the chance to wish him luck. It happened so quickly as we were going on to the ice that it really hasn’t sunk in. I had forgotten about it until I came in (to the dressing room). It’ll sink in the next couple of days when he’s not around the room. You never want to see it happen to your teammates, but life goes on.”

Florida coach Kevin Dineen said the timing of the trade, which Tallon admitted had been in the works for a week, was difficult.

“For me, to have it happen late in the day is hard on David, hard on us because we’re losing a guy that’s been here for so long and has a good body of work he’s put in. He’s an emotional kid whose heart is always in the right place,” said Dineen of Booth, who scored 87 goals in 309 game for the Panthers.

Oh by the way, there was a game. With the help of Shawn Matthias’s three-point game, Florida defeated the Islanders 4-2 to snap that nasty two-game losing streak, improving the Panthers’ record to 4-3-0.

Message sent and received.

By Bill Whitehead
NHLHS Florida Panthers Credentialed Correspondent
Twitter: @BillWhiteheadFL
Email: BillWhiteheadFL@hotmail.com

By Bill Whitehead

Now that the Tampa Bay Lightning’s overachieving season has finally gone from “All In” to “All Over,” hockey in Florida becomes more of a numbers-crunching game filled with sneaking peeks at other teams’ rosters, mulling over available restricted and unrestricted free agents, and of course evaluating next month’s draft. But the Florida Panthers could learn a lot from and be hopeful about the success the Lightning had just up Interstate 75.

This time last year, the similarities between the two franchises were striking. Both were playing in front of half-empty barns, out of the playoffs again, slotted within the draft lottery’s top few picks and had management issues. New ownership and leadership took over in Tampa, replacing the comical Oren Koules and Len Barrie and overmatched head coach Rick Tocchet. When Steve Yzerman and Guy Boucher came onboard as GM and head coach, respectively, action began to take place that would put Tampa Bay within two goals of the Stanley Cup Final. Not surprisingly, the fans in Tampa flocked to the Forum — many no doubt thinking Nikolai Khabibulin was still in goal, circa 2004 — but butts filled the seats and the community rallied behind the team.

Players like Adam Hall, Sean Bergenheim, Teddy Purcell and Nate Thompson, a motley quartet of throw-ins and castoffs, became major contributors, and any remaining roster gaps were stocked in-season with the addition of goalie Dwayne Roloson and defensemen Eric Brewer and Marc-Andre Bergeron. Dominic Moore, a Panther the previous season, also became a key cog in Boucher’s system.

The one glaring difference between Tampa Bay and Florida lies in their respective star power. Vincent Lecavalier, Martin St. Louis and Steven Stamkos represent what Florida doesn’t have at this point — offensive difference-makers. Those three are electric, and Florida’s top three scorers — Stephen Weiss, Mike Santorelli and David Booth — come up short in comparison. The Panthers desperately need a skilled game-changer handling the puck.

Florida GM Dale Tallon could have a keen eye on the future contractual issues in Tampa. Roloson, fellow goalie Mike Smith, and defensemen Brewer and Bergeron, along with forwards Simon Gagne, Hall, Purcell and Bergenheim, are players Yzerman must re-sign or let go. It would be hard to imagine Florida not showing some interest in Brewer, Bergenheim or perhaps even Smith, depending on how the situation plays out with Tomas Vokoun.

Then there’s some guy named Stamkos. Since we’re focusing on the Lightning, if Tampa Bay’s highest profile player doesn’t get signed in the next month, Tallon could easily spice up the rivalry between the Cats and Bolts by offer-sheeting Stamkos. Should Yzerman reach an impasse and be unable to ink the high-scoring 21-year-old — unlikely, since he is certainly the top priority — Tallon could make a play for him by offering something in the ballpark of, say, $8-9 million per year over five years. If the Bolts match, which they likely would, it would force the organization to tighten its belt and restructure the roster. If they didn’t, Florida would grab one of the brightest stars in the league. It’s a longshot, sure, because you would expect Stamkos to get the money he wants, but there have been few talks of reaching a deal, and stranger things have happened.

Hockey is now officially over in the Sunshine State, but Tallon can look up the west coast of the state for a successful model. The work is just beginning.

By Bill Whitehead
NHLHS Florida Panthers Credentialed Correspondent
Twitter: @BillWhiteheadFL
Email: BillWhiteheadFL@hotmail.com

By Bill Whitehead

SUNRISE, Fla. – There have been very few “laugher” victories for the Florida Panthers this season. In fact, Florida’s 4-0 win over Toronto on Thursday was the club’s first victory by more than one goal since a 3-0 blanking of the New York Rangers on Jan. 2. The easy win over the Maple Leafs, after a scoreless first period, had Florida coach Pete DeBoer pretty happy — not like a person celebrating his Irish descent at a St. Patrick’s Day parade, but cheery nonetheless. A good part of that joy is watching the development of the top line centered by Stephen Weiss, who has blended in nicely with tradeline acquisitions Sergei Samsonov and Niclas Bergfors.

The energetic line accounted for five points for Florida (29-33-9) against Toronto, including Samsonov’s game-winner on a nifty deflection off a Jason Garrison shot from the blue line just 49 seconds into the second period. After Weiss’s power-play goal almost five minutes later, Samsonov was at it again after Toronto’s Dion Phaneuf kneed David Booth, sending Florida on another man-up advantage. Samsonov faked a shot in close then flipped a pass over to Mike Santorelli, who fired then put in his own rebound for a 3-0 lead.

“We’ve been clicking so far and getting good looks at the net,” said Samsonov, acquired from Carolina in a deal involving Bryan Allen. “We’ve been scoring, and it’s been fun to play with those two.”

Bergfors assisted on Samsonov’s goal, and the skilled Swede was a handful for Toronto most of the night. “They’re skilled players who hold on to the puck,” Bergfors said of his two linemates. “You’ve got to skate in the right position and get open for them. When it’s rolling, it’s a great feeling to be out there with them. We got (Toronto) cycling, and we held the puck. I’m not surprised; they are two good players. We just all use each other the right way. We’re finding each other better and better.”

Bergfors, 24, is also excited to be playing top-line minutes — something that wasn’t happening in Atlanta. “It’s great, you want to be out there as much as possible,” said Bergfors, who logged 16:37 of ice-time against the Leafs. “I just try to take advantage of it as much as possible. I prepare for it because I’ve got a good chance now. I really want to be here. I’m really happy. It’s great here, and it’s a young team, too. It’s great to be surrounded by these guys.”

In the nine games they have played since being acquired on Feb. 28, Samsonov and Bergfors have combined to scored 12 points (3-9-12). Samsonov’s goal and assist gave him consecutive multi-point games for the first time since Mar. 6-7, 2009. Bergfors’ assist left him with a point in five of his last seven contests (1-5-6).

“It was nice,” DeBoer said. “They’re three skilled guys who move the puck around. It was nice for them to get rewarded. They seem to have created a bunch of chances and haven’t finished. Weisser’s usually money against Toronto because he’s got a lot of family watching.”

Weiss, who scored his 20th goal on the first power play for a 2-0 lead, said he, Samsonov and Bergfors all share similar styles, making it easy to play with them as linemates. “It’s a lot of fun,” Weiss said. “They’re two skilled guys who can make plays and skate and like to hang on to the puck. They play a similar style as me. They make my job a lot easier. I have confidence in them when I see them get the puck, and I try to get open.”

For the long-term scenario, Samsonov and Bergfors aren’t the final answers, but the pair have brought a creative presence in their nine games suiting up for Florida, revitalizing an offense that has been inept much of the time. Both can skate well and have a knack for getting the puck near the net, basically seeing passing lanes and scoring opportunities that other Florida forwards can’t visualize. Contract-wise, Bergfors is a restricted free agent who should get a deal from the Panthers for next season, while Samsonov, an unrestricted free agent, will likely have to take a pay cut (down from his $2.8 million this year) and sign for just one year if he wants to wear No. 14 again for Florida.

Judging by almost half of their 20-game tryout for general manager Dale Tallon, the pair would be a welcome addition to the Panthers’ camp next season.

By Bill Whitehead
NHLHS Florida Panthers Credentialed Correspondent
Twitter: @BillWhiteheadFL
Email: BillWhiteheadFL@hotmail.com

Tampa Bay, after falling to Ottawa the night before, faced the Florida Panthers who are constantly giving the Bolts a hard time. Florida opened up the scoring after a scoreless first with a goal from David Booth. Lightning decided to make a line change while Florida had possession of the puck in the neutral zone developing the 3 on 1 rush.

In the second period, the NHL’s leading goal-scorer, Steven Stamkos delivered the equalizer with a power play goal setup by Martin St.Louis and Simon Gagne.

After 40 minutes of play over, this battle came down to the final stanza and became an eventful 20 minutes. Florida’s Ryan Carter and Niclas Bergfors had their club out in front by two just five minutes into the period. Mike Smith did not have the best night between the pipes for the Lightning, but was able to hold the Panthers off the board for the remaining 15 minutes of the third. Smith finished the night stopping 23 of 27 shots he faced.

An ample amount of power play opportunities had been presented to the Bolts in the final period. Vincent Lecavalier received a pass from St.Louis at the top of the goal crease to tip it past Scott Clemmensen. Just five minutes and twenty seconds later, Simon Gagne had the game-tying goal when he took a shot off from behind the net that hit Clemmensen in the back before landing in the back of the net. Panthers are the least penalized team in the league; however, they took 8 penalties throughout this game, which led to the Lightning’s comeback. Tampa Bay finished the night 3 for 8 on the power play.

Overtime commenced and with 16 seconds left, Jason Garrison scored the game-winning goal. After St.Louis and Stamkos had a 2 on 1of their own that was broken up by Mike Weaver, Mike Santorelli and Jason Garrison came down against Victor Hedman and Garrison was able to backhand it past Smith for the 4-3 victory.

“The only thing you can ask of this team is to play hard and keep doing what they’re doing. Obviously we all have to do more,” Tampa Bay winger Martin St. Louis told NHL.com.
Florida’s Scott Clemmensen faced 38 shots and stopped 35. Tampa Bay has a goal differencial of -26 in the third period even though they continue to outshoot their opponents in same frame.

This was the fourth time a game has gone to overtime in the five meetings between these two clubs. This loss for the Lightning is their sixth loss in seven games. Tampa Bay will continue their road-trip this week as they head to Canada to take on Toronto, Montreal and Ottawa.

SUNRISE, Fla. – The Florida Panthers have had a habit of knocking out top-tier goalies this week.

Marty Reasoner scored twice in a four-goal flurry in the first period that chased Buffalo All-Star goalie Ryan Miller in Florida’s 6-2 win over the Sabres at BankAtlantic Center in front of 16,894.

Two days after a three-goal lead in the opening minutes finished in a devastating 4-3 loss against Carolina, Florida (14-16-0) jumped on Buffalo and Miller just as it did against the Hurricanes and standout goalie Cam Ward, who was pulled Wednesday after just 1:42 of play.

Florida captain Bryan McCabe opened the scoring against Buffalo (13-15-4) at 1:40 when he fired a shot on Miller, grabbed the rebound away from teammate Reasoner and put the puck past Miller on the stick side.

Reasoner, an offseason acquisition from Chicago, soon tallied twice in a six-minute span. He took a pass from Evgeny Dadonov at the right circle and flipped a shot toward Miller, but the puck deflected off the skate of former Panther defenseman Steve Montador for a 2-0 lead. Jason Garrison later sent a long shot in from the blue line, which sailed past Miller to his right. The puck ricocheted off the end boards right to Reasoner on the other side, who beat Miller from a sharp angle at 14:08.

David Booth added a power-play goal for a 4-0 advantage, taking a pass from Michael Frolik on a swift rush led by Shawn Matthias. Miller was replaced at the first intermission.

It was the third time this year Florida scored four goals in a period, accomplishing the feat in its home opener against Tampa Bay on Oct. 16 and at the New York Islanders on Nov. 20. Reasoner’s two goals marked the fifth time a Panther has recorded two goals in a period, with Reason turning the trick first on opening night in a loss at Edmonton.

“We’ve chased a couple of the best in the business from the net, and that doesn’t happen too often for us,” said Florida coach Pete DeBoer. “We had another quick start, and this time we managed to finish it off.”

And the difference in the Carolina and Buffalo games, which both featured fierce competitors in the opposing crease and started with big leads?

“We handled it much better today,” DeBoer said. “It’s the next night in almost the same situation. I knew we’d be alright tonight. We were a better team tonight. Our battle level was better, we were more physically involved in the game tonight as opposed to the Carolina game.”

Florida’s offensive output thwarted Miller, who starred in net and helped the U.S. hockey team earn a silver medal in Vancouver in February’s Winter Olympics. Reasoner, who was originally credited with an assist on McCabe’s goal that was later changed to Dadonov, preventing Reasoner from a three-point period, said the key was to stay after the former Michigan State goaltender.

“He’s most likely going to make that first save, so you try to get to him, get traffic and a lot of rebounds. We got some bounces and capitalized on them,” said Reasoner, awarded the game’s first star.

Frolik scored his eighth goal off a cross-ice feed from Stephen Weiss near the end of the second period to make it 5-0. After Reasoner drew a hooking penalty with eight seconds left in the period, Weiss scored Florida’s last goal shorthanded just 13 seconds into the final period when Chris Higgins stole the puck on a forecheck behind replacement goalie Patrick Lalime and fed it to Weiss.

“It was just a better feeling,” DeBoer said. “(Reasoner’s) line was real good in the first period. That’s how we have to play. We have to get depth scoring. I thought Stephen Weiss was outstanding, and (goalie Tomas) Vokoun had a great bounce-back game. We were emotionally involved tonight, and that’s how we have to play.”

Vokoun made 41 saves in improving his record to 12-12.

Bill Whitehead
NHLHS Florida Panthers Credentialed Correspondent
Twitter: @BillWhiteheadFL
Email: BillWhiteheadFL@hotmail.com

Florida Panthers head coach Pete DeBoer has emphasized all season that his best players need to make plays. Scorers have to score, defensemen have to defend, checkers have to check, goaltenders have to tend net. Really, it all sounds so simplistic, but DeBoer’s “Our top guys have to play their best” mantra rang true when assessing Florida’s 4-3 overtime win Tuesday over the Colorado Avalanche at the BankAtlantic Center.

And on offense that comes down to a pair of players – center Stephen Weiss and left winger David Booth. The duo took over in the game’s last 25 minutes and rallied Florida from a pair of deficits then combined to score the game-winning goal just 43 seconds into overtime.

With Florida down 2-1 late in the second period and little buzz in the crowd on Throwback Night, Weiss tied it up by one-timing a pass from Steve Reinprecht, who was positioned behind former Panthers netminder Craig Anderson. Down 3-2 early in the third, Booth took a puck near the blue line, raced in and avoided the poke-check of Colorado’s David Jones and whipped a wrister under Anderson’s glove to tie it at 3.

The play of Booth and Weiss directly led to the win early in overtime. Weiss stole the puck in the corner and passed it to Booth, who moved into the right circle and fired his seventh shot of the game on Anderson’s short side. Weiss charged the net, used his right skate to control the puck and scored – falling to the ice and flipping a shot from a bad angle – after being hooked on the play. The 27-year-old Toronto native was then mobbed by his teammates as he picked himself up from the ice.

“I saw him get the puck, and he rarely doesn’t shoot,” said Weiss, whose earlier marker moved him into sole possession of third place on the franchise’s all-time points list with 296. “I got the rebound and tried to kick it up to my stick. I just shot it falling away, and it went in. It was a good job by (Booth) getting the puck to the net. It was a big goal for sure, just for the club and personally. It’s been a bit of a struggle, so it feels good to get it. Scored some big ones. Don’t really want to say that’s the biggest one of all time, but certainly to this point of the season it’s a big one.”

Added Booth, who has been pelting opposing goalies with numerous shots lately: “It’s about time something happened when I shoot the puck. That’s what I’ve been planning all year – shoot the puck and have guys get the rebounds. That was a good play by him to draw the penalty and put it in. I told him off the ice, ‘I can’t believe you put it in.’ He made a great play.”

As frustrating as the season has been at times so far, the 12th-place Panthers (12-14-0) were a perfect 3-0 in overtime over a 10-day stretch, with two of the wins by shootout, a trouble spot over the years. Florida stands nine points behind the eighth-place New York Rangers, and has three games in hand over the Blueshirts. Florida has also played just 11 of its 26 games at home in the BAC.

Plenty of hockey will be played out to determine those eight precious postseason positions in the Eastern Conference, and Booth and Weiss – Florida’s most skilled, dynamic players and DeBoer’s top offensive threats — will have to play often like they did against Colorado if the Panthers are to close the gap and break that dreaded 10-year playoff drought.

Bill Whitehead
NHLHS Florida Panthers Credentialed Correspondent
Twitter: @BillWhiteheadFL
Email: BillWhiteheadFL@hotmail.com

After New York goaltender Henrik Lundqvist had completely slammed the door on all of Florida’s 40 shots on goal last Friday in a 3-0 Rangers’ win — the Panthers’ third straight home loss in a frustrating Thanksgiving week — Florida’s Mike Santorelli was asked a good question: “Is it a good time to hit the road for a while?” The energetic center said maybe — questions in the dressing room lately have seemed like those “good questions,” you know, ones that are difficult to answer — and the Panthers proved they were up to the task the next night in a 4-3 shootout win at Tampa Bay.

That was the kind of game Florida (10-12-0) had been on the losing end of lately. The club could have easily tallied points against Pittsburgh and Boston, but late collapses and bad play at pivotal times left them pointless. But to win at Tampa Bay after regulation and in their first overtime game — and by shootout no less, a real problem over the years — was encouraging. It also had to feel good to be 2-0 against a state rival and quality team like the Lightning.

Now the Panthers hit the road to face the Pacific Division, the NHL’s most evenly contested group of teams and a division that clearly illustrates the current state of league parity. Four of the five teams have played the same amount of games (22), while just two points separate the top of the division (Dallas, Phoenix) from the bottom (Anaheim). All five have also scored between 63 and 66 goals. The only outlying numbers are Los Angeles’s and Anaheim’s goals allowed, 55 and 77, respectively. Simply put, it’s the tightest grouping of teams in all of hockey, so plenty is at stake every game.

Here is a look at the week ahead as the Panthers prepare for their three road games against Pacific Division clubs:

Anaheim, Wed. (10 p.m., ET) — The Ducks’ beginning of the season was a train wreck of sorts as they were really bad early and finished just 4-7-1 in October. However, Anaheim steamed ahead by winning six straight to start November, but slipped by going winless and earning just two points in their next six. The Panthers are catching the Ducks, who host rival Los Angeles Monday night, at the right time, as Anaheim (11-11-3) hasn’t been playing well and will put plenty of emotion into the Kings game.

Los Angeles, Thurs. (10:30 p.m.) — The biggest problem Florida could have with the Kings may be trying to beat top goalie Jonathan Quick (11-4, 1.91 GAA, .930 SV%). Los Angeles (13-9-0) is allowing just 2.50 goals per game, and the Panthers’ inability to find the net (2.59 goals per game) continues to be their primary concern — that and their current streak of going 0-for-36 on the power play. Florida could use the momentum of a win — or at least a power-play goal — in Anaheim before they head to the Staples Center.

Phoenix, Sat. (8 p.m.) — Sure, the Coyotes (11-6-5) have major attendance problems, which has been discussed frequently on Twitter. Have you seen a high-angle shot of a game at Jobing.com Arena? It takes a moment to realize those are fans sitting and watching a game and not stadium workers milling about and cleaning up an hour after the game has ended. But forget about that: The Coyotes — again — have a very strong club despite few there to witness their play. Offseason acquisitions Ray Whitney (3G + 13A), Lee Stempniak (7G + 6A) and Eric Belanger (4G + 8A) have made an immediate impact, while Ilya Bryzgalov (10-3-5) has been strong again in net. They were one of the surprises last year, so no club should take them lightly anymore — regardless of where they are playing or in front of how many.

It’s time for the Panthers, with a full three days off, to get back to work against a trio of good teams in the Pacific Division. And it will take some contributions from the club’s best players — David Booth, Stephen Weiss and Tomas Vokoun — to be successful out there.

This would not be the time for Florida to be West Coasting by and not giving it their best.

Bill Whitehead
NHLHS Florida Panthers Credentialed Correspondent
Twitter: @BillWhiteheadFL
Email: BillWhiteheadFL@hotmail.com

Let me get this straight: The Panthers have a team-record 55 shots on goal on one week ago, then back that up with 50 more 48 hours later? The Panthers? The Florida Panthers? Doesn’t sound like the team I’ve been watching the past few seasons. You know, the one that was outshot night-in and night-out. If you need a second opinion, just ask goaltender Tomas Vokoun.

But it is this year’s version of coach Pete DeBoer’s Panthers, and you get the feeling this is what he’s been striving for during his tenure as Florida’s bench boss. The third-year coach has preached the cycle, wants to wear teams down, beat them through the neutral zone with speed and put the puck on net — and that’s exactly what happened in homes games Wednesday and Friday against Atlanta and Carolina, respectively. And the offense revolves around the speed of left winger David Booth, who was a whirlwind both nights. The team put up 155 shots in the two games — the first time that’s been done in club history — and scored 10 goals, which is usually enough to win two games.

Was last week — with shots aplenty — a success? Certainly not in the standings. Losing two out of three to divisional opponents when two are home games and then ending the week with just a pair of points out of a possible six can’t be even remotely viewed as a success unless you’re playing Stanley Cup frontrunners, which Atlanta and Carolina aren’t. But the Panthers fully discovered its identity and showed what it is capable of, and it’s a different look from last year.

That team identity needs to be on full display Wednesday night against Toronto. The Leafs were blanked, 4-0, in Tampa on Tuesday, and the Cats should be ready to pounce on a club that was humbled, should be fatigued, is in disarray (losing nine of last 10, scoring just 15 goals) and is starting to feel even more pressure than what it gets daily from the Toronto media. Plus, the organization will honor legendary Panther goalie John Vanbiesbrouck, who was inducted into the Broward County Sports Hall of Fame on Tuesday. There should definitely be a good vibe buzzing through BankAtlantic Center when the Beezer drops the ceremonial puck.

There are no sure-fire wins in sports, but the well-rested Cats have no reason for a Leaf Letdown.

Bill Whitehead
NHLHS Florida Panthers Credentialed Correspondent
Twitter: @BillWhiteheadFL
Email: BillWhiteheadFL@hotmail.com