GARRIOCH: Senators continue to roll with surprising 8-2 win over Florida Panthers

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Senators 8, Panthers 2

There is no better place than the Sunshine State for Ottawa Senators to report that they are sizzling.

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Led by a three-point night from center Josh Norris, along with 35 saves by Anton Forsberg, the Senators posted a convincing 8-2 victory over the Florida Panthers Tuesday night at the FLA Live Arena.

While Norris had a two-goal effort to lead the way, Brady Tkachuk, Nick Paul, Drake Batherson, Tim Stuetzle, Austin Watson and Dylan Gambrell also contributed as the Senators won for the fifth time in six games. Forsberg has recorded all five victories and the senators paid off for this victory.

The eight goals were the most Ottawa has scored against Florida in franchise history.

This was just the Panthers’ second home loss in 16 games this season. The senators have now won two games in a row and done it in style. They are playing better defense by not giving up on the great opportunities that have landed on their net in the past.

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After posting a 4-0 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday at home, the Senators wanted to pick up where they left off against the Panthers. Florida came into this game with just one loss in their last 15 home games, so this was going to be a tall order.

The Panthers are one of the best teams in the league. They entered this game as the third highest scoring team in the NHL with 101 goals in 27 games. They didn’t have forward Aleksander Barkov, but they did have former Ottawa winger Anthony Duclair return from an upper body injury.

The Senators knew they had their hands full with this challenge, but the club extended its winning streak to three straight games. The only loss in this six-game stretch was a 5-3 decision against the New York Islanders at home last week with Filip Gustavsson at the net.

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“It’s the next turn and the next guy. There’s a really good feeling in that room right now, but we have to make sure we keep our foot on the pedal, “said coach DJ Smith. “When you go through the stretch we went through in November, with guys out and losing, we enjoy victory and success against good teams.

“We are ready to do whatever it takes to win a hockey game.”

Paul, with his first in 17 games, Tkachuk, Batherson and Norris took this one with goals in the third over Florida substitute Spencer Knight. The Panthers were very frustrated.

“We just needed a couple of wins under our belt to get that feeling back in the room,” Paul said. “When you are losing, things go wrong. Right now, we are working hard together. “

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Outbid by the Panthers 13-8 in the second period, the Senators relied on a strong effort from Forsberg and beat Knight three times for a 4-2 lead in the third period.

Stuetzle fired Knight’s shot from the slot at 17:26 of the second to give the club a two-goal lead. That was the result of a good job by Connor Brown keeping the puck in the Florida zone and then passing Stuetzle into the slot to set up his fourth of the season.

Just 39 seconds after the Panthers tied, Norris scored his thirteenth place of the season at 4:12 p.m. by beating Knight Low to restore the club’s lead to 3-2. The referees lost it completely and allowed the game to continue for another 34 seconds until the replay booth honked to confirm it was a goal.

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A terrible draw by Zach Sanford in the Ottawa final allowed Sam Reinhart to tie Florida 2-2 with his ninth of the season at 15:33.

If you want to see an area that has made a difference, look no further than the death penalty. The club has scored 14 consecutive penalties dating back to the club’s 6-5 victory over the Colorado Avalanche on December 4 at home. The Panthers were 0-for-6 on the power play in this one.

If that wasn’t enough, Gambrell scored his first in 15 games with Ottawa with few players to give the Senators a 2-1 lead just 1:30 in the second. He received a pass from Connor Brown, skated solo and beat Knight on the glove side for the first time since April 10 when he was with San Jose.

“As long as you can contribute, it feels good to help the team,” Gambrell said. “We just stood firm, we supported each other and that has led us to have a lot of confidence.”

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The Panthers drew 1-1 at 1:05 pm of the first. After winning the head-to-head in the Ottawa area, Jonathan Huberdeau fought off a check and scored his 10th of the season by beating Forsberg at the stickside.

Senators were the first to rise to the board.

Watson did a good job going to the front of the net. He picked up a rebound from a Thomas Chabot shot from the spot to beat Knight for his second of the season.

The Senators have played the best hockey we’ve seen this season in the last two weeks.

“I don’t think we had a lot of practices and COVID-19 really affected us at the beginning of the month (November), and now we have the opportunity to practice so that the coaches can implement their systems,” said general manager Pierre Dorion in an interview with TSN Tuesday. “We are playing hard. Guys are finding ways to win instead of finding ways to lose. “

The Senators will face the Bolts on Thursday in Tampa as this journey continues.

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Twitter: @sungarrioch