FLORIDA PANTHERS vs. MONTREAL CANADIENS
JANUARY 1, 2022
FLA Live Arena – Sunrise, Fla.
| FLORIDA PANTHERS | MONTREAL CANADIENS |
| 5 | 2 |
PANTHERS POSTGAME QUOTES
Forward Sam Reinhart
On the team’s resiliency:
“When you see one line going and playing with that speed, playing simple and attacking the game, it translates well to the next line and guys seem to feed off that. So, we were able to find that especially in that second period and find some success in the second half of that game.”
Forward Sam Bennett
On scoring two goals in his return to the lineup:
“It feels good. It’s never fun to sit out and watch the team, but it felt great to get back in the lineup and help contribute early and help the team get a win.”
On Jonathan Huberdeau:
“It is impressive. He is a heck of a player. The things he does on the ice every day, he’ll amaze me with something I’ve never seen him do. He is a heck of a player and I love playing with him. I am definitely happy for him.”
Interim Head Coach Andrew Brunette
On the team’s confidence:
“I think they believe in themselves. They know they’re a good team. I think over the past year we’ve learned a lot of different lessons, we’ve really built some resilience, some self-belief, and I think we’re learning—slowly at times—what it takes to be an elite team in this league and a game like today is evidence of that.”
On the team’s chemistry and consistency:
“I’ve been pretty fortunate to be around these guys even from the calendar year. They’ve been a joy to watch and to be around. They really care for each other. You know when you’re around really good teams or great teams—we’re kind of getting into that area where we’re growing into being an elite team in this league. To be a part of it, and to watch it, it’s pretty special.”
CATS STATS
- The Panthers earned their league-leading 17th home win of the season (17-3-0), their most wins through 20 home games to start a season in club history. The Cats have tallied at least five goals in 11 of their 20 home games this season.
- Florida earned their 11th comeback win of the season and tied the Lightning (11) for the most such victories among all teams.
- Jonathan Huberdeau notched three assists (0-3-3). With eight points (1-7-8) over his past two contests, he becomes the first player in club history to amass eight points over a two-game span twice in the same season (also 1-7-8, Nov. 30-Dec. 2).
- With 41 points (11-30-41) over 32 games this season, Huberdeau set a career high for fewest games required to reach the 40-point mark. Only Pavel Bure (29 GP in 1999-00) required fewer games to reach the mark in franchise history.
- Huberdeau currently owns the second-most assists (30) among league skaters, behind only Connor McDavid (33). He leads all NHLers with 21 points (4-17-21) and 14 even-strength points (3-11-14) over 11 games since Nov. 30.
- Sam Bennett tallied two goals (2-0-2), his second multi-goal game of the season. Bennett has amassed 32 points (17-15-32) over 36 regular season games as a Panther.
- Aleksander Barkov tallied a goal for the second consecutive game. He is tied with Anthony Duclair (12) for the club lead in goals scored this season.
- Frank Vatrano scored for the second straight game. He has produced three points (2-1-3) over his last two contests.
- Sam Reinhart notched two assists. He has posted three assists (0-3-3) over his past two games.
- Mason Marchment scored his second goal of the season, extending his point streak to three games (1-2-3) since missing 17 games with injury.
- MacKenzie Weegar notched an assist, extending his point streak to three games (1-3-4).
- Radko Gudas logged four hits to boost his career hit total to 2,028, surpassing Roman Polak (2,024) for most hits by a Czech Republic-born player in league history.
- Gustav Forsling led Florida with four blocked shots.
- The Panthers out-shot (48-31) and out-hit (29-25) the Canadiens. Florida’s 48 shots are their third-most in a game this season.
- Florida currently leads all NHL teams in goals scored (121) and shots on goal (1,169).
LOOKING AHEAD
Next up for the Cats — The Panthers are OFF tomorrow, January 2. The Cats will hold a practice at 10:30 A.M. on Monday, January 3 at the Panthers Ice Den in Coral Springs, Fla.
