In Newark, the Florida Panthers pushed defensemen Mike Matheson and Mark Pysyk to the forward position and each responded with a goal and three points in a 5-3 win over the Devils on Tuesday night.
Frank Vatrano had a goal for the Panthers – file photo by Lewis Bleiman
“I don’t know if I’d call it fourth (line),” Florida coach Joel Quenneville said. “They were better than that. They really did set the tone for our team, playing the right way, they cycle and keep it simple.”
Sam Montembeault made 25 saves for the win; it was his first start since November.
Jack Hughes, Kevin Rooney and Kyle Palmieri scored for New Jersey.
“They didn’t look like defensemen out there to me,” Palmieri said. “Obviously, that’s their position, but they played well. They were hard on the pucks. The offense they generated was the way to you want to generate offense. They were cycling the puck, getting them up to the point men and they were going to the net hard.”
Frank Vatrano, Noel Acciari and Brett Connolly also scored for the Panthers.
“Those guys were fun to play with,” Acciari said. “They were strong in the right areas, at the right time. Three of our goals were right the crease area. At this time of year, you’re not going have all pretty goals. You’re going to need those gritty goals. It was great to see [Matheson] come back in the lineup. Maybe it wasn’t the position he was used to, but he had a heck of a game.”
[WATCH: All Panthers vs. Devils highlights]
Louis Domingue made 28 saves in the loss.
“The [fourth line] was simple,” the Devils’ Andy Greene said. “They got it in, they got it deep. They grind it out. You can’t be surprised by that. You’ve got to be ready for them. You can’t take them lightly. I’m not saying we did, but they are good players.”
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