Colby Guy
SUNRISE — Sergei Bobrovsky has been one of the league’s top goaltenders this season and on Wednesday, the Florida Panthers needed him to be at his best against the visiting Flyers.
Bobrovsky, who now boasts a 9-0-2 record with a .940/1.60, most definitely was.
Stopping 32 of Philadelphia’s 33 shots, Bobrovsky helped keep the Panthers in the game when they struggled to convert on multiple scoring chances.
Florida ended up pulling out a 2-1 win in overtime.
“Shoutout to Bob, he stood on his head again,” said Sam Bennett, who tied the game at 1 early in the third period.
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“He has been playing unbelievable. Even when we’re not putting up a bunch of goals, we still feel confident that we’re going to win games.”
Through his 12 starts, Bobrovsky ranks sixth in the league in goals-against-average and he is tied for second in the league in save percentage among goaltenders with at least seven starts.
“He is top 1-2-3 in the league this year. He’s been unbelievable,” Aaron Ekblad said of his goaltender.
“Really happy for him, he’s one of the hardest-working players in the league.”
Bobrovsky’s work ethic has followed him throughout his career, and it all stems from his beginnings in Novokuznetsk, Russia.
“I’m from a small, small town in Russia and all I got is hard work,” Bobrovsky said in a rare candid moment Wednesday night.
“I had to make my way up into the NHL, into the position where I am to be the hockey player I am. I love the game and I love everything with the game.”
Now, 550 games into his NHL career, the 33-year-old is thankful for where that work ethic has taken him.
“I’m thankful for lots of things in my life,” Bobrovsky said. “I’ve got [a] great family and a great, healthy daughter now and I play in a great place with great teammates.
“I’m happy and I’m thankful for a lot of things.”
Florida fans have a lot to be happy about as well.
The Panthers tied the NHL record for most consecutive wins at home to start a season, matching the 1963-64 Chicago Blackhawks’ record of 11 straight.
“There was a big feeling of pride and joy in the locker room after that win,” Bennett said. “It wasn’t an easy one and we’re proud of how we’re playing at home.
“It’s a lot of fun playing in front of our fans and getting wins at home, so we’re gonna love to keep doing that.”
They didn’t have an easy time getting that 11th win in a row, however.
In the first period, they outshot the Flyers 16-14, holding onto possession for most of the frame.
However, it was Joel Farabee who scored the opening goal of the game, a breakaway goal on Bobrovsky 7:33 into the game to give Philadelphia the 1-0 advantage.
Through the second period, it was more of the same.
The Panthers had a boatload of quality scoring chances but no dice. They had 26 shots on net at the intermission and Martin Jones stopped all of them.
“When you’re getting those chances, you feel that one’s going to go in at some point,” Ekblad said.
“You just stick with the gameplan, keep wearing them down. They were on the second half of a back-to-back. We knew if we kept coming after them in the third, they’d get tired, and ultimately, we found a way to get the job done.
Just under four minutes into the third period, they did just that.
Anthony Duclair sent over a laser of a pass to Bennett, who was screening the goaltender, and he potted it into the net to tie the game with a power play marker.
That goal was Florida’s first on the power play goal since Nov. 6, when Patric Hornqvist scored the third of Florida’s power play goals in a 5-2 win over Carolina.
They went 0-19 on the power play before Wednesday.
Bennett, who has been playing on the first line with Sasha Barkov out of the lineup, has been crucial in keeping the Panthers afloat in their 3-0-0 stretch since his injury.
“He’s up for a challenge,” interim head coach Andrew Brunette said. “He’s one of those guys that anything you give, he’s ready to go and he loves it. He’s a really competitive kid and he’s just ‘you give it to me and I’ll take it.’”
The Panthers finished the game 1-2 on the power play after getting another opportunity late in the third period after Ivan Provorov took a cross-checking penalty with 3:29 to go.
The Flyers’ penalty kill held strong that time, sending the game into overtime.
Florida held possession for most of overtime to start out, outshooting Philadelphia 6-0 in the frame at the time, before Cam Atkinson took the puck the other way and had a breakaway on Bobrovsky.
Officer Bob was on the case there — making a huge save against his old pal from Columbus to keep the game alive.
“He’s a good player,” Bobrovsky said. “I just had to squeeze the gap between, that was the key thing, and I was fortunate enough [for it to] hit my pad [and the] post.”
Moments later, the Panthers would get their chance to score, and they did.
Off of a faceoff, Jonathan Huberdeau found Ekblad in the slot with 2:11 to go in overtime and he wristed it home for the overtime winner.
“It was great,” Brunette said on Ekblad’s effort.
“I think he had 10, 11, 12 shot attempts. He’s all around it and it was nice to see him get rewarded tonight.”