Daniil Tarasov: Another Gem Found by the Florida Panthers Goaltending Department

Alex Lyon and Anthony Stolarz found success upon being signed by the Florida Panthers goaltending department headed by Roberto Luongo. Daniil Tarasov seemingly has as well.

Tarasov is the latest Florida backup goalie to kickstart his career upon being acquired by the Panthers, and, after some inconsistent years with the Columbus Blue Jackets, he says he could not be happier to be here.

“Personally, for me and my family, we love it,” Tarasov said last week, a day after he made 27 saves in a 2-1 win over the Colorado Avalanche to improve his record to 5-6-2.

“It is just a great organization, great group of guys. Everyone just takes care of each other. It is really a great situation.’’

The Panthers acquired Tarasov in a trade with the Blue Jackets just before free agency opened when it appeared Columbus was probably not going to make him an offer sheet and allow him to be a free agent.

Florida did not want to take any chances. This was a goalie they targeted as a good fit not only for them, but for him as well.

His close relationship with Sergei Bobrovsky — the two are from the same city in Russia, and have other ties as well — seemed like a natural fit.

“When it happened, it was in my mind that this was a great opportunity for me after the years in Columbus,’’ Tarasov said.

“This was certainly going to be a challenge for me, personally, because it is not always easy to change teams in the NHL. I had only played for Columbus. But there were not issues here. I have been treated like one of the guys since the very first day. When the trade happened, I got a lot of calls and texts from players, management. I felt like I was part of the group right away.’’

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When it comes to that record, let’s not pretend Tarasov was at fault in many of his starts.

In the early going, the Panthers just were not scoring a lot of goals.

Tarasov did not get his first win with the Panthers until his fifth start, a 37-save performance against Washington.

After going 0-3-1 to kick things off, he is 5-3-1 since.

“The poor fellow came in here, got off to a great start, and we gave him no run support,” Paul Maurice said. “This was when we were having some offensive issues. His game was good, we just couldn’t get over the hump for him.”

Said Tarasov: “I had a few games like that in Columbus over the years, so I knew how to handle it. I knew there would be a stretch in a season where those games happen, it just happened at the start.”

Tarasov places one of the losses solely on himself.

On Dec. 30, Tarasov and Sam Montembeault had a dueling shutout going into the third period with the Panthers getting goals from Brad Marchand and Sam Reinhart for a 2-0 lead with 4:59 remaining in the game.

But Cole Caufield scored just 32 seconds after Reinhart did — and the Canadiens kept coming.

In the final minute with Montembeault on the bench for the extra attacker, Tarasov went to play the puck behind the net. A miscommunication with defenseman Aaron Ekblad led to Nick Suzuki’s tying goal with 1:22 left.

Suzuki won it on a 4-on-3 power-play goal in overtime.

“I felt really bad after Montreal,” Tarasov said. “But I had to get over it, make sure it did affect me or the team in the next one. …

“But Montreal, you can’t be giving up two goals in the final 5 minutes. That last one, that’s on me. I was pissed at myself for that. But, we got a point, we all had a great New Year with all the families together. We had the outdoor game. We didn’t get a win, but we all had such a good time as a team.’’

He did not have much time to dwell on the loss, although the Colorado start did come five days — and a Winter Classic in Miami — later.

Tarasov was strong against the top offensive team in the NHL, holding the Avalanche to just a single goal by Arturri Lehkonen midway through the first.

“Against Colorado, everyone really gave a huge effort,’’ Tarasov said. “It was a team win. Everyone battled for each other in that one. It gives you extra emotion in the middle of a season when you know how good the team you are playing is.”

Goalies need to have a short memory when it comes to bad ones — like the Montreal game — yet rely on the good ones like stoning Colorado to keep moving forward.

“It’s a collective memory,’’ Maurice said. “If you have a bad one at the end of a game, you get the opportunity to have a great one at the end of a game. Now, you can feel that you’re building them. We certainly don’t expect perfection in the sport that we play, but when you’re new, you want to have many really positive collective memories. …

“I think our defensive game has gotten stronger here where he was in a position where you are 5 minutes away, thinking this would be great for him, if we can close the door here. Then you get a kick in the teeth and now he has to start from scratch a little bit. So, you get a win against Colorado and you get to keep that one. You had a big part in that. That’s a keeper, and it’s shared with everyone.’’

ON DECK: GAME No. 45

FLORIDA PANTHERS at BUFFALO SABRES 

• When: Monday, 7 p.m.
• Where: KeyBank Center, Buffalo
• Local TV: Scripps Sports — WSFL 39 (Miami/FTL); WPTV 5/WHDT 9 (WPB); LAFF 36.3 (SWFla)
• Streaming: Panthers+; ESPN+
• Radio: WQAM; WBZT 1230-AM (Palm Beach); WCTH 100.3-FM (Florida Keys); SiriusXM
• Panthers Radio Streaming: SiriusXM 932, NHL App
• Last Season: Panthers Won 3-1
• This Season (Sabres Lead 1-0) — At Buffalo: Sabres 3, Panthers 0 (Oct. 13); Monday. At Florida: Feb 2; Feb. 27.
• All-time Regular Season Series: Florida leads 60-47-8, 4 ties
• Up Next for the Panthers: Thursday at Carolina Hurricanes, 7