Panthers Give the Devils Hell

What a SOLID performance by the Panthers tonight against the Devils. I wish I could have been at the BAC for tonight's victory, but because of work I had to catch this one on the radio for the first period, then on tv for periods 2 and 3. I was really nervous about this one. New Jersey was one of the hottest teams in the league coming into this game, and their similar style of play compared to the Panthers kind of worried me.

The Panthers put together a solid effort:
-Vokoun was exceptional
-Penalty kill was perfect
-Panthers had a powerplay goal
-Panthers were hitting (hell, even Vokoun hit twice!)
-Offensive contributions from the big guys (Horton, Stillman, Zednik and Weiss)
-Excellent defense

Everything just seemed to click tonight. I thought the second period was a COMPLETE domination by the Panthers. That powerplay goal by Zednik in the 2nd was key. That was a HUGE goal which built up the Panthers' confidence and they never looked back after that. I knew once Horton scored the third goal shortly after that we would likely get a shutout. They looked so confident out there tonight.

Just some observations:
How hot are Horton and Zednik right now?! Horton with 4 goals in his last 5 games, Zednik with those 2 against Toronto, the shootout winner against the Rangers, and now that powerplay goal tonight. I'm glad these guys are heating up, this is the perfect time. We are going to need them to stay hot throughout this stretch and into the playoffs.

The standings are JAM packed! There are now 4 teams with 66 pts, the Cats being one of them, along with Buffalo, New York Rangers, and the Montreal Canadiens. Every point the Panthers can get is crucial.

Vokoun is on FIRE! He has been amazing the past couple of games. Now I remember why we pay him 6 million dollars and why he's our #1 goaltender! I'm sorry I doubted you at the beginning of the season, TVo!

We got a little help out of town, Boston beat Carolina 5-1. Too bad Toronto couldn't beat Buffalo too, but oh well.

I just LOVE listening to Randy Moeller's goal calls on the radio! He's hysterical! Some of his very best:



AHHHH! I'M JUST SO HAPPY RIGHT NOW! With this victory I feel more confident that the Panthers really can compete with the top teams we face in the next couple of games. KEEP IT UP CATS!!