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National Hockey League
Florida 4, Columbus 3
When: 7:00 PM ET, Saturday, January 14, 2017
Where: BB&T Center, Sunrise, Florida
Referees: Dan O'Rourke, Evgeny Romasko
Linesmen: Tim Nowak, Pierre Racicot
Attendance: 14795

SUNRISE, Fla. -- One night after losing to the worst team in the Eastern Conference, the incredibly inconsistent Florida Panthers knocked off the best team in the NHL.

Jonathan Marchessault scored the go-ahead goal, and Jaromir Jagr added what became the game-winner to lead Florida to a 4-3 victory over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Saturday night at the BB&T Center.

In a battle of backup goalies -- James Reimer for Florida and Joonas Korpisalo for Columbus -- the Panthers (20-17-8) prevailed over the Blue Jackets (29-9-4).

Reimer, who had 30 saves -- two more than Korpisalo -- helped the Panthers atone for their loss to the New York Islanders on Friday night.

"Anytime you lose a game the night before, and you get a chance to redeem yourself, you want to get that win," said Panthers center Vincent Trocheck, who had a goal and an assist against the Jackets.

Trocheck, who has 13 points in his past 10 games, used the word "legit" to describe Columbus.

"They have so many skilled guys," said Trocheck of the Blue Jackets, who got goals from Scott Hartnell, Cam Atkinson and Boone Jenner. "Beating a team like them makes this feel sweeter."

After Jenner's goal made it 4-3 with 6:17 expired in the third, Columbus put a lot of pressure on Reimer, especially in the final few minutes.

"We had chances, but we shot pucks wide," Columbus coach John Tortorella said. "You have to play the percentages -- at least get the puck onto the goalie and look for some rebounds. We were trying to be way too fine.

"I thought their goalie (Reimer) was struggling. ... We just weren't good enough."

Florida scored first, getting a goal with 11:38 left in the first period. Aaron Ekblad fired a cross-ice pass to Shawn Thornton, who scored into an open left side of the net. For the 39-year-old Thornton, it was his first goal since Dec. 20 of 2015 and also career point No. 100.

"I would think it was an accomplishment if it didn't take me (674) games," said Thornton, a defensive-minded forward. "I think everyone is surprised whenever I score."

Columbus tied the score with a power-play goal just over two minutes later. Following a tripping penalty on Jagr, Ryan Murray's shot was deflected in by Hartnell.

The Jackets went up 2-1 with 1:50 left in the first period as Atkinson scored unassisted. After Panthers defenseman Jakub Kindl failed to clear the puck in his own end, Atkinson pounced on the turnover and beat Reimer with a high wrist shot.

Florida tied the score 2-2 with 11:36 left in the second period. Columbus' Matt Calvert was in his own end when he was taken off the puck along the right boards on a hit from Jason Demers. That got the puck to Trocheck who scored on a bad-angle shot that went through the pads of Korpisalo.

The Panthers took a 3-2 lead when Marchessault stole the puck from Markus Nutivaara in the Columbus zone, swept in on Korpisalo from the left side, holding fire and finally shooting when he was to the right of the net.

"It was an unfortunate bounce there for 'Nuti'," Hartnell said of his teammate's clear attempt. "It just seemed like we couldn't recover from that."

Florida stretched its lead to 4-2 on a goal by Jagr with 18:33 left in the third period. Trocheck, on the move from left to right, got the puck to the net, and Jagr took a whack at the rebound, barely getting it over the line for career goal No. 757.

Jenner's goal with 13:43 left in the third period beat Reimer to the stick side, cutting Columbus' deficit to 4-3.

"You have to be careful because they can come back and score three goals quickly," Jagr said of the Jackets. "They've done it in past games."

Not this time, though, as the Panthers completed an odd 27 hours -- losing to the worst and then beating the best.

NOTES: Columbus G Sergei Bobrovsky, who leads the NHL with 26 wins, missed his third straight game due to illness and was sent home. G Anton Forsberg was recalled to serve as the backup. ... Panthers G Roberto Luongo was rested. ... The Panthers wore "FLL" decals on their helmets in honor of the victims of last week's deadly shooting at the Fort Lauderdale airport. FLL is the airport code. ... The Blue Jackets, who have never won a playoff series in their 16-year history, entered Saturday with the most points in the NHL, thanks in large part to a 14-0-0 December. ... Panthers LW Seth Griffith, who missed four straight games due to a concussion and then returned Friday, was scratched. ... Panthers C Greg McKegg (undisclosed injury) missed his fourth straight game. ... Four Panthers are all out until at least next month: LW Jonathan Huberdeau; C Aleksander Barkov, C Nick Bjugstad and D Alex Petrovic.
Top Game Performances
 
Columbus   Florida
Seth Jones 2 Points Vincent Trocheck 2
Cam Atkinson 1 Goals Vincent Trocheck 1
Seth Jones 2 Assists Vincent Trocheck 1
Scott Hartnell 1 Power Play Goals N/A
N/A Short Handed Goals N/A
Joonas Korpisalo .875 Save Percentage James Reimer .909
Joonas Korpisalo 28 Saves James Reimer 30
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Columbus 33 3 1-3 3-3 10 31
Florida 32 4 0-3 2-3 10 43
Upcoming Games
  • Florida will play their next game on the road against Calgary. The Panthers have a W/L % of .300 after a win and .560 after a loss.
  • Columbus will play their next game at home against Carolina. The Blue Jackets have a W/L % of .700 after a win and .667 after a loss.