SUNRISE - The Florida Panthers keep putting themselves in the same spot early this season, and so far it hasn’t really stopped them.
Through eight games of the 2026-27 campaign, Florida has scored first only once. That came in the season opener, a 1-0 overtime win over the Carolina Hurricanes. The Panthers also had not carried a lead into the third period until Tuesday’s 7-3 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets.
That pattern showed up again Thursday night in Vancouver. Florida spent much of the opening period pushing the play, only to watch the Canucks take a 2-0 lead. It was a reminder that the Panthers’ starts have been messy, even if the overall results have often held up.
Thursday stood out as something of an exception, because Florida looked as sharp as it has all season in the first period and still went to the intermission down two goals.
“We talked about this before the game,” Paul Maurice said. “Sometimes, when you’re on the road, you take it a little bit.
So, it’s not that big of a deal. But we need to be strong in the first.”
Seth Jones echoed the same frustration about the slow-opening script.
“We would love to come out and get the first goal, it just has not gone that way for us. It is hard when you are chasing it every night, trying to come from behind every game.
You don’t want to open the game up, and that’s not the way we play. We got off to a great start tonight, we just couldn’t get the first one.
But, getting that first one is important to how we set up our entire game.”
Even with the sluggish starts, Florida has found ways to stay in games. In seven contests where the Panthers have trailed, they’ve earned at least a point in five and won three of those games outright.
Thursday was another example. Brady Tkachuk scored two unanswered goals in the third period to tie it, then finished off his second natural hat trick in as many games with the overtime winner in a 3-2 victory against the Canucks.
That result gave Florida back-to-back wins for the first time this season. The Panthers will now try to make it three in a row Saturday against the Seattle Kraken.
The game is set for 6 p.m. at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise.
Saturday’s meeting is the second of the season between the teams. The Panthers play at Seattle on Jan.
- Last season, the series was split 1-1, and Seattle leads the all-time regular season series 6-2-2.
Florida’s next game after Saturday comes Wednesday at the Ottawa Senators at 7:30 p.m.
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