Sandis Vilmanis didn’t just show up for the Florida Panthers on Wednesday night - he took over the game.
With a four-point performance that fueled a 5-3 win over the Chicago Blackhawks at Amerant Bank Arena, Vilmanis helped Florida close out its homestand with a statement home victory. Sam Reinhart was right there with him, piling up three points and helping drive a Panthers attack that kept Chicago chasing all night.
Florida wasted no time setting the tone. Just 4:43 into the opening period, Reinhart slipped a slick pass to Vilmanis on an odd-man rush through the Chicago zone, and Vilmanis finished to make it 1-0.
“He's jumping on pucks so quick, and he's kind of exploding out of that,” Reinhart said of Vilmanis. “He's not waiting and looking for the play, he's moving and attacking right away, and things are starting to open up for him.”
The Panthers doubled the lead soon after. Brady Tkachuk redirected a Matthew Tkachuk pass between his legs and across the crease, where Carter Verhaeghe was waiting to bury it past Spencer Knight.
Florida then went through a quieter stretch in the first half of the second period, though it did kill off a pair of Chicago power plays. The offense eventually woke back up, and Vilmanis was at the center of it again.
He held onto the puck before slipping a centering feed to Seth Jones for Jones’ third goal of the season, and the assist gave Vilmanis the first multi-point game of his NHL career.
“He hung on to it,” Panthers head coach Paul Maurice said. “It goes to the idea of you realize there are places on the ice that you have a little bit more time, and he wasn't slow in that because he kept his motion, which kept drawing people to him and opened that lane up.”
Chicago answered about three minutes later when Roman Kantserov pounced on a deflected centering pass that had been partially blocked by Gus Forsling, cutting the Panthers’ lead to 3-1 with 3:12 left in the second.
That score held until midway through the third, when Alex Vlasic was whistled for tripping Vilmanis. The Panthers didn’t convert on the power play, but Chicago did get a short-handed jolt from Frank Nazar, who scored on a breakaway to pull the Blackhawks within one with 10:29 left.
Florida needed only 89 seconds to punch back.
Vilmanis collected the puck in the right circle and snapped a wrist shot short side past Knight to restore the two-goal cushion. It was his second goal of the night and the first multi-goal game of his NHL career.
“It means everything,” he said after the game. “It’s a special night that I will remember, for sure.
Chicago wasn’t done yet. Nazar struck again with just under four minutes remaining, beating Markstrom over the blocker to make it 4-3 and keep the pressure on.
But that was as close as the Blackhawks would get. With Knight pulled, Reinhart sealed it with an empty-net goal with 1:27 left.
Reinhart’s three-point night gave his line with Vilmanis and Verhaeghe a combined four goals and five assists. The chemistry has clearly been building, and Reinhart said the confidence boost has mattered.
“It’s been great,” said Reinhart. “Ever since we've got with him, it's been pretty great to see the change in his game.
You know, just a little bit of confidence goes a long way, and especially when you're kind of fresh in the league. Nothing but positive things to say about him.”
On to Washington.
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Panthers Got The Response They Needed From An Unexpected Difference Maker
Florida got the kind of answer it needed in a 5-3 win over Chicago, and the surprise of the night was Sandis Vilmanis, who kept popping up in the offense while the Panthers built an early 3-0 cushion. Sam Reinhart and Carter Verhaeghe also found the scoresheet, while Jacob Markstrom handled 18 shots in goal as Florida tried to steady itself after a stretch that demanded a cleaner, more complete response.
The Blackhawks made it interesting by cutting into the lead twice in the third period, but the Panthers did enough to keep control and leave with two points. For a team looking for reliable production beyond the usual names, Vilmanis gave them exactly the kind of lift that can change the tone of a game, even if the final minutes still asked a few uncomfortable questions. [Read more 🡒]
Brad Marchand Just Gave Panthers Fans The Return Clue They Needed
Brad Marchand and Sasha Barkov were both back on the ice in some form this week, a welcome sign for a Panthers team that has been waiting on two of its most important players to work their way through injury rehab. Marchand, who has been dealing with a left knee injury, spoke openly about the recovery process and sounded encouraged by where things stand, while Barkov also described his own rehab in positive terms as he continues skating.
The update matters because Florida is still trying to navigate life without two top-line pieces, and any hint of progress naturally draws attention. Marchand offered a clearer sense of his path back, while Barkov stopped short of putting a date on his own return, leaving the Panthers with optimism but still a little uncertainty about when the lineup will be whole again. [Read more 🡒]
Panthers Are Getting A Young Spark At The Perfect Time
Floridas 5-3 win over Chicago came with a timely jolt from Sandis Vilmanis, who helped tilt the night in the Panthers favor with a strong all-around effort. On a four-game NHL slate that also featured Adrian Kempes hat trick for the Kings and a few tight finishes elsewhere, Florida got the kind of young contribution that can matter a lot over the long haul.
Vilmanis was active in all the right ways as the Panthers kept pace in a game that had some back-and-forth to it before they pulled away. For a team looking to keep building depth and find more offense from within, a performance like this stands out, especially when it arrives in a game Florida needed to have. [Read more 🡒]