Panthers Early Slump May Have Destroyed Playoff Hopes

The Florida Panthers are right in the thick of things in the playoff race in the Eastern Conference. They currently have 64 points with a record of 29-25-6. As of now, they hold the final wild-card spot in the East, trailing the New York Islanders for the top spot by three points.

Despite winning six of their last 10 games and receiving a ton of help last week in the standings, they inflicted a ton of damage on themselves earlier in the season. Poor defense and poor goaltending may have proved costly enough to find the Panthers outside looking in on the postseason once the regular season concludes.

Early Falters are Making Their Presence Known

Although Florida put themselves in the spot they’re in now, a lot of the teams chasing them have games in hand, such as the Detroit Red Wings with four and Pittsburgh Penguins with five. The losing streaks earlier in the season, such as two three-game losing streaks in November, are finally making their presence known.

Their slow starts have killed them in years past, most notably in 2017-18, where they would ultimately miss the playoffs by one mere point despite finishing the year with a five-game winning streak.

Teams are Catching up While Florida Rests

One of the big reasons some of the teams are getting closer with every game played is because of the Panthers’ current resting period. On Monday, Feb. 20, they won 4-3 in overtime against the Anaheim Ducks. They will not play another game until Friday, Feb. 24, against the Buffalo Sabres. In the time between, Pittsburgh played a game against the New York Islanders and will play one against the Edmonton Oilers on Feb. 23. Additionally, Detroit beat the Washington Capitals in regulation 3-1 on Feb. 21, and also play on Feb. 23 against the New York Rangers. Speaking of the Caps, they’ll play Anaheim on the 23rd.