Panthers score four straight, rally past Red Wings as Anton Lundell nets the winner

By Vancouver Television Sports Desk

The Florida Panthers rallied from a three-goal deficit late in the second period to beat the Detroit Red Wings 5-4 at Amerant Bank Arena on Thursday, pulling off a stretch in which they scored four straight to complete the comeback. Anton Lundell scored twice for Florida, including the go-ahead goal with 2:40 remaining, while Sam Reinhart, Gustav Forsling and Lars Eller also contributed to the turnaround.

Florida improved to 11-7-2 after the win and won two in a row. Akira Schmid made 24 saves for the Panthers, who had fallen behind by a wide margin before tightening their play and finding timely scoring as the game progressed.

Detroit, which entered the game at 7-10-3, saw its losing skid reach five straight. The Red Wings received goals from J.T. Compher, Andreas Englund, Lucas Raymond and Marco Kasper, with John Gibson recording 24 saves in net.

The sequence that flipped momentum began late in the second period. Forsling cut Detroit’s lead to 4-2 at 19:42 when he scored on a wrist shot from the point that beat a screened Gibson to the glove side, setting the stage for Florida’s surge into the third.

Lundell then made it 4-3 early in the final frame at 2:32, just three seconds after a Florida power play expired. Verhaeghe’s shot deflected off the shin of Englund in the slot, and the puck landed near Lundell, who finished it at the right side to bring Florida within one.

Eller tied the game 4-4 at 16:29 with a goal that showcased Florida’s attack in Detroit territory. Niko Mikkola picked off a clearing pass along the left boards deep in the Detroit zone and slipped a pass out of the left corner to Eller in front; Eller batted the puck out of the air and into the right side of the net to level the score.

Lundell followed with the winning goal at 17:20, after Brady Tkachuk generated the attacking chance from the rebound of his own missed attempt. Tkachuk sent a no-look backhand pass across the slot while falling to the ice, and Lundell completed the finish from low in the right face-off circle to put Florida ahead for good.

Earlier in the game, the Panthers struck first. Reinhart opened the scoring at 3:52 of the first period when he took a pass from Verhaeghe in the left circle and sent a backhanded shot past Gibson.

Detroit responded quickly and then extended its lead with a four-goal run. Compher tied the game 1-1 just 15 seconds after Reinhart’s goal by finishing a breakaway, as Carter Mazur sprung him on the rush and Compher scored on the backhand at 4:07 after skating in from the blue line.

Englund pushed the Red Wings ahead 2-1 at 13:14 with a low shot from just inside the blue line. The puck deflected off the stick of Panthers defenseman Seth Jones and went over Schmid’s glove, giving Detroit the advantage.

Raymond made it 3-1 at 17 seconds of the second period, getting to a floating shot that struck Jones again and went past Schmid. Kasper then stretched the lead to 4-1 at 12:08 by tipping a shot by William Wallinder off the left post and in.

Kasper’s goal marked his first of the season after he came off injured reserve on Tuesday, adding another milestone to a Red Wings start that looked in control through two periods before Florida’s late surge.

For Florida, the comeback also reflected strong three-point production from Verhaeghe, who finished with three assists. Reinhart added two goals, while Forsling’s goal at 19:42 proved to be a pivotal moment that helped flip the game as the Panthers closed the scoring gap and then finished the comeback in the third.

With the Panthers taking the 5-4 decision, Detroit continues to search for a way out of its five-game skid, while Florida carries momentum forward after converting a late deficit into a victory at Amerant Bank Arena.

Both clubs posted the same goaltending total in the final standings of the game, with Schmid and Gibson each making 24 saves as the Panthers overcame a three-goal margin and ended the night with four straight goals to secure the win.