ST. LOUIS — In a thrilling showdown on Thursday night, Matthew Tkachuk netted his second goal just 12 seconds before the final buzzer, securing a 3-2 win for the Florida Panthers against the St. Louis Blues.
Tkachuk, who also contributed an assist earlier in the match, was instrumental in the Panthers’ success, along with Mackie Samoskevich, who managed to score, and Spencer Knight, who made an impressive 20 saves to help Florida achieve its fourth victory in the last five outings.
The Blues saw contributions from Zack Bolduc, who recorded a goal and an assist, as well as Oskar Sundqvist, who also found the back of the net. Despite Joel Hofer making 31 saves in goal, St. Louis was unable to overcome their recent slump, marking their sixth loss in seven games.
In terms of key developments, Samoskevich made his return to the lineup after missing three games due to illness, only to exit with an upper-body injury and not return to the ice. For the Blues, forward Mathieu Joseph made his comeback from illness, while Alexandre Texier was sidelined for the same reason. Additionally, defenseman Tyler Tucker missed his second game in a row due to an upper-body issue but is still considered day-to-day.
The decisive moment of the match came when Tkachuk scored after a shot from Sam Reinhart deflected off him in front of the goal. Initially, Reinhart was given credit for the goal, but it was later attributed to Tkachuk.
On a statistical note, Tkachuk’s goal extended his scoring streak to five games, showcasing his offensive prowess with a total of six goals and five assists during this period.
Looking ahead, both teams are set to compete again on Saturday in their last games before a two-week hiatus for the 4 Nations Face-Off. The Panthers will take on Ottawa, while the Blues will face off against Chicago.