Sam Reinhart has 6th hat trick, Panthers beat Flyers

Followers have been throwing hats onto the ice early within the third interval to pay tribute to Sam Reinhart, after they thought he obtained his third aim of the night time.

Small downside: They have been improper. That aim wasn’t his.

Seems, the hats simply got here early. Reinhart wound up getting the third aim in spite of everything, Carter Verhaeghe scored twice and the Florida Panthers pushed their successful streak to 5 video games by beating the Philadelphia Flyers 6-3 on Thursday night time.

“Simply type of delayed it a bit,” Reinhart mentioned. “Good to get the win on the finish.”

Jonathan Huberdeau and Aaron Ekblad every had 4 assists for Florida. Anthony Duclair additionally scored, and Aleksander Barkov had two assists for Florida, which tied a season finest by scoring thrice on the ability play.

Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 34 photographs for the Panthers, enhancing to 18-3-1 in his final 22 outings.

Huberdeau has 64 assists on the season, amending his personal Florida single-season document. He had 62 within the 2018-19 season in 82 video games; Thursday was his 58th recreation of this season.

Huberdeau had an open web on the finish for a straightforward aim; as an alternative, he shoved the puck to Reinhart for the hat trick.

“Earlier than the shift, I informed him, ‘When you’re open, I’ll move it to you,’” Huberdeau mentioned. “It was nice. He is been enjoying so nicely this yr.”

James van Riemsdyk, Cam Atkinson and Travis Konecny scored for the Flyers, who have been bidding to match a season-best by successful three straight video games. Carter Hart stopped 31 photographs.

“I assumed we performed onerous,” van Riemsdyk mentioned. “Clearly, their energy play — I do not know if they’d, what, two or three on that, and that is an enormous a part of their success. However I assumed we performed onerous and responded in some conditions.”

The Panthers toyed with the Flyers for the primary 20 minutes, going up 4-0 with the ultimate three targets coming in a span of 5:18. Each of Reinhart’s targets got here off photographs by Huberdeau — one was a redirection, the opposite was a blast that Hart saved however bounced into the air and ended up within the web after a baseball-style swing by Reinhart.

Verhaeghe’s targets have been each from the fitting facet of the excessive slot. It was the primary time in practically 22 years that two Panthers had a number of targets in the identical interval; on April 5, 2000, Ray Whitney and Ray Sheppard every had two within the second interval of a 6-3 Florida win over Boston.

“Did not come out too nice within the first,” Hart mentioned. “They seem to be a good hockey crew. We all know that.”

However an enormous hit and dangerous final result obtained Philadelphia going.

Philadelphia’s Scott Laughton carried the puck into the zone and obtained checked by Florida’s Petteri Lindbohm, a tough hit however one which appeared clear and no penalty was referred to as. Laughton wound up going into the boards and remained on the ice, clearly harm. He wound up leaving the sport with what the Flyers referred to as a head harm and didn’t return.

Konecny went at Lindbohm — who was making his Panthers debut and his first NHL look since 2017 — after the play and each picked up preventing majors. That’s when the Flyers started hitting Florida the place it harm most, scoring three targets in a 10-minute span to get inside 4-3. Konecny capped the flurry with 1:08 left within the second.

Duclair’s power-play rating with 13:01 left gave Florida a two-goal lead once more, and Reinhart obtained the empty-netter with 2:06 remaining.

“Nonetheless obtained a variety of hockey left,” Panthers interim coach Andrew Brunette mentioned. “Hopefully, the numbers will maintain going the way in which they are going.”

HITTING THE ROAD

Florida performs its subsequent seven video games on the highway — over two journeys. The Panthers open a four-game West swing Sunday at Los Angeles and transfer on to San Jose, Vegas and Anaheim. After six days off, a three-game, four-night Canadian swing awaits from March 24-27 at Montreal, Ottawa and Toronto. The Panthers aren’t dwelling once more till going through Montreal on March 29.

NOTES: The 4 assists for Ekblad have been a profession finest. Huberdeau has executed it 4 occasions. … South Florida native Jonathan India, the reigning NL rookie of the yr for the Cincinnati Reds, was in attendance — on the day that baseball struck a deal to finish its lockout. … Verhaeghe has his second three-game goalscoring streak of the season, and Thursday marked his one hundredth common season recreation with the Panthers. … Flyers captain Claude Giroux appeared in his 997th recreation, all with Philadelphia. He might get No. 1,000 subsequent Thursday at dwelling towards Nashville. … Flyers D Keith Yandle, a former Florida blueliner, performed in his 979th consecutive recreation to increase his NHL document.

UP NEXT

Flyers: At Carolina on Saturday.

Panthers: At Los Angeles on Sunday night time.