Brynäs Wins, Panthers Come Up Short

Brynäs played Timrå today and skated away with a 3-2 victory, but Jacob Markström sat this one out.. no injuries and nothing to do with his four goals against on Tuesday, just a night off. Nashville prospect Anders Lindbäck stopped 19 of 21 for Brynäs...

Tomas Vokoun started the game tonight for the Cats and at the midway point, Anderson was expected to come in and play the second half of the game. Unlike last night, the opening period was pretty even, and more importantly, the play looked a lot better for the most part. Shots against were down overall, and there were plenty of players standing out -- most for the right reasons.

Not quite halfway through the first period, the Oilers capitalized on a nasty giveaway by Radek Dvorak, and Tyler Spurgeon's unassisted goal put Edmonton on top. Shots through the first were fairly even, favoring the Oilers 10-8.

When the second period started, the Panthers brought good energy, but play progressively spiraled and the Cats were playing sloppy hockey, making errant passes and skating freely with no apparent awareness of their position on the ice. This took away any options for setting up plays, and after a terrible power play, ultimately led to two more poor penalties and a goal for the Oilers during a 5-on-3. The Panthers got a pair of power play chances later in the period, but they were unable to convert on their chances, although they had begun to play a tighter game.

Into the third, Florida was quietly shutting Edmonton's offense down. Play was far from poetic, but the Panthers slowly had tilted the ice and things started to go their way. An ugly collison in front of the net and a goal credited to Dvorak, and then into the final two minutes of the third, a shot flipped on the net by Stefan Meyer and Anthony Stewart, in the right place at the right time, there to use the body and deflect the puck past Garon, and in the final ten minutes of the period, the Panthers had clawed back to a tie.

Rory Fitzpatrick, who probably assured his name be taken off the list of NHL candidates tonight, took a penalty in overtime, but the Panthers killed it off and forced the game into a shootout.

The player that stood out the most tonight for Florida was Kamil Kreps. He was everywhere, in on every play, offensively, defensively.. he did it all, and he was rewarded as the third shooter in the shootout, preceded by Rostislav Olesz and Michael Frolik.

Into the shootout, Olesz came in and, moving to the backhand, tried to feed the puck through the five-hole, but Garon slammed the door shut. Sam Gagner followed with a beautiful goal to which Anderson had no chance, and then Michael Frolik took his chance in the shootout. The move was top-notch and Frolik had a beauty of his own. The Oilers' new acquisition, Gilbert Brule, rang his effort off the crossbar and the shootout was tied going into the final round. Kreps was up, and after getting Garon to bite on a move, he lost control of the puck and it slid away. The miss gave Pouliot the opportunity to win it, and a good backhand did just that.

So tonight was a great game for the Czechs - Kreps, Frolik and Olesz. Anthony Stewart played like a new man; and for his second game this pre-season, like a player that knows now is as good a chance as ever for him to make the right impression. Peter Aston made use of his modest ice time, blocking a few shots and taking a few of his own. Ellerby was impressive and Welch's play only helps his case for starting opening night.

Only Steve MacIntyre and Rory Fitzpatrick had games to truly forget. I think whatever (slim as it was) chance of them winning a spot is now completely out of reach. Skrastins and Murphy had rough spots as well, but were, for the most part, solid.