Panthers Outlast Red Wings 5-4 on a Rough Night for Goalies
Carter Verhaeghe feeds the attack while neither John Gibson nor Akira Schmid can hold back a game that had no business reaching nine goals
Florida beat Detroit 5-4, but this was not a goalie's night. Neither side created enough to expect nine goals.
The chances were close to even. By expected goals (how many goals a team's chances were worth), Detroit had 2.45 and Florida had 2.34. Florida held the edge in shot attempts, 63 to 47, and shots on goal were almost level at 29-28 for the Panthers.
The finish is what broke from the chances. John Gibson made 24 saves on 29 shots and allowed 5 goals against chances worth a little over two. Akira Schmid stopped 24 of 28 and let in 4, which was also more than Detroit's looks deserved. The bounces simply went in at both ends.
Carter Verhaeghe drove Florida's scoring with three assists, playing with Lars Eller and Sam Reinhart, who both scored. For Detroit, Moritz Seider set up two goals in 26:31 of ice time.
There was no help from the iron either. Neither team hit a post or crossbar.
