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Wednesday, Dec. 15 7:30pm ET
Shtalenkov passes third-period test | |||||
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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) -- Mikhail Shtalenkov wasn't tested at all in the second period. He rose to the occasion after that. Shtalenkov stopped 10 of 11 shots in the third period and Pavel Bure's eighth goal in the last eight games snapped a tie and lifted the Florida Panthers to a 3-2 victory over Nashville on Wednesday night. Florida, 12-2-1 at home and winners of four of its last five games, also defeated Nashville 4-2 Saturday. The Predators, who blew a four-goal lead before tying Tampa Bay Tuesday, is 0-4-1 in its last five games. Shtalenkov, who became the Panthers No. 1 goaltender when Trevor Kidd dislocated his right shoulder in a league-mandated skills competition Monday, had 15 saves, including a sprawling stop at the buzzer on Sergei Krivokrasov's shot from the slot. "My goal is to be consistent and try to win as many games as possible," Shtalenkov said. "I always feel good when the team wins, but maybe I didn't play great, they scored two goals like on eight shots." Shtalenkov was penalized for using an illegal stick with 3:12 left in the game but withstood a 20-second two-man advantage. Apparently, the Predators realized Shtalenkov's blade was too wide in the first period, but the coaches decided to wait until the right time to alert the officials. "It was my fault," Shtalenkov said. "I have to be more aware of it." Cliff Ronning's power-play goal at 4:28 of the third period, his 14th, made it 2-2. The Panthers countered four minutes later when Scott Mellanby, from behind the Nashville net, sent a pass right onto Bure's stick, who swatted it past Mike Dunham for his 15th goal. Bure also had an assist. Florida outshot Nashville 10-1 (30-17 overall) in the second period with Ray Whitney and Cam Stewart scoring goals 34 seconds apart to give the Panthers a 2-1 lead. "In the second period we spent too much time in our end," Trotz said. "It was a tough game for (Shtalenkov) because in the second period he really could've fallen asleep." Their one shot tied a franchise-low in any period for the Predators. A double-minor to Stewart led to Ronning's tying goal. Ronning snuck a wrist shot past Shtalenkov for his 14th goal. "It was a tough game for Shtalenkov because we didn't pepper him with a lot of shots," Predators coach Barry Trotz said. "But I look at the wins and losses, and he won the game." Trailing 1-0 after a first-period goal by Greg Johnson, Whitney skated away from the corner with the puck and backhanded it in to forge a 1-1 tie at 3:30 of the second. Whitney's 11th goal came on a power play, only Florida's third in its last 48 opportunities. Just 34 seconds later, Oleg Kvasha stole the puck deep in the Panthers' end and sent a blind backhand pass to Stewart, who shoveled in his third goal. Johnson, brother of Panthers' Ryan Johnson, gave the Predators a 1-0 lead at 13:27 of the first period. Shtalenkov, 34, was Player of the Month for Phoenix in October when he compiled a 7-2-2 mark with a 1.80 goals-against average. "We know that Shtalenkov is going to play his heart out for us here tonight and in future games," said Panthers coach Terry Murray. "We need to give him real good support." | ALSO SEE NHL Scoreboard Nashville Clubhouse Florida Clubhouse RECAPS NY Rangers 8 Los Angeles 3
Florida 3
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