Panthers 4, Stars 2: Marcel Goc snapped a tie with 4:55 remaining in the third period and added a late empty-net goal as visiting Florida began its 20th Anniversary season with a triumph in the opener for both teams.
Scott Gomez and rookie Aleksander Barkov scored in their debuts with the Panthers, who finished with the worst record in the NHL last season. Defenseman Brian Campbell recorded two assists and Tim Thomas made 25 saves in his first game with Florida after sitting out the lockout-shortened 2012-13 campaign.
The Panthers fell behind 2-1 when defenseman Brenden Dillon scored a short-handed goal at 7:32 of the third. But Barkov buried a loose puck on the doorstep exactly three minutes later and Goc converted a nifty pass from Tomas Fleischmann to put Florida ahead for good.
Alex Chiasson scored, Dillon added an assist and Kari Lehtonen stopped 35 shots for the Stars, who were outshot 15-8 in the third.
Florida took a 1-0 lead with 2:19 remaining in the opening period as Gomez put a backhand shot from the crease past Lehtonen. The Stars drew even at 7:25 of the second, when Chiasson went behind the net and tucked in a backhander near the right post.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Panthers D Dmitry Kulikov and Stars C Ryan Garbutt received game misconducts in the first period for engaging in a fight as another already was taking place between Florida D Mike Weaver and Dallas LW Antoine Roussel. ... Fleischmann led all players with six shots on goal, while Kulikov was the only Panther without one. ... The officials elected to complete the final 25.5 seconds of the second period following the intermission after a broken pane of glass was discovered.
Florida | Dallas | |
Marcel Goc 2 | Points | Brenden Dillon 2 |
Marcel Goc 2 | Goals | Brenden Dillon 1 |
Brian Campbell 2 | Assists | Brenden Dillon 1 |
N/A | Power Play Goals | N/A |
N/A | Short Handed Goals | Brenden Dillon 1 |
Tim Thomas .926 | Save Percentage | Kari Lehtonen .921 |
Tim Thomas 25 | Saves | Kari Lehtonen 35 |
Team | Shots | Goals | Power Play | Penalty Kill | Penalty Mins | Face Offs Won |
Florida | 39 | 4 | 0-4 | 3-3 | 26 | 33 |
Dallas | 27 | 2 | 0-3 | 4-4 | 38 | 38 |