CBS 4's Steve Goldstein: Panthers playoffs start now
MIAMI -- With the NHL All Star game and all the festivities that come with it in the rear view mirror, the Panthers start their stretch run.
There are 30 games remaining in the regular season and the team's margin for error is thin -- razor thin in fact. That translates into every game and every shift being vitally important.
Breaking it Down
The Panthers have three home games in this first week back after the All Star break. Eighteen of the final 30 games are on home ice and they only leave the Eastern time zone for two more games.
This is the payoff for the grueling, road heavy first part of the schedule. After next week's four-game road trip, the Panthers start a one month stretch with just one road game, and that's a quick jump over to Tampa.
Healthy and Recharged
The last game before the break was a thrilling last second come from behind with against the league leading Bruins.
It ended a stretch of games in January that the Panthers had to come up with wins in order to stay alive in the playoff race. They did enough to keep themselves in the conversation.
Now they enter the final two months of the season after a long nine day break, allowing players to rest and heal up. Goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky was banged up but should be ready to carry most of the load. After a slow start to the season Bobrovsky picked up his play and the Panthers will need about 20 high end games out of the veteran goalie.
Duke?
Anthony Duclair got injured last summer working out and has not played a game this season. He should be available for the stretch run. Adding a speedy, 30 goal scorer should be a big boost for the playoff push.
"Other" All Star
With Matthew Tkachuk getting all the well deserved headlines it would be a mistake to forget about Aleksander Barkov. He is on a career high 11 game point streak and looks like the best version of himself.
Like Bobrovsky, the Panthers need a majority high end, top line center performance and minutes from Barkov. He had the ability to be the best player on the ice in any given game and he looks primed for the challenge.