Blowout in Toronto is team's biggest win, shutout ever

GO CATS!!!

Prediction: Red says "Even a blind squirrel finds a nut every so often".

In all seriousness though, great win tonight. There are really no detractions that can be made. What we need to do is keep up these Olli Jokinen rumors because it seems to make the entire team to click and put together a win streak. Unfortunately for the Panthers, they have reached their mini-milestone of getting back to .500 and I fully expect 3 straight losses to finish this road trip. It's sad, I know, but I refuse to get excited about this team, even though tonight was a blast.

Oh and my other prediction is that many people type lame comments like "Go Cats!" and get all excited. These will be the same people that said this team sucks 1 week ago and will be saying again in another week.

Just Want the Playoffs wrote:

Prediction: Red says "Even a blind squirrel finds a nut every so often".
In all seriousness though, great win tonight. There are really no detractions that can be made. What we need to do is keep up these Olli Jokinen rumors because it seems to make the entire team to click and put together a win streak. Unfortunately for the Panthers, they have reached their mini-milestone of getting back to .500 and I fully expect 3 straight losses to finish this road trip. It's sad, I know, but I refuse to get excited about this team, even though tonight was a blast.

Watch what you say..If RB is angry, or picked on..or disagreed with..your post will be removed....

Woooooooooooooo

this was a fun game to watch, but I to am not getting too excited yet. but for the last couple of games I keep reading people discrediting the panthers and making excuses for the opposing teams like 1)tampa bay not having a legit goalie 2)and the canucks being tired from playing tampa the night before.

heres my response to each...

1)bull $hit that rookie goalie was probably the best goaltending that lightning team has seen in a long while!

2)bull $hit got off Louie's c 0ck, and stop kissing canadien team's a$$es

everyone here rags on the Cats for making excuses so many times this season, don't make them for the visiting teams.

prediction: panthers are gonna take out ottawa too... just not as bad as those pathetic leafs

This was a really good win and a confidence-booster for the Cats. They got good goaltending as usual, but they also got a lot of offense. Zednick scoring a hat trick was encouraging. The Leafs' fans showed a lack of class. And the Leafs' players acted like a bunch of goons in the 3rd period. The Panthers reacted well by holding their own in the fights---and then scoring on the power plays which followed the Leafs' goon tactics. And Salei took that Leaf right down to the ice, nose first. The Leafs were stomped like little school boys. Go Cats.

Awesome win. It just further proves the point that talent is not a problem for this team.

Zednik nabs the hat trick!! ROCK ON!!! Monty shoots one off the back hand side... Great, great confidence booster.. maybe these knuckleheads will get it together for a run afterall! Don't get me wrong, I LOVE my team but what ever internal BS has kept them from playing Jacques game and being a solid TEAM has got to stop. OR I am all in favor of moving the coach or whomever it is leading the revolt in the locker room!!
"Fighting Solves Everything"

To paraphrase a line from Pulp Fiction, let's not start sucking each others d***s just yet. Without a doubt this was a decisive and great Panther win. Definitely uncharacteristic of the franchise and one for the team history books. Nevertheless, anyone who knows this team and their history understands that we are still not out of the woods yet. We all know the Cats love to tease and Atlanta, Washington, and Carolina will be very hungry and desperate for wins too. They could even make some trades to gain an edge. If the Panthers can handily beat Ottawa, Boston and Buffalo on the road than we might have something to REALLY get excited about. Otherwise, it will be back to our losing ways. It really is all or nothing for the Cats. They have a steep hill to climb, but hopefully they have the mental fortitude to get it done. At least the Jokinen trade rumors should start dying down. Martin would have to be insane to trade his best offensive player when the team is starting to sniff at the division lead. I hope they do it, but I am cautiously optimistic.

Alpha Panther wrote:

Awesome win. It just further proves the point that talent is not a problem for this team.

I couldn't agree more. The talent is there, and last night they showed that they know how to use. This is a long road trip for them. I hope they keep it up.

BE CAREFUL wrote:

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Watch what you say..If RB is angry, or picked on..or disagreed with..your post will be removed....
Woooooooooooooo

Why would I be angry? The Panthers put on a clinic and had the most decisive win in franchise history. I'd have to be insane not to be very happy about that game. Even sweeter is that it happened in Toronto right at the center of the hockey universe. It was a Maple Leaf nightmare and I loved every minute of it. It was the perfect game.

By the way, I no nothing about any posts being removed. However, I know some of mine have been removed so welcome to the club.

Why all the phallic similes in the comments?? Are Panther fans latent homosexuals??(Not that there's anything wrong with that).8)))

Go Panthers Go!!! I'm a Sens fan but love seeing those pathetic leafs get it handed to them. The "diehard - bangwagon" fans are starting to wake up. The cheering for the Panthers and booing for the buds was music to all hockey fans ears! What a shut-out! What a scoring performance! Winder who will be golfing first!

Just Want the Playoffs wrote:

Prediction: Red says "Even a blind squirrel finds a nut every so often".
In all seriousness though, great win tonight. There are really no detractions that can be made. What we need to do is keep up these Olli Jokinen rumors because it seems to make the entire team to click and put together a win streak. Unfortunately for the Panthers, they have reached their mini-milestone of getting back to .500 and I fully expect 3 straight losses to finish this road trip. It's sad, I know, but I refuse to get excited about this team, even though tonight was a blast.

you do realize that your post was just as negative as the one you criticize Red for always making. Takes credibility away from you. Just felt like pointing out the obvious.

First, awesome win by the Cats. They really didn't look all that great in the first period. So coming out and taking control of the game and putting on more offensive pressure despite already having the lead is very refreshing for this team.

That being said, can anyone really be surprised that the Panthers were able to beat up on this Toronto team? Yes, there are teams in far worse shape than the Panthers, and Toronto is one of them.

The thing I'll be looking out for is the fact that the Panthers are now prime for a huge letdown - not only the fact that we'll now see how much complacency sets in after this win, but now we're off to face a very good Ottawa team.

As I've felt all season long after a three-win stretch, I'm cautiously optimistic.

It's a fairly strange season - more parity than ever before and almost every team has been hit hard by injuries, including some top players. That the Panthers are relying on AHL call-ups is something also happening across the league. Just look at the NHL injury list. I think the Devils and the Flames are the only ones without reported injuries and only a couple of teams have 1 or 2 minor injury issues.

The good news for the Panthers is that they are getting good play from more and more guys right now and some of their younger guys are beginning to step up. Campbell in particular is playing the best he's ever shown as a Panther. Yeah, they could go right back in the tank and revert to their losing ways, but I think we are beginning to see a glimmer of hope. You could almost say that the Panthers are better off without some of those injured guys.

There's a long way to go, but at least what's happening now makes you want to tune into the next game.

As well as the Panthers played, Toronto played worse. Three of those goals were simply defensive breakdowns that an NHL team just shouldn't do (especially not four or five times in the same game - remember Horton's dinger off the post). The Leafs simply forgot how to play.

Also, crazy props to Booth for the brilliant fake shot on goal. He froze the goalie, defense, cameraman, and the first three rows before passing it to Horton for the tap-in.

A great offensive effort but Toronto has been relying on AHL players in the lineup.The most balanced game we have played in a long time.I still believe Washington will win the division.We will see more in Ottawa since you know the history of this team and their inconsistency.I am praying to the hockey gods for 2 more road wins.

Beaver wrote:

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you do realize that your post was just as negative as the one you criticize Red for always making. Takes credibility away from you. Just felt like pointing out the obvious.

I understand my comment was just as negative as a typical Red comment, but I just wanted to make sure that Red didn't take away from that specific win last night because it was a near perfect game (they still took 6 penalties compared to the leafs one penalty up until that bonanza at the end. Not including the fights, either). And I am surprised and pleased by the amount of moderation of the fans in here. No one is jumping up and down and I have had the most negative comment so far. I really hope they are able to finish this road trip with at least two more wins and Zednick gets more consistent.
Did anyone watch the end of the Carolina game on Vs. last night? After the game the wrap-up crew was talking about the SE and they made predictions about the winner. Florida and Tampa were not even mentioned. Seriously. They all gave reasons why or why not the other three would win the SE, but the Panthers never even got mentioned. Thought that was kind of funny.

best team ever.