Panthers Beat Blue Jackets 4-1 as Bennett Scores Twice

Sam Bennett scored twice and the Florida Panthers beat the Columbus Blue Jackets 4-1 on Tuesday night, snapping a two game losing streak on the road.

Bennett opened the scoring two minutes into the second period on the power play. Lars Eller doubled the lead just over two minutes later, gathering a loose puck and sliding a pass through the legs of Ivan Provorov before finishing the play himself at the other end of the sequence. Provorov pulled one back for Columbus, but Bennett struck again on a 4-on-4 late in the game, carrying the puck from the neutral zone to the faceoff dot and ripping a wrist shot just under the crossbar. Sam Reinhart scored into the empty net with 2:16 remaining to finish it.

Aaron Ekblad added two assists for Florida. Jacob Markstrom made 37 saves and held firm on a night when Columbus outshot the Panthers 38-28. Cam Talbot stopped 24 shots for the Blue Jackets, who lost their second straight game.

Why it matters

The win improved Florida to 6-0-0 this season when leading after two periods, a record that points to how the Panthers close games. Bennett set the tone in a scoreless first period that stayed tight, then took over the second. Columbus pushed the shot count but could not beat Markstrom often enough to make the pressure count.

What is next

Florida continues its road trip with the confidence of a win built on special teams and goaltending. Columbus goes back to work at home still searching for a finish, after a night when it had more shots and only one goal to show for them.

How the game turned

The first period set the pattern. Neither team scored, Florida put 10 shots on goal and Columbus put nine, and the goalies matched each other save for save. The break came early in the second, when Bennett scored on the power play and Eller followed a little over two minutes later. At that point the game had a shape: Florida led, defended in numbers and trusted Markstrom with the rest.

Columbus did not go quiet. The Blue Jackets kept shooting, finished with 38 shots to Florida's 28, and got their goal from Provorov to stay in reach. What they never got was a second goal to test Florida late. Bennett's second, scored at even strength in a 4-on-4 with open ice in front of him, rebuilt the two goal cushion, and Reinhart's empty net goal with 2:16 left removed the last doubt.

The result moved Florida to 10-7-2 for the season. Columbus fell to 7-9-0. For the Panthers, the night rested on three things that travel well on the road: a power play goal, a lead after two periods and a goalie who faced 38 shots and gave up one.