Panthers 3, Coyotes 2
SUNRISE, Fla. -- Center Aleksander Barkov returned from the injured list to score twice -- the go-ahead goal and the game-winner -- as the first-place Florida Panthers defeated the Arizona Coyotes 3-2 on Thursday at the BB&T Center.
Panthers goaltender Roberto Luongo made 22 saves, including two straight in the final minute that appeared headed for the back of the net on shots by center Antoine Vermette.
Barkov's go-ahead power-play goal came with 9:42 left in the second period. After a shot by Panthers left winger Nick Bjugstad from the left circle, Barkov pounced on the loose puck.
Florida got the man advantage when Arizona center Oliver Ekman-Larsson was called for hooking Bjugstad.
With 16:00 left in the third period, Barkov's second goal -- off a centering pass from 44-year-old right winger Jaromir Jagr -- made it 3-1.
Barkov, a third-year pro, has 18 goals this season, two more than his previous best. He also has at least one goal in each of his past five complete games, a stretch that was interrupted by a concussion he suffered Feb. 8, causing him to miss six games.
Jagr's assist made him the oldest player in NHL history to record 44 or more points in a season.
Florida also got a goal by center Vincent Trocheck, his first in three weeks.
The Panthers (35-18-7), who lead the Atlantic Division, finished a six-game homestand with a 3-2-1 record. They lead the idle Boston Bruins and Tampa Bay Lightning by five points apiece.
Arizona (27-28-6), which lost its fourth straight game, got goals by left winger Shane Doan and Ekman-Larsson. Arizona goalie Louis Domingue made 21 saves.
Ekman-Larsson's goal came with 5:43 left in the third, cutting Arizona's deficit to 3-2.
With 12:58 left in the first period, Arizona opened the scoring on a shot by Doan, his team-high 23rd goal of the season. The last time Doan, 39, had more goals was in the 2008-09 season, when he had 31.
The Panthers tied the score 1-1 on a goal by Trocheck, his 18th of the season. Defenseman Brian Campbell set him up to earn the 400th assist of his career.
NOTES: Florida announced a one-year contract extension signed by 38-year-old LW Shawn Thornton. ... Panthers LW Jonathan Huberdeau, who hit his head on the ice Saturday in a game against the Winnipeg Jets, sat out. ... Panthers C Aleksander Barkov (concussion) played for the first time since Feb. 8. ... Panthers D Erik Gudbranson (concussion) played for the first time since Feb. 4. ... Panthers D Willie Mitchell, who has not played since Jan. 18 because of an upper-body injury, is skating on his own but not yet with his team. ... Coyotes LW Mikkel Boedker, an unrestricted free agent this summer, might be moved before Monday's trade deadline. ... The Coyotes will host the Panthers on March 5. ... The Coyotes scratched D Jarred Tinordi and RW Viktor Tikhonov. ... Florida scatched D Mike Matheson and is still without injured centers Dave Bolland, Brandon Pirri and Quinton Howden.