Luongo, Panthers shut out Devils
NEWARK, N.J. -- Roberto Luongo turned aside 28 shots for his 73rd career shutout as the Florida Panthers beat the New Jersey Devils 3-0 on Monday night at Prudential Center.
Luongo missed the Panthers' previous two games with an upper-body injury. The 37-year-old veteran hadn't recorded a shutout since Jan. 22, 2016, a span of 50 starts.
Reilly Smith scored a power-play goal in the first period, and Jussi Jokinen and Vincent Trocheck added empty-net goals in the final minute to give the Panthers their third win in nine games.
Devils goaltender Cory Schneider, who was teammates with Luongo in Vancouver for five seasons, stopped 26 shots in the goaltending duel.
The Devils have lost three straight and are 7-15-5 since opening the season 9-3-3.
Smith's eighth goal of the season was the result of Devils forward Pavel Zacha getting assessed a five-minute boarding penalty for a hit on Panthers center Denis Malgin with 7:43 remaining in the first period. After the sides played four-on-four for two minutes because Shawn Thornton took a roughing penalty after the hit on Malgin, the Panthers scored the game's first goal.
Jokinen made a beautiful drop pass to Smith as they entered zone, but Smith's shot from the left faceoff circle was stopped by Schneider. The rebound came right back to an unchecked Smith, who buried the puck behind a prone Schneider.
Schneider went to the bench for an extra attacker with 1:54 remaining in the third period and the Devils looking to tie the score. Jokinen intercepted a pass in the neutral zone and scored from center ice to put the Panthers on top 2-0 and seal the win with 59.6 seconds remaining.
Schneider returned to the bench and Trocheck finished the scoring with his 12th of the season.
NOTES: Panthers C Nick Bjugstad was placed on injured reserve with an upper-body injury. He is expected to miss two weeks. ... Panthers C Seth Griffith (upper body) was cleared for contact and could be back Wednesday. ... Panthers C Greg McKegg (upper body) is day-to-day. ... Panthers D Dylan McIlrath was a healthy scratch. ... Devils D Andy Greene (hand) missed his third consecutive game. ... Devils D Yohann Auvitu (lower body) did not play after suffering an injury in the Devils' previous game against the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday. ... Devils LW Luke Gazdic was a healthy scratch.