Takeaways from the Florida Panthers Preseason Doubleheader vs. Nashville

The Florida Panthers defeated the Nashville Predators in both games of Sunday’s doubleheader. Here’s what I took away from it.

The Florida Panthers swept their preseason doubleheader against the Nashville Predators, winning the afternoon game 3-2 and the nightcap 6-2.

Florida won Game 1 with a three-goal surge in the second period — with Sam Bennett leading things off with a backhander from the slot, Hunter St. Martin picking up a loose puck and firing it home from the slot and Rasmus Asplund firing home a one-timer from Justin Sourdif. Nashville picked up a pair of goals in the third period, but the Panthers held on for the win.

The Panthers were off to a roaring start in Game 2. They scored four in the first period, including three power play goals. Sam Reinhart scored the first off of an Aleksander Barkov rebound, Josh Davies scored the second with a wrist shot from the point, then Jesper Boqvist deflected his brother Adam’s shot for the third-straight power play goal. Gustav Forsling added the fourth with a wrist shot from the point.

Tomas Nosek left the game in the first period after getting sent hard into the boards. He did not return to the game.

The Panthers scored two more goals — one from Patrick Giles off of an assist from a Davies, who create a chance with a burst of speed down the wing and another from Adam Boqvist — before Steven Stamkos fired a one-timer home from his usual spot to make it 6-2.

Here are some of my notes from the preseason-opening doubleheader:

Game 1

• Hunter St. Martin was one of the most impressive players on the ice. Not only did he score his goal, but he also forechecked hard — one of his best moments was when he hustled down the ice to beat out an icing call early in the third period — and he looked like a solid playmaker. He’s had himself a great camp so far, scoring three goals at the rookie tournament in Nashville, and the 2024 sixth-round pick is continuing that momentum into the preseason.

• Spencer Knight finished the game with a shutout through his 30-minute allotment, stopping all 19 shots he faced. He made a couple of difficult, high-danger saves and overall played a strong game. It’s early, but he looks NHL ready again.

• Gracyn Sawchyn was an absolute pest on the forecheck. Even at 5-foot-11, 154 pounds, he did not shy away from any puck battles on the boards and he is not afraid to throw the body. He picked up his assist playing that style, hounding a Nashville defender and poking the puck off his stick to a place where St. Martin could find it.

• Aaron Ekblad and Nate Schmidt got power play time in Game 1, with Ekblad in his familiar spot at the left face-off circle taking one-timers. Ekblad almost got a power play assist when Evan Rodrigues picked up the rebound of one of his one-timers but couldn’t burry it.

• Anton Lundell took over Kevin Stenlund’s spot alongside Eetu Luostarinen on the penalty kill. They helped hold Nashville to one shot and no goals on three power play chances.

Game 2

• Josh Davies headlined the game, scoring with a slick shot from the point and picking up an assist with speed off the rush. The 2022 sixth-rounder is set to play his first professional season in Charlotte, and if he continues to play like this, could be a dark horse to play some NHL games within the next two or three years.

• Adam Boqvist ran the top power play unit on his own while Gustav Forsling did not receive any power play minutes. Boqvist shined overall, picking up an assist with a point shot and a nice goal at 5-on-5 with a shot from the slot that went bar down. Jonah Gadjovich made a nice backhand feed to set him up.

• Jesper Boqvist also received power play time — picking up a goal assisted by his brother. He may have been signed to fill a role on the fourth line — where he started on the wing, then filled in at center when Nosek went down — but he played an effective role on the power play and has shown signs of talent worthy of a bigger role. As for now, Gadjovich was bumped up to that fourth line alongside Boqvist and A.J. Greer.

• Sam Reinhart scored a power play goal. Water is wet. He led the league in those last year.

• Chris Driedger handled a heavy second-half workload very well, stopping the first 18 shots he faced before Steven Stamkos beat him with one of his patented one-time blasts late in the third period.