Dallas, who had won five of their last seven games heading into this one, seemed slightly tired for a majority of this game. To their credit, they were coming off a back-to-back, in which it took them overtime to not just outlast, but to come from behind, against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
The Florida Panthers, however, had a lengthy four days worth of rest. The best thing about that wasn’t just that they had the days of rest, but they executed it.
For most of this game, Florida seemed hungrier, faster, and sharper, and it showed on the scoreboard a little past midway through the second period, when the Cats led Dallas 7-1.