CORAL SPRINGS, Fla. — There was a debate Monday on when the Florida Panthers got their first goal from their fourth-line center last season.
One thing that was not in question was it took a long time.
“It certainly did not come in Game 2,” Colton Sceviour said with a grin.
Sceviour was the first guy centering Florida’s fourth forward line to put the puck in the net, doing so in a game against Colorado on Dec. 6 — the 27th game of the season for those keeping track.
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Florida went through several centers on its fourth line last season either because of injury or just trying to find something that worked.
The Panthers think they fixed that problem in the offseason with the signing of Noel Acciari.
It did not take long for Acciari to get his line on the scoresheet.
Saturday night with the Panthers leading the Lightning 2-0 in the second period, Acciari tracked down Tampa Bay defenseman Kevin Shattenkirk going for a puck and plastered him up against the back wall.
Acciari then took off toward the front of the net where Sceviour zipped him a pass from the sideboards. Acciari corralled the puck, turned and backhanded a shot top shelf past Andrei Vasilevskiy for a 3-0 lead.
“I saw he had a step on his D-man and it was more I was trying to get it to the net, where he was going,” Sceviour said. “The fact that it went exactly tape-to-tape may have been a little bit lucky, but I knew he had the guy beat in the corner after the big hit so I wanted to get it to him. He did the rest, obviously.’’
Said Acciari: “I threw the first hit and (Dryden) Hunt was quick on the puck and chipped it, Sceviour was waiting for it and got it back to the net. I came back hoping there would be something and the puck came right to me. I probably had too much time to think about what I needed to do, but it all worked out in the end.”
The fourth line is there primarily for their defensive tenacity but with Acciari, Sceviour and Hunt on the ice, the Panthers may get a little offense out of those guys as well.
Of all the Panthers’ offseason moves, signing Acciari might have been overlooked.
Florida, after all, added goalie Sergei Bobrovsky (seven years, $70 million), defenseman Anton Stralman (three years, $16.5 million) and forward Brett Connolly (four years, $14 million).
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Acciari, an undrafted forward from Rhode Island who played at Providence, made a name for himself with the Boston Bruins for his tough style of play.
In the playoffs last spring, Acciari was hit so hard in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals against Columbus, he fractured his sternum.
Acciari missed five games with the injury. He missed the end of the series against the Blue Jackets and the first three against the Hurricanes before returning for Game 4 of the conference finals. He played all seven games of the Stanley Cup finals despite the pain.
“I just put my shoulder pads on and went back out there. I figured I would deal with it after the playoffs,” said Acciari, who adds he still feels the effects of the injury.
“It was painful, but you never know when you’ll be back in the Stanley Cup playoffs or be in the finals so you put it all in the back of your mind. … I was just itching to get back out there and didn’t want to mess it up. It was a painful injury and I still feel it a bit. Sleeping is difficult sometimes. But it’s another hockey season so you try to maintain and make sure it’s getting stronger, keep an eye on it.”
For Florida, which signed him to a three-year deal worth $5 million, Acciari represented a chance to stabilize a position which was a rotating door of centers last season.
Derek MacKenzie started the season centering the fourth line, but he injured his shoulder two shifts into the opener at Tampa Bay and needed what would be career-ending surgery.
Rookie Juho Lammikko was quickly recalled from the minors, and he played 40 games — recording six points but scoring no goals.
When Lammikko was sent back to Springfield upon Vincent Trocheck’s return from injury, a number of guys centered the fourth line, including Sceviour, Riley Sheahan and Henrik Borgstrom.
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By signing Acciari, Sceviour went back to wing while Sheahan was not re-signed and Lammikko left to play in his native Finland.
“Give them credit, they play well and they play with a purpose,” coach Joel Quenneville said of the fourth line on Monday.
“I think they work well with one another … they keep the puck, they protect it and they put it in good areas. They took away some quality (looks) from a dangerous line in dangerous situations. They didn’t give up much there.”
The new fourth line was on display a lot in the first two games of the season, charged with the huge task of taking on Tampa Bay’s top players.
On Saturday, Acciari, Sceviour and Hunt spent much of the final shifts on the ice as they successfully (with two big saves from Bobrovsky) held off a late charge from the Lightning as the Panthers emerged with a 4-3 win.
“I think our line takes pride in being able to shut down their top line and be put in those situations,’’ Acciari said. “I think we want to thrive on that, continue having that assignment and chip in when we can while playing a hard-nosed game.’’
With the Tampa Bay net empty for the final 90 seconds, the Florida fourth line — as well as defensemen Aaron Ekblad and Mike Matheson — were stuck out there for the duration as they iced the puck three times and were pinned deep in the Florida zone.
Hunt and Sceviour both iced the puck aiming for the empty net with long, desperation shots.
In the final seconds, the puck rattled off the backboard with Bobrovsky holding the post and laying out to make what could have been the game-winning save.
All five Florida defenders (Ekblad was in the cage) dived into the fray with severalf Tampa Bay players joining them.
It looked like a championship-winning dogpile on top of Bobrovsky, only he had the puck, and with less than a second remaining after the officials cleared things up, the Panthers were all but assured of their first victory over the Lightning in two years.
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“We were doing anything we could to keep that puck out,” Acciari said. “Bob was sprawled out — I don’t know how he gets in some of the positions he does — but we’re going to do everything we can to help him and I know he’s doing everything he can help us.“
In years past, the Panthers likely would have succumbed to the late push by the Lightning as all of their big weapons were on the ice fighting to put it into the net with the extra skater.
Fixing the bottom six was a priority of the Panthers this offseason, and Acciari was a player they targeted.
Acciari came into camp as the center of the fourth line, but who he would play with was in question. Sceviour was an obvious choice to play on one wing and when things were solidified, it was Hunt playing on the other.
All three players have shown they can score, but in this role, their main objective is to keep the opposition off the scoreboard.
It is definitely an adjustment, a buy-in to a style of play some cannot make.
Hunt, who scored 58 goals in his final year of junior and had 46 goals the past two seasons in the AHL, says he will do whatever the Panthers ask and seems to be enjoying his new role.
“I was super-tired but it was great to have the opportunity to be out there and help close out a game like that,” Hunt said. “Our top-six does a great job of scoring and providing what we need but if the fourth line can chip in, that’s great. We’re a heavy line. We want to cycle the puck, get to the net, create stuff and give some energy, which helps the team and takes some of the pressure off of those top guys.
“This is a bit of a challenge for me, but it’s a fun challenge to go out there every night and play against a team’s top lines and try and shut them down. You get 10-12 minutes and you want to take advantage, bury your chances when they come. I’m accepting of this challenge and it has been fun. (Acciari and Sceviour) have done it for a while, and I’m just trying to learn everything I can from them.”
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Pysyk back in the lineup
Defenseman Mark Pysyk is not used to being scratched from the lineup, but he was the odd man out in the first two games this season.
Pysyk will be back on the ice Tuesday with Josh Brown out against Carolina. Pysyk will be with Keith Yandle on Florida’s third pairing.
“We would like to get everyone involved and we have a group of seven back there right now,’’ Quenneville said. “You can argue not starting him … was he deserving? He was always in consideration. He has some experience, gives us some versatility on the back end and can play both sides. We’re definitely looking at him being a part of it and getting involved.”
Now in his eighth NHL season, Pysyk said while “it’s never fun not playing in the games,” he got some good work in with assistant coach Mike Kitchen and is ready to make a difference when it counts.
“No one likes to go through a bag skate and watch the games, so it will be good to see some real action again,” Pysyk said after Monday’s workout at the IceDen.
“I don’t think there is much time for me to feel things out, I kind of have to hit the ground running and do my best to not be in this spot again. … It’s never fun to be out of the lineup no matter what the situation is. It sucks and it makes you really not take anything for granted and enjoy it when you are in there.”
Because of his salary — and the Panthers being so close to the cap ceiling — Pysyk has been the subject of trade rumors for some time.
He counts for $2.7 million against the cap and makes $3.5 million in real salary based on how his contract was drawn up. Pysyk has heard the rumors and if it is up to him, he hopes nothing happens. Pysyk is in the final year of his contract and can be a free agent after this season.
“I think this is an awesome time to be here right now,” said Pysyk, who is in his fourth season with Florida after coming from Buffalo at the 2016 draft in a trade for Dmitry Kulikov.
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“With the new coach, the way he interacts with everyone and the excitement level we all have here, there’s a different attitude. It’s a good time to be a Panther. I like it here. Whatever happens is out of my control, but right now, it’s good to be here. This is not how I drew things up coming out of the summer, but those two games are behind me and I am ready to move on.”
• Bobrovsky will make his third consecutive start to begin the season on Tuesday against the Hurricanes.
With the Panthers playing three road games in four days this weekend at Buffalo and against the Islanders and Devils, backup Sam Montembeault should see his first start soon.
— Florida opened its season with two games against the Lightning (who finished last season atop the NHL standings), and the schedule does not get much easier.
Carolina comes to Sunrise on Tuesday after beating the Lightning in overtime on Sunday, and went to the conference finals last spring. Of Florida’s next eight games, six are against teams which made the postseason last year.
“The whole division got off to a great start, so that’s where it is at,” said Quenneville, whose team split its first two against Tampa Bay.
“We anticipate that will be the case all year, so you have to take care of your own business knowing every team in the division feels it can be a playoff team and the ones that were playoff teams are doing pretty darned good as well.”
(Top photo: Eliot J. Schechter / NHLI via Getty Images)