HC Paul Maurice brushes off concerns of Florida Panthers' leaky 3rd-period woes after squandering 2-0 lead to Isles

The Florida Panthers lost 4-2 to the New York Islanders at UBS Arena on Sunday after leading 2-0. Florida controlled most of the game but gave up four goals in the third period. This was the second time on their road trip that they lost a lead in the final period.

In the post-game media press conference, head coach Paul Maurice said he is not worried about the team’s third-period play.

"I’m not concerned with how we play in the third. You don’t like giving up leads, but it’s not a trend," Maurice said.

Maurice insisted that missing key players has made things harder but believes the team will learn from this. He also noted that their schedule, which includes several back-to-back games, has been tough.

"...We’re losing bodies, and I think that’s going to be the trend, but we’ve still got four sets of back-to-backs, and all the teams we play are rested," Maurice added. "Everyone’s fighting for their lives right now. It’s a grind to the finish, and we want to make sure we feel confident in what we’re doing.

We’ve played some pretty strong periods in the last week; we just haven’t gotten the results we wanted."

Aleksander Barkov and Sam Reinhart led the Florida Panthers’ offense, each scoring a goal and adding an assist. Florida opened the scoring early in the second period when Barkov set up Reinhart near the left post. Barkov then extended the lead minutes later by deflecting a wrist shot past Ilya Sorokin on a power play.

The Panthers looked in control, limiting the Islanders' chances while Vitek Vanecek made key saves. New York responded in the third period, turning the game around with four goals. Marc Gatcomb, Maxim Tsyplakov, Noah Dobson, and Simon Holmstrom each scored a goal to secure the win.

The Florida Panthers are now 1-3-0 on their six-game road trip. They will need to focus on protecting leads as they push for the playoffs.

Florida Panthers coach Paul Maurice on loss to Canadiens

Florida Panthers entered the game against the NY Islanders with a 3-1 loss to Montreal Canadiens at Bell Centre on Saturday. Florida coach Paul Maurice said Montreal played hard and deserved the win.

“They beat us and they’re in a fight for their lives, and they played their butts off, and that should be the story here,” Maurice said, via NHL.com. And I don’t want to give you an honest assessment of our game because I don’t want to be disrespectful of a big win for them.”

Montreal took a 2-0 lead with goals from Patrik Laine and Cole Caufield in the first period. Mackie Samoskevich cut the lead to 2-1 in the second period, but Christian Dvorak made it 3-1 in the third. Goalie Sam Montembeault made 21 saves, helping Montreal win.