National Hockey League
Anaheim 3, Florida 1
When: 7:30 PM ET, Thursday, November 19, 2015
Where: BB&T Center, Sunrise, Florida
Referees: Francis Charron, T.J. Luxmore
Linesmen: Ryan Galloway, Darren Gibbs
Attendance: 10947

SUNRISE, Fla. -- Anaheim Ducks coach Bruce Boudreau showed confidence in goalie Frederik Andersen, and that show of faith paid off.

Defenseman Cam Fowler scored the go-ahead goal, and Andersen ended his slump as the Anaheim Ducks defeated the Florida Panthers 3-1 on Thursday night at the BB&T Center.

Andersen, who was pulled from Anaheim's 3-2 loss at Nashville on Tuesday, had given up 11 goals on 65 shots over his past three games.

A benching -- in favor of backup Anton Khudobin -- seemed in order. Instead, Boudreau stuck with Andersen, who delivered 23 saves.

"He believes in me," Andersen said of his coach. "He wants me to be the guy, and he gives me the opportunity to play."

Panthers goalie Roberto Luongo, who made 37 saves, played well, too. In fact, stretching over three games, he had a streak of 111 minutes without allowing a goal, making 74 saves during that span.

That streak came to an end, however, with 3:21 left in the second period, when Fowler netted his third goal of the season.

Ironically, it was a soft shot that beat Luongo. After making numerous spectacular saves, Luongo allowed Fowler's wrist shot to sneak between his pads.

"I joined the rush as the fourth guy," Fowler said when asked to describe his goal. "I got a nice pass from (right winger Corey Perry). I was going to take the shot, and I kind of got slashed at the same time. I don't know if it fooled Luongo a little bit, but I didn't get all of it on the shot.

"It squeaked in the five hole. I'll take it -- it was a good goal for our team and our power play."

Anaheim made it 2-0 with 5:19 left in the third period on a short-handed goal by Andrew Cogliano. The assist came from center Shawn Horcoff, who sprung Cogliano for the open-ice opportunity.

Just before the goal, Panthers center Nick Bjugstad lost his edge while trying to retrieve a pass, and the Ducks pounced on the mistake.

Florida made it 2-1 with 3:15 left in the game on a goal by center Aleksander Barkov that bounced in off Andersen's body. Right winger Jaromir Jagr picked up the assist.

"We scored one, and it gave us a chance," said Barkov of where his team stood before Anaheim ended things with an empty-net goal. "But it wasn't enough to win the game. We didn't get a lot of shots.

"We have a great goalie -- Luongo is keeping us in the games. But we have to step up (as an offense)."

Neither team scored a goal or drew a penalty in a first period that saw the Ducks outshoot the Panthers 16-7.

Florida received a scare just 22 seconds into the second period, when Luongo took a slapshot off his mask. The shot, which came from defenseman Clayton Stoner, stunned Luongo. Play was stopped for about a minute, but Luongo remained in the game.

Luongo made a stellar save on right winger Jakob Silfverberg, who was in alone on the Florida goalie on a short-handed breakaway. Luongo gloved Silfverberg's wrist shot, bobbled it and held on while falling backward.

Silfverberg did, however, pick up the empty-net goal with 1:08 left in the game. It was his first goal of the season.

"They are a big, strong, physical team," Panthers coach Gerard Gallant said of the Ducks. "We didn't respond very well.

"Luongo kept us in the game as long as he could. But we can't keep playing like that. We didn't deserve to win the game. We didn't want to play on the boards."

NOTES: Panthers D Aaron Ekblad played his 100th NHL game. ... G John Vanbiesbrouck, who led the Panthers to the 1996 Stanley Cup Final, was inducted into the Florida Sports Hall of Fame on Tuesday. He is only the second hockey player to get the honor, joining Tampa Bay's 2004 Stanley Cup captain Dave Andreychuk. ... Florida scratched D Dmitry Kulikov (knee), C Rocco Grimaldi and C Quinton Howden. ... Anaheim scratched D Korbinian Holzer and C Michael Sgarbossa. ... After 20 games, Anaheim ranked last in the NHL in goals scored (1.79 per game). ... Ducks D Josh Manson (flu) returned to the lineup after missing two games. ... Ducks rookie D Shea Theodore was returned to San Diego of the AHL. Theodore, the Ducks' first-round pick in 2013, has yet to make his NHL debut.
Top Game Performances
 
Anaheim   Florida
Ryan Getzlaf 2 Points Aleksander Barkov 1
Andrew Cogliano 1 Goals Aleksander Barkov 1
Ryan Getzlaf 2 Assists Jaromir Jagr 1
Cam Fowler 1 Power Play Goals N/A
Andrew Cogliano 1 Short Handed Goals N/A
Frederik Andersen .960 Save Percentage Roberto Luongo .950
Frederik Andersen 24 Saves Roberto Luongo 38
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Shots Goals Power Play Penalty Kill Penalty Mins Face Offs Won
Anaheim 41 3 1-3 3-3 11 27
Florida 25 1 0-3 2-3 11 27
Upcoming Games
  • Florida will play their next game at home against NY Rangers. The Panthers have a W/L % of .375 after a win and .455 after a loss.
  • Anaheim will play their next game on the road against Tampa Bay. The Ducks have a W/L % of .429 after a win and .308 after a loss.