SUNRISE, Fla. -- Aleksander Barkov knows how to make an entrance.

Florida's star center returned from the injured list to score two goals, including the go-ahead shot and the game-winner, as the first-place Panthers defeated the Arizona Coyotes 3-2 on Thursday night at the BB&T Center.

"It's so boring when you are not playing," said Barkov, who missed six games due to a concussion. "All you can do is work out and try to get better.

"Finally, I'm playing. I just tried to have fun."

The Panthers (35-18-7) are having a blast. They lead the two teams tied for second place in the Atlantic Division -- the idle Boston Bruins and Tampa Bay Lightning -- by five points.

Florida also finished a six-game homestand with a 3-2-1 record, but that may not have been the case had it not been for Panthers goalie Roberto Luongo.

He made 22 saves, including two straight in the final minute that appeared headed for the back of the net on shots by center Antoine Vermette.

Barkov's go-ahead power-play goal came with 9:42 left in the second period. After a shot by Panthers left winger Nick Bjugstad from the left circle, Barkov pounced on the loose puck.

Florida got the man advantage when Arizona center Oliver Ekman-Larsson was called for hooking Bjugstad.

With 16:00 left in the third period, Barkov's second goal, off a centering pass from 44-year-old right winger Jaromir Jagr, made it 3-1. That became the game-winning goal when Ekman-Larsson scored with 5:43 left in the third, cutting Arizona's deficit to 3-2.

Barkov credited his teammate for his second goal.

"It was a pretty good pass from Jagr," Barkov said of the play his teammate made from behind the Arizona net. "It was an easy job to put it in."

Barkov, a third-year pro, has 18 goals this season, two more than his previous best. He also has at least one goal in each of his past four complete games, a stretch that was interrupted by the concussion he suffered on Feb. 8.

Jagr's assist made him the oldest player in NHL history to record 44 or more points in a season.

"Forty-four at 44, huh?" Jagr said when asked about his feat. "Hopefully, I can get some more. I've still got time."

Added Barkov on Jagr: "I don't think he's ever going to retire."

Aside from Barkov, Florida also got a goal by center Vincent Trocheck, his first in three weeks.

Arizona (27-28-6), which lost its fourth straight game, got goals by left winger Shane Doan and Ekman-Larsson. Arizona goalie Louis Domingue made 21 saves.

"It's frustrating to lose," Arizona coach Dave Tippett said. "We had a couple of chances to get it tied and at least get a point, but we didn't get it done. We were close, but close doesn't make it any better."

With 12:58 left in the first period, Arizona opened the scoring on a shot by Doan, his team-high 23rd goal of the season. The last time Doan, 39, had more goals was in the 2008-2009 season, when he had 31.

The Panthers tied the score 1-1 on the goal by Trocheck, his 18th of the season. Defenseman Brian Campbell set him up to earn the 400th assist of his career.

That's when Barkov took over, dooming Arizona.

"They were better than us in lots of areas," Doan said of Florida. "We have to find ways to tie it up and give ourselves a chance. We had some chances late, and we didn't bury it. That was the difference."

NOTES: Florida announced a one-year contract extension signed by LW Shawn Thornton, 38. ... Panthers LW Jonathan Huberdeau, who hit his head on the ice on Saturday against the Winnipeg Jets, sat out. … Panthers D Erik Gudbranson (concussion) played for the first time since Feb. 4. ... Panthers D Willie Mitchell, who has not played since Jan. 18 due to an upper-body injury, is skating on his own but not yet with his team. ... Coyotes LW Mikkel Boedker, an unrestricted free agent this summer, may get moved before Monday's trade deadline. ... The Coyotes will host the Panthers on March 5. ... The Coyotes scratched D Jarred Tinordi and RW Viktor Tikhonov. ... Florida scatched D Mike Matheson and is still without injured centers Dave Bolland, Brandon Pirri and Quinton Howden.