Anton Lundell's Hat Trick and Seth Jones' Record October Lift Panthers Past Reeling Jets 5-2

Anton Lundell scored three times, Seth Jones closed out the best month by a defenseman in Florida Panthers history, and the Panthers beat the Winnipeg Jets 5-2 on Friday night at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise.

The win was Florida's sixth in eight games and lifted the Panthers to 8-4-2 with 18 points. It also completed a sweep of the home-and-home set with Winnipeg that began with a 5-1 Panthers win in Manitoba on Tuesday, Oct. 27. The Jets fell to 4-7-3 and have gone eight games without a win, going 0-6-2 in that span, according to The Associated Press.

That skid has run straight through Florida. The Florida Press's headline on Tuesday's game noted that the loss extended Winnipeg's winless streak to six. The Jets then lost 6-4 to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Thursday before arriving in Sunrise for the seventh and eighth games of the run, and Friday ended a week in which both of the state's NHL teams beat them. Carter Verhaeghe scored twice in Tuesday's game in Winnipeg.

Lundell's hat trick

Lundell came into the night with one goal on the season and left with four. He scored his first at 2:38 of the second period, a snap shot set up by Jones that made it 2-0. He restored a two-goal lead at 13:33 of the third, after Winnipeg had pulled within 3-2, with Lars Eller and Eetu Luostarinen assisting.

The third came with 1:39 left in regulation, an empty-net goal at 18:21 with Luostarinen again drawing the assist. According to the AP, it was already Florida's fifth hat trick of the season. Lundell finished with eight shots on goal, the most of anyone in the game, and won nine of his 17 faceoffs.

Jones sets the October record

Jones had a goal and two assists to finish October with 18 points, two goals and 16 assists. The AP reported that the total broke the Panthers' record for points by a defenseman in any month, previously held by Keith Yandle, who had 17 in March 2018.

The veteran defenseman was involved in three of Florida's first four goals. He picked up the secondary assist on Sam Reinhart's power-play goal at 18:15 of the first period, his 15th assist of the season, then set up Lundell's first goal for No. 16. At 15:24 of the second, with the Panthers on the power play, he scored his second goal of the season off a feed from Reinhart to make it 3-1. Jones led Florida skaters with 24:16 of ice time.

Reinhart's opening goal, his seventh of the season, came on a wrist shot with Carter Verhaeghe also assisting. Reinhart finished with a goal and an assist.

Winnipeg's two goals

Kyle Connor scored the Jets' first goal on a power play at 9:51 of the second period, cutting the lead to 2-1. It was his team-leading 11th goal, with Mark Scheifele and Neal Pionk assisting.

Morgan Barron got Winnipeg within one at 8:46 of the third period with his first goal of the season, assisted by Dawson Mercer and Dylan DeMelo. Lundell's second goal less than five minutes later took the air out of the comeback.

The Jets were again short-handed on the blue line and up front. ESPN's injury report listed defenseman Josh Morrissey on injured reserve along with forwards Vladislav Namestnikov, Nick Bjugstad and Garrett Brown. Pionk played a team-high 23:42 for Winnipeg, and Scheifele blocked four shots.

Here is how the scoring went.

Schmid in net, and a rematch fight

Akira Schmid made 22 saves on 24 shots for Florida. Nico Daws stopped 33 of 37 for Winnipeg before being pulled for an extra attacker late.

The night's first highlight came 2:04 after the opening faceoff. Florida's Bokondji Imama and Winnipeg's Tyrel Bauer dropped the gloves in what the AP described as a reenactment of sorts of their still-talked-about fight in the AHL in 2024. The two went at it for more than a minute, and as in their earlier bout, they exchanged a respectful nod when it was over. Each received five minutes for fighting, and Bauer played only 2:59 on the night.

The numbers

Florida controlled most of the game's measurable areas, according to ESPN's box score.

The announced crowd was 19,656. The game was only Florida's fourth at home this season, and the Panthers are now 3-1-0 in Sunrise. According to the AP, Florida had played three home games entering Friday, the fewest in the NHL, while more than half the league had logged at least seven.

Still waiting on Barkov and Marchand

Florida's run has come without two of its most important forwards. Captain Aleksander Barkov and Brad Marchand remain out with injuries, though both resumed skating this week. Coach Paul Maurice said Marchand could return in about three weeks and Barkov in about four, according to the AP.

In the meantime, the Panthers' depth has carried the load. Matthew Tkachuk and Brady Tkachuk combined for eight shots, Eller and Luostarinen each finished plus-3 alongside Lundell, and Florida's penalty kill held Winnipeg to one goal on four chances.

The win also kept Florida level with its in-state rival. After the Lightning's shootout loss in Nashville on Saturday, the Panthers and Tampa Bay each have 18 points, Florida at 8-4-2 through 14 games and the Lightning at 8-3-2 through 13.

What's next

The Panthers stay home to host the Detroit Red Wings on Monday night. Winnipeg continues its road trip at Carolina on Sunday, still looking for the win that ends its slide.