The Florida Panthers are working through a bit of a slump early in 2025-26. Florida is without some key players due to injuries. But overall, their play has not been up to their usual standards. Thursday night brought some major reasons to celebrate, though. Brad Marchand recorded his 1000th career point, and Daniil Tarasov recorded his first win with Florida.
Tarasov made 37 saves on Thursday night against Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals. Brandom Duhaime and former Panthers prospect Justin Sourdif scored for the visiting Caps. However, Tarasov's offense supported him by scoring six goals to claim a 6-3 victory at home. After the game, the Panthers' backup goaltender opened up about his first win with this team.
“Finally, we got it. I’m so happy and proud of these guys. We got huge milestones tonight. Just happy to be a part of that,” Tarasov said, via Panthers reporter Jameson Olive.
Tarasov joined Florida through trade this offseason. The Columbus Blue Jackets sent him to South Florida, with the two-time defending champions hoping he could provide serviceable play behind Sergei Bobrovsky.
However, this has not played out to this point. Tarasov entered play Thursday winless in four starts, sporting an .891 save percentage. In fairness to the 26-year-old, there are reasons to be positive. Mainly, his 2.07 Goals Saved Above Expected entering Thursday is a noticeably better mark than that of Bobrovsky's -1.63.
In any event, Tarasov has finally earned his first Florida win. A win like this certainly can give a struggling goaltender confidence. It's something to build on moving forward as Florida looks to continue climbing the standings.
