Brady Tkachuk scored three goals and Matthew Tkachuk set up five others as the Florida Panthers routed the Columbus Blue Jackets 7-3 on Tuesday night at Nationwide Arena. The Panthers improved to 3-2-2 while the Blue Jackets fell to 2-3-0 in the Panthers Blue Jackets 7-3 result.
Columbus led 1-0 after the first period on a Kent Johnson wrist shot, but Florida answered with four unanswered goals in the second period to seize control. Blue Jackets goaltender Cam Talbot allowed six goals on 23 shots before being replaced by Jet Greaves, who stopped all four shots he faced. Florida’s Akira Schmid finished with 24 saves on 27 shots to secure the win.
Key Moments: How The Panthers Pulled Away
Johnson opened the scoring 14:11 into the first period, giving Columbus an early 1-0 edge. Florida flipped the game in the second period behind a flurry from the Tkachuk brothers. Brady Tkachuk tied it at 2:27 with a wrist shot assisted by Matthew Tkachuk, then tipped in his second goal at the 6:00 mark with help from Matthew Tkachuk and Seth Jones.
Brady Tkachuk completed his hat trick at 10:30 on a wrist shot set up by Sam Reinhart and Matthew Tkachuk, pushing the score to 3-1. Carter Verhaeghe capped the period with a snap shot at 17:50, assisted by both Tkachuks, making it 4-1 after 40 minutes.
The third period opened with more Florida pressure. Reinhart tipped in a goal just 1:20 into the frame, assisted again by Matthew Tkachuk and Jones, and Verhaeghe added his second goal of the night at 3:28 to make it 6-1. Columbus briefly rallied with goals from Denton Mateychuk and Cole Sillinger 22 seconds apart in the final period, cutting the deficit to 6-3, but Reinhart closed the scoring at 17:43 for the 7-3 final, his fourth goal of the season and second point of the night off assists from Anton Lundell and Jones.
Top Performers From Both Teams
Matthew Tkachuk finished with five assists and five points, leading all skaters. Brady Tkachuk’s hat trick paced the Panthers’ offense, and Seth Jones chipped in four assists of his own. Reinhart recorded a goal and an assist for two points, while Verhaeghe scored twice.
Florida converted 4 of 6 power-play chances for a 66.7% success rate, a major factor in the lopsided score. The Panthers also out-hit Columbus 24-16 while being outshot 27-28 and out-blocked 13-18.
For Columbus, Damon Severson recorded two assists to lead the team in points, and Johnson scored the Blue Jackets’ only goal through regulation outside the third-period flurry. Severson, Mateychuk and Sillinger each factored into the third-period comeback bid that fell short.
What It Means For The Standings
The win keeps Florida in the mix in the Atlantic Division, where the Panthers sit at 8 points, tied with Buffalo, Montreal and Toronto but behind Ottawa, Tampa Bay and Boston. Columbus remains near the bottom of the Metropolitan Division with 4 points, tied with the New York Islanders. Florida also leads the season series with Columbus 1-0.
Florida’s special teams carried the night. The Panthers’ 66.7% power-play conversion stood in stark contrast to a Columbus unit that went 0 for 2 with the man advantage and committed seven total penalties for 25 penalty minutes, more than four times Florida’s six.
What’s Next
Both teams continue their early-season schedules after this Metropolitan-Atlantic matchup. Florida will look to build on the offensive outburst from Matthew Tkachuk and Brady Tkachuk, while Columbus will aim to tighten its penalty discipline after the lopsided special-teams battle. Fans can follow more Panthers coverage in Total Apex Sports’ recap of the Panthers’ matchup with the Sabres and the team’s season outlook following the Aleksander Barkov LTIR move.
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