After 4 days off, the Florida Panthers came out Thursday night to try and make up for their 4-0 drubbing by St. Louis last Saturday. For 2 periods of tonight’s game, the Panthers looked well on track to do just that, but the wheels came off in the 3rd period. The Panthers’ lost their 1-0 lead and fell 2-1 to the Ottawa Senators.

The game got off to a good start with Keith Ballard netting his 2nd goal of the season and giving the Panthers a 1-0 lead. Ballard’s goal came in the 1st period on a 5 on 3 power play at the 14:19 mark. The next best scoring chance for the Panthers came in the 2nd period when Nathan Horton rang a shot off the post.

The 3rd period however was not a shutdown period for the Panthers. Ottawa equalized at the 5:55 mark of the period and then took the lead at the 10:20 mark of the period. Florida was outshot for the game, again, and more disturbingly were outshot in an important 3rd period, again.

Tonight’s loss was the first time this season the Panthers have blown a lead in a game. Forward Wade Belak did play some defense tonight as the Panthers only had 5 defenseman in uniform. The Panthers’ top prospect, center Shawn Matthias, was recalled from AHL Rochester tonight and logged 7:21 of ice time. Matthias has struggled in the AHL and had no shots on goal this evening. LW David Booth was scoreless on the night, marking the 7th game in a row he was held scoreless after scoring 3 goals in the first 2 games of the season.

Tonight’s loss again showed the hot/cold tendencies of the Florida offense. Horton put in the best effort of any forward, while Cory Stillman, Radek Dvorak, and David Booth were ineffective. The power play was more effective, going 1-3, but the goal came from a defenseman. Florida’s offense needs to become more consistent and less dependent on the defense shutting out opponents every night. No defense in the league is capable of that feat, the offense needs to help their defense out and start putting some pucks in the net.

The Panthers’ battered defensive staff received a boost yesterday as Jassen Cullimore signed a one year contract to join the Panthers. Cullimore, who is 36, signed a one way deal that pays him his full NHL salary even if he is sent to the minors, though don’t expect that anytime soon. Cullimore had 3 goals and 10 assists with a plus 21 in his time with the Panthers last season.

Cullimore will provide needed help to a defensive corps that continues to be shorthanded courtesy of injuries. Cory Murhpy is expected to be out at least six weeks with an injury being described as a “strained shoulder”. Along with Murphy, Bryan Allen had knee surgery Monday and will be on crutches for 6-8 weeks, and Stephen Weiss and Gregory Campbell missed practice Tuesday with groin and hip flexor issues, respectively.

Cullimore however faces immigration issues that could slow his joining the team. In the event Cullimore cannot make it in time for Thurday’s game against Ottawa, forward Wade Belak will be used as a 6th defenseman. Belak practiced Tuesday with the defense.

On a good note for the defense, Bryan McCabe skated on his own the past two days after suffering a back injury in the 2nd period of the season opener. McCabe is not expected to be ready for this weekend, however he may be able to join the team in time for a West Coast swing next week.

Cullimore will be a good band aid for the time being, however he was not offered a contract for a reason at the start of the season. Clearly the Panthers didn’t think then that he was going to be good enough to be a part of their defense, now however they have no choice. Cullimore will be useful in that he is a body to take the weight off the remaining 4 healthy starters.

The Florida Panthers’ defense is banged up, so what have the coaches/management been doing to resolve the problem? For starters, after Cory Murphy went down on Friday, rookie Jason Garrison out of the University of Minnesota was recalled from AHL Rochester and joined the team in St. Louis on Saturday night. Garrison logged 12 minutes of ice time, was even on the night with 0 shots on goal and no PIM. Garrison is not expected to remain with the NHL club right now, though he is doing well in the AHL with 1 goal and 3 assists in 6 games, good for a defenseman.

The team is also exploring other options than call ups. Defenseman Jassen Cullimore is a free agent, and former Panther, who may be resigned to help bolster the defensive corps. Cullimore was not offered a contract when training camp ended in October and has not caught on with another team yet.

In a pinch, Wade Belak is capable of sliding back and playing defense. In some good news, finally, for the defense Bryan McCabe is on track healing from his back injury. McCabe was able to participate in some fitness drills, off the ice, last week and is expected to be able to practice on skates later this week.

Thankfully for the Panthers, they are off until Thursday this week. With their last game being played Saturday, that gives the Panthers 4 days to rest and prepare for 3 games in 4 days next weekend.

Bad news continues to mount for the Florida Panthers’ defense as news came down on Sunday that defenseman Bryan Allen, who hasn’t played since October 11, will have knee surgery in Vail, Colorado on Monday.

Allen complained of a swollen left knee after the Panthers’ second game of the season against the Atlanta Thrashers and has practiced just once since then. Allen had knee surgery just two weeks before training camp began.

It is unknown as of right now if Allen has any ligament or cartilage damage in his knee, but Allen is expected to be out indefinitely following his surgery. Allen’s absence for an extended amount of time will force the Panthers to make a move to bolster their defense.

The Florida Panthers have been bitten hard by the injury bug early in the season and the results could be devastating for the Panthers’ season. The defense in particular has suffered the most from the rash of injuries that the Panthers have suffered.

Defenseman Bryan McCabe jammed his back in the first game of the season and has yet to return to the line up. Bryan Allen has been out since October 11 and has practiced only once since then. In Friday’s 4-3 victory over the San Jose Sharks, defenseman Cory Murphy suffered a shoulder injury and did not play on Saturday, his status is unknown though an MRI is scheduled.

Forward Stephen Weiss is just the latest to join the list as he sat out Saturday’s game with a groin injury.

The Panthers’ defense has been hit the hardest and is down to 5 healthy defenseman and in the coming days the Panthers are expected to make some moves to shore up their battered defensive corps.