Garrison sits out with lower-body injury
--Defenseman Jason Garrison missed his first game of the season Sunday after suffering an undisclosed lower-body injury on Saturday against the Devils.
Florida recalled Colby Robak from AHL San Antonio to take his place. Robak made his NHL debut against the Islanders on Sunday.
Garrison will have an MRI on Monday in South Florida.
Although general manager Dale Tallon says he doesn't think the injury is serious, coach Kevin Dineen says he hates having Garrison out for any little bit of time. Florida has lost three of its defensemen to injury in the past few weeks with Ed Jovanovski (hand) and Dmitry Kulikov (knee) being lost in consecutive games.
Jovanovski has lost the cast on his right hand and is skating. He could return as early as this week.
--Robak said he was excited to get the call to join the Panthers on Saturday afternoon -- even if it did disrupt his afternoon nap. Robak was supposed to play for the San Antonio Rampage that night in Rochester, N.Y.
Robak admits he was looking forward to that game since he started his pro career with the Rochester Americans last season. Florida and Rochester parted ways over the summer.
"It was a little surreal, getting the call during my nap. I thought I was dreaming," Robak said. "I'm excited. It was probably the most nervous I've ever been, but, I think that's normal."
--Defenseman Tyson Strachan's first NHL goal was a long time coming. Sunday, however, was his day. Strachan's first goal came in his 75th game as he whipped a shot past Evgeni Nabokov to tie the score at 1 in the first period of Sunday's game.
Strachan spent parts of the past three seasons with St. Louis before landing with the Panthers this summer. He's definitely been fitting in after being recalled once Kulikov was injured last month. Sunday's game was Strachan's eighth since being called up from San Antonio.
"I thought that (goal) was never going to come," he said, "but one had to roll in there eventually. It was a great draw by Goc and he teed it up perfectly. I just closed my eyes and let it fly."
--Left wing Jack Skille hadn't played since Jan. 21 but had a great return as he scored his second goal of the season. Skille has missed 20 of the previous 22 games after injuring his shoulder on Dec. 20.
"It's good to be part of this team again," Skille said.
Skille's goal came after Marcel Goc won a faceoff and got the puck to Skille. The winger one-timed the puck past Nabokov.
When talking about his shot, Skille smiled. "I just took a spin and shot it."
--With Skille back in the lineup, Krys Barch was a healthy scratch.
QUOTE TO NOTE
"It was a good weekend for us. It's satisfying. We went out played hard and were rewarded for it." -- Coach Kevin Dineen, after Florida's 4-1 win against the Islanders, the Panthers third straight.
Copyright (C) 2012 The Sports Xchange. All Rights Reserved.
