Olofsson scores 1st goal with Flames in win against Panthers

CALGARY -- Victor Olofsson scored his first goal with the Calgary Flames in a 4-1 win against the Florida Panthers at Scotiabank Saddledome on Friday.

The forward, who was acquired by Calgary in a trade with the Colorado Avalanche on March 6, had one assist in six games entering Friday.

“I’ve had a lot of good looks and I haven’t been able to find the net until tonight, so it was nice to get that one, for sure,” Olofsson said. “I’m really excited being here, and I’ve just got to try to get everything going as fast as I can. They’ve welcomed me very nicely here, so I’m enjoying my time here.

“It’s been a little bit different, but I’m learning every game, and there’s always situations that come up and things that I’ve definitely got to do better, but I feel like I’m learning and getting better every game.”

Joel Farabee, Morgan Frost and Matt Coronato also scored for the Flames (28-34-7), who have won two in a row to start a six-game homestand. Blake Coleman had two assists, and Dustin Wolf made 24 saves.

“I know there’s a lot of games left, but it could be easy to kind of let it slip,” Frost said. “I feel like everyone’s giving their all, especially these last two. I feel like we’ve given up less grade-A chances, which is something we talked about a lot. I thought tonight was a full-team effort and we deserved to win that game.”

A.J. Greer scored the lone goal for the Panthers (34-32-3), who have lost three of four, all on a road trip that ended Friday. Daniil Tarasov made 32 saves

“We were a little sluggish tonight, a little slow,” Florida forward Sam Bennett said. “Obviously, after a big win last night (4-0 at the Edmonton Oilers), sometimes that can be a tendency. We were slow and we didn’t have very much.”

Farabee gave the Flames a 1-0 lead at 7:44 of the second period. His shot from the left boards deflected off the leg of Panthers defenseman Niko Mikkola in the left face-off circle and over Tarasov’s right shoulder into the net.

Olofsson made it 2-0 at 10:10. Adam Klapka sent a pass from below the goal line to Olofsson, who buried a slap shot from the left circle to the glove side.

“He’s been great,” Frost said of Olofsson. “Such a nice guy, kind of quiet, and I think he’s a big addition. To see some of the chances he had on the power play today, where the goalie is just getting a toe on it, he’s got a bomb. I think everyone’s enjoyed having him around, and nice to see him get rewarded.”

Greer cut the deficit to 2-1 at 4:17 of the third period with a wrist shot from the left circle over Wolf's glove.

Calgary forward Connor Zary left the game at 11:14 after being hooked and then pushed headfirst into the boards by Greer, who was given a minor penalty for hooking, a five-minute major for interference and a 10-minute game misconduct.

“He’s moving around,” Flames coach Ryan Huska said of Zary after the game. “He’s fine and all that stuff, but I don’t really have a real indication of what it is yet.”

Mikkola left the game at 12:49 after a knee-on-knee collision with Calgary forward Ryan Strome. He was helped off the ice by a trainer and teammate Eetu Luostarinen, putting minimal weight on his left leg.

“He plays so hard for us every night, competes so hard,” Panthers coach Paul Maurice said. “He’s been incredibly durable for us. We’re in a tough one right now, so you need those veteran guys around and playing and leading. He’s been a dominant man for us all year with the injuries we’ve had. He’s played great for us, so we’re going to miss him. He’s going to miss some time, I believe.”

Frost made it 3-1 during a 5-on-3 power play at 16:59, backhanding a loose puck over a sprawling Tarasov from the top of the crease.

Coronato pushed the lead to 4-1 with a power-play goal just 31 seconds later at 17:30. He took a stretch pass from Matvei Gridin in stride into the offensive zone and beat Tarasov with a snap shot from the slot.

“I think once we scored the 5-on-3 goal, they settled down a little bit more and they were able to set Matt up for a nice one to put the game away,” Huska said. “It was important for the group to score a [couple] on the power play. It’s been a while, six games coming into tonight that we hadn’t scored.”

NOTES: The Flames have won seven straight home games against the Panthers dating to the 2018-19 season, which is their longest active streak against a single opponent. … Bennett had a four-game point streak end (two goals, three assists). ... Maurice coached his 1,999th game in the NHL.