SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Evan Rodrigues scored the deciding goal in the fifth round of the shootout, Sergei Bobrovsky stopped five shots in overtime and the Florida Panthers beat the Philadelphia Flyers 4-3 on Saturday night for their seventh consecutive victory.
Sam Bennett, Dmitry Kulikov and Nate Schmidt had goals in regulation for Florida, while Rodrigues had a pair of assists before delivering the shootout winner. Bobrovsky got his 404th career win, breaking a tie with Grant Fuhr for 12th on the all-time list.
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Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Samuel Ersson (33) blocks a shot during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Florida Panthers, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Philadelphia Flyers left wing Joel Farabee, second from right, celebrates with teammates after he scored during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Florida Panthers, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky deflects a shot during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Philadelphia Flyers, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Philadelphia Flyers left wing Joel Farabee (86) and Florida Panthers defenseman Nate Schmidt, rear, battle for the puck during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen (55) knocks the helmet off of Florida Panthers center Jesper Boqvist (70) during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky (72) makes a save against Philadelphia Flyers center Sean Couturier (14) during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Florida Panthers center Sam Bennett, right, scores against Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Samuel Ersson during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Florida Panthers defenseman Nate Schmidt (88) is congratulated by teammates after he scored during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Philadelphia Flyers, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Florida Panthers defenseman Dmitry Kulikov, right, is congratulated by defenseman Niko Mikkola after Kulikov scored during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Philadelphia Flyers, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Philadelphia Flyers right wing Tyson Foerster (71) congratulates center Anthony Richard (90) after Richard scored during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Florida Panthers, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Anthony Richard, Joel Farabee and Garnet Hathaway scored for Philadelphia, and Scott Laughton had two assists for the Flyers.
Aleksander Barkov also scored in the tiebreaker for Florida, and Owen Tippett tallied for Philadelphia.
Flyers: Philadelphia is now 1-9-1 this season when allowing three or more goals. Samuel Ersson had 28 saves for the Flyers.
Panthers: Florida had a three-goal second period for the second straight game. The Panthers are now 6-0-0 this season when they have at least three goals in any period.
The robes returned to Florida as the team's choice of pregame arrival apparel. The Panthers wore the robes — a gift for their trip to Finland earlier this month — for a fourth consecutive game, and evidently intend to keep doing it until this winning streak ends.
The game was the 2,000th as an NHL coach for Florida's Paul Maurice, including postseason contests. He's the second coach to reach that milestone, joining Hockey Hall of Famer Scotty Bowman (2,494 games).
Flyers host San Jose on Monday to start a stretch of six of seven at home. and Panthers host New Jersey on Tuesday to open a two-game series.
AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl
Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Samuel Ersson (33) blocks a shot during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Florida Panthers, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Philadelphia Flyers left wing Joel Farabee, second from right, celebrates with teammates after he scored during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Florida Panthers, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky deflects a shot during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Philadelphia Flyers, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Philadelphia Flyers left wing Joel Farabee (86) and Florida Panthers defenseman Nate Schmidt, rear, battle for the puck during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Rasmus Ristolainen (55) knocks the helmet off of Florida Panthers center Jesper Boqvist (70) during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky (72) makes a save against Philadelphia Flyers center Sean Couturier (14) during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Florida Panthers center Sam Bennett, right, scores against Philadelphia Flyers goaltender Samuel Ersson during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Florida Panthers defenseman Nate Schmidt (88) is congratulated by teammates after he scored during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Philadelphia Flyers, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Florida Panthers defenseman Dmitry Kulikov, right, is congratulated by defenseman Niko Mikkola after Kulikov scored during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Philadelphia Flyers, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
Philadelphia Flyers right wing Tyson Foerster (71) congratulates center Anthony Richard (90) after Richard scored during the second period of an NHL hockey game against the Florida Panthers, Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Klay Thompson exited the team bus then beamed as he strolled back into Chase Center on Tuesday night, greeted by some 400 cheering Warriors employees who lined up along his path to the Dallas locker room to show their love and appreciation for the former Golden State star.
They sported “Captain Klay” hats, the giveaway for all fans on a celebratory night remembering Thompson's 13 years with the franchise, two of those spent injured, and four championships he helped win here.
Those white hats filled Chase Center, where video highlights of Thompson showed in a place where he's still beloved — and always will be. Stephen Curry jogged up to Thompson, now wearing No. 31 with teammate Kyrie Irving in No. 11, and offered a quick embrace before Andrew Wiggins also hugged his old teammate.
Earlier, after a brief jump-rope routine outside the Mavericks' locker room, Thompson ran out the tunnel and onto the floor to thunderous applause from Warriors fans with phones up to capture the moment of Thompson's return.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr said Curry had considered addressing the crowd before tipoff but spoke with Thompson and they decided to each focus on the game, though Kerr knew it would be something when they had to defend each other.
Who would the Warriors put on Thompson?
“I'm not telling you,” Kerr cracked.
Curry fouled his former Splash Brother 15 seconds into the game and Thompson scored the initial two points of the contest on free throws. Thompson missed his initial two field-goal attempts before knocking down a 3-pointer with 1:26 remaining in the opening quarter.
“I imagine that he'll be the exact same guy that I watched for 10 years, so he's always aggressive,” Kerr said. “I'm sure he's coming out firing and none of us would have it any way different than that.”
The Warriors invited all their employees to be part of the welcoming committee for Thompson, who joined Dallas in July on a three-year, $50 million contract. Thompson, 34, missed more than 2 1/2 years — the entire 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons — recovering from surgeries on his left knee and right Achilles tendon before making his comeback in January 2022.
“I think what he overcame is almost unprecedented,” Kerr said. “... The last couple of years after he came back he struggled reconciling all of that, losing those prime seasons. We all saw that, saw him struggle with it emotionally. We saw him fight to get his game back. He helped us win a championship, led the league in 3s two years ago, he did a lot of amazing things.
"We wished that this had gone forever, that Klay would have finished his career with us but circumstances always dictate these things. In the end I think he made the right choice. I think he needed a fresh start, I think he needed kind of a new set of surroundings and that was apparent last year. He was not happy and that was hard to see, because he deserves to be happy. At his core he's a very happy person.”
Thompson has tried to downplay the magnitude of being back in the Bay Area, though it certainly was emotional for everybody involved.
“I’ve been doing this a long time, and basketball is basketball,” he said.
But when the home crowd went crazy and tipped those captain hats when he was introduced, Thompson became visibly emotional and clearly touched by the tribute. He waved and saluted in several directions.
Dallas coach Jason Kidd called the Mavericks “lucky to get him," and imagined how hard this might be for Thompson with so many emotions.
“He’s a true pro. Comes to work, understands what it means to win,” Kidd said. "We can talk about his ability to shoot the ball, space and his gravity. We can run him around, he’s going to create space for others. So when you talk about the big picture that’s hard to find, and we didn’t have that, and it was much-needed.”
Golden State held a “Salute Captain Klay” ceremony before tipoff to pay tribute to Thompson’s contributions to the franchise and his tradition of boating across the bay to games. He will be back again in February in the Mavs' second trip to Chase Center.
“This is all staff. It's unbelievable,” Warriors President and COO Brandon Schneider said. “What Klay has meant to our organization and to all of us the last 13 years, the team accomplishments, individual accomplishments, who he is as a person, what he's done in the community, it is a special night.”
For Kerr, this moment felt far different from Thompson's triumphant return nearly three years ago from the injuries and daunting grind of rehab that the veteran guard considered some of the most difficult days of his life.
“That was a welcome back, we knew there were a lot of good times ahead. In fact there was a championship six months later,” Kerr said. “This one is obviously more of a goodbye, the first time we will have seen him. ... It'll feel very strange but it will be a different vibe, more of a thank you and a goodbye and everything that you've meant to us."
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba
Dallas Mavericks guard Klay Thompson, right, is defended by Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) during the first half of an Emirates NBA Cup basketball game in San Francisco, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Dallas Mavericks guard Klay Thompson, left, loses the ball while driving to the basket against Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) during the first half of an Emirates NBA Cup basketball game in San Francisco, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Dallas Mavericks guard Klay Thompson waves toward fans before an Emirates NBA Cup basketball game between the Golden State Warriors and the Mavericks in San Francisco, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Fans cheer as Dallas Mavericks guard Klay Thompson jogs onto the court to warm up before an Emirates NBA Cup basketball game against the Golden State Warriors in San Francisco, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Dallas Mavericks guard Klay Thompson warms up before an Emirates NBA Cup basketball game against the Golden State Warriors in San Francisco, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry, left, hugs Dallas Mavericks guard Klay Thompson, middle, as guard Kyrie Irving, right, walks on the court before an Emirates NBA Cup basketball game in San Francisco, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Dallas Mavericks guard Klay Thompson reacts toward fans before an Emirates NBA Cup basketball game between the Golden State Warriors and the Mavericks in San Francisco, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Denver Nuggets forward Michael Porter Jr., right, shoots over Dallas Mavericks guard Klay Thompson in the second half of an NBA basketball game, Sunday, Nov. 10, 2024, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
FILE - Golden State Warriors guard Klay Thompson (11) shoots against Utah Jazz forward's Darius Bazley (21) and Brice Sensabaugh (8) during the first half of an NBA basketball game in San Francisco, April 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Jed Jacobsohn, File)
FILE - Golden State Warriors guards Klay Thompson, left, and Stephen Curry and forward Draymond Green, right, laugh while being interviewed, Nov. 30, 2023, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez, File)
Dallas Mavericks guard Klay Thompson, foreground left, is greeted by Golden State Warriors employees and media as he arrives before an Emirates NBA Cup basketball game between the Warriors and the Mavericks in San Francisco, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
Dallas Mavericks guard Klay Thompson is greeted by Golden State Warriors employees and media as he arrives before an Emirates NBA Cup basketball game between the Warriors and the Mavericks in San Francisco, Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)
