Panthers beat Sabres to clinch playoff berth

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Jonathan Huberdeau set Florida’s single-season points record, and the Panthers clinched a playoff berth with a 5-3 win over the Buffalo Sabres on Sunday.

Huberdeau scored his 24th goal to extend his point streak to eight games and raise his season total to 97, one more than teammate Aleksander Barkov’s record set in 2019.

"He’s a tremendous player, and he deserves it the way he’s been playing," said Barkov, who had two assists and is second on the Panthers with 72 points. "It couldn’t happen to a better guy. We still have a lot of games left, so it’s going to be a lot of fun to see where he’s going to end up."

Anthony Duclair scored twice as the Panthers (48-15-6) established a franchise record for victories. Winning for the seventh time in eight games, Florida closed a back-to-back trip by improving to 20-9-6 on the road.

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Florida Panthers left wing Jonathan Huberdeau (11) and left wing Ryan Lomberg (94) celebrate a victory with goaltender Spencer Knight (30) following the third period of an NHL hockey game against the Buffalo Sabres, Sunday, April 3, 2022, in Buffalo, N.Y. (AP Photo/Jeffrey T. Barnes)

"Obviously, to clinch, it’s fun," Huberdeau said. "The rest of the season is really important as well. Want to finish first, get home-ice advantage, and just to get good momentum into the playoffs."

MacKenzie Weegar had a goal and an assist for Florida. Anton Lundell also scored, and Spencer Knight made 26 saves. Claude Giroux had two assists.

The Panthers are the first team in the league to qualify for the postseason and have reached the playoffs in a third straight season for the first time