from Walter Villa o the Miami Herald,

When David Kampf – hardly an NHL blueblood – easily skated right around Florida Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad on Saturday night and then scored on goalie James Reimer … it was not a good sign for the home team.

The Panthers lost to the visiting Chicago Blackhawks 5-4 in overtime on Saturday, and the issue – again – was defense.

Florida is allowing 3.62 goals per game, which is the second-worst average in the league, better than only the Ottawa Senators.

Given that porous defense, it’s no coincidence that the Panthers (8-9-4) and Senators are the two worst teams in the Eastern Conference....

In an attempt to find answers to what ails the Panthers defense, here are some of the numbers:

▪ The Panthers are killing just 75 percent of their penalties – only three NHL teams are worse.

Florida’s star defensemen – Ekblad, Keith Yandle and Mike Matheson – are known more for offense than being shut-down defenders. Newcomer Bogdan Kiselevich, a former all-star in Russia, was supposed to help the PK unit, but he hasn’t had a major impact.

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