SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Craig Anderson made 30 saves, Clarke MacArthur scored a power-play goal and the Ottawa Senators beat winless Florida 1-0 Monday night in front of the smallest crowd in Panthers history.
MacArthur raced up the middle of the ice past two Florida defenders and sent a backhander past Roberto Luongo at 15:34 of the second period for Ottawa’s second power-play goal in 14 opportunities this season.
That was enough for Anderson, who earned his 27th career shutout to help the Senators finish 2-1 on their season-opening road trip.
The announced crowd of 7,311 — it appeared much smaller — in Florida’s second home game of the season broke the previous franchise low of 10,063 against Carolina on Oct. 31, 2007.
Attendance has dwindled in recent years as the Panthers have struggled on the ice. In 2010, the team reduced seating capacity for hockey from 19,250 to 17,040 with many top rows covered. This season, curtains were added to the west end zone in the upper deck to further reduce capacity by several thousand.
Florida has yet to win a game this season, including the preseason. The team has managed one point in three games, with that coming in a 3-2 overtime setback at Tampa Bay on opening night.
Luongo, who turned back 22 shots, took his first loss in his last 10 games against Ottawa. He was last beaten by the Senators on Dec. 5, 2005.
Florida (0-2-1) has scored only three goals this season. The Panthers lost 5-1 to New Jersey on Saturday.
The Panthers had their best scoring chance late in the first period when Brad Boyes raced in alone against Anderson but lost control of the puck.
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