Panthers top Maple Leafs 3-1, snap 5-game slide and tighten Atlantic Division race

SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Eetu Luostarinen scored about a minute into the third period, and the Florida Panthers defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 3-1 on Tuesday night and helping the reigning Stanley Cup champions snap a five-game losing streak.

Gustav Forsling also scored for Florida, which got 17 saves from Sergei Bobrovsky. Carter Verhaeghe sealed it with an empty-net goal with 46.9 seconds left.

John Tavares scored his 37th goal of the season for Toronto, which saw its four-game winning streak snapped.

The Panthers got center Aleksander Barkov back in the lineup after he missed three games with an upper-body injury. Florida — which has four games left — closed within four points of Toronto and two of Tampa Bay in the Atlantic Division race.

Maple Leafs: Toronto went 1-3-0 against Florida this season. The Panthers — a possible first-round opponent for Toronto this year — are now 10-3-2 against the Maple Leafs going back to late in the 2022-23 season.

Panthers: Sam Bennett will miss the rest of the regular season with an upper-body injury, joining Matthew Tkachuk (lower-body) and Aaron Ekblad (suspended) among those out until the playoffs. Ekblad can't return until Game 3 of Round 1, and the Panthers haven't said for certain that Tkachuk will be back for Game 1.

Florida turned the puck over giving Auston Matthews a point-blank shot from the slot with 5:32 left, then a rebound chance by Matthew Knies. Bobrovsky kicked both away, protecting Florida's 2-1 lead.

An oddity: The first three goals of the game combined to have exactly one assist awarded. Verhaeghe's goal was assisted by Brad Marchand and Barkov.

Toronto visits Tampa Bay on Wednesday. Florida plays host to Detroit on Thursday.

This story was first published on Apr. 8, 2025. It was updated on Apr. 9, 2025 to correct that John Tavares scored his 37th goal of the season for the Toronto Maple Leafs, not Tampa Bay.

AP NHL: https://apnews.com/NHL

Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky (72) defends the goal against Toronto Maple Leafs center Calle Jarnkrok (19) during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Tuesday, April 8, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky (72) defends the goal against Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Morgan Rielly (44) during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Tuesday, April 8, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Florida Panthers defenseman Jaycob Megna (6) skates with the puck during the first period of an NHL hockey game against the Toronto Maple Leafs, Tuesday, April 8, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Florida Panthers defenseman Nate Schmidt (88), second from left, skates with the puck as Toronto Maple Leafs right wing William Nylander (88), right, defends during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Tuesday, April 8, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Toronto Maple Leafs center John Tavares (91) and Florida Panthers defenseman Niko Mikkola (77) go for the puck during the first period of an NHL hockey game, Tuesday, April 8, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Toronto Maple Leafs defenseman Chris Tanev (8) skates with he puck as Florida Panthers center Sam Reinhart (13) defends during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Tuesday, April 8, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Florida Panthers center Eetu Luostarinen (27) falls to the ice as he attempts a shot on a goal against Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Joseph Woll (60) during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Tuesday, April 8, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Florida Panthers center Aleksander Barkov, left, and Toronto Maple Leafs center Auston Matthews, right, go up against the boards during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Tuesday, April 8, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Joseph Woll (60) defends a shot on the goal by Florida Panthers center Anton Lundell (15) during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Tuesday, April 8, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

Florida Panthers right wing Mackie Samoskevich (25) attempts a shot on the goal as Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Joseph Woll, right, defends during the second period of an NHL hockey game, Tuesday, April 8, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky)

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — Serbia's protesting university students on Sunday collected signatures throughout the country for their request for an early parliamentary election that they hope would oust the autocratic government of President Aleksandar Vucic from office.

Braving freezing weather, the students set up nearly 500 stands in dozens of cities, towns and villages in the Balkan country for residents to sign the election demand, which isn't a formal petition. Students have said that Sunday’s action was meant to put further pressure on Vucic and as a test of support.

Young protesters have been at the forefront of a nationwide movement against Vucic's populist rule in Serbia. More than a year of street protests first started in November 2024 after a train station disaster that killed 16 people.

The concrete canopy collapse in the northern city of Novi Sad was widely blamed on alleged rampant corruption and disregard of construction and safety rules during renovation work at the station. No one has been held responsible for the tragedy.

Vucic has refused to schedule an immediate early vote, but has suggested that it could be held sometime next year. Both parliamentary and presidential elections are otherwise due in 2027.

“We have stands that serve to connect with the citizens," said Igor Dojnov, a student manning one of the points in central Belgrade.

Youth-led protests during the past year have shaken Vucic more than ever during his 13-year-long tenure. Serbia's populist prime minister resigned in January, and Vucic later launched a crackdown on protesters that also drew international criticism.

While street protests have subsided, discontent with Vucic's government is believed to be widespread.

Milca Cankovic Kadijevic, a resident of Belgrade, said that she supported the students, because “I have a desire to live decently — me, my children and my grandchildren."

Vucic has formally promised to take Serbia into the European Union, but he has maintained close links with Russia and China, while facing accusations of clamping down on democratic freedoms and allowing corruption and organized crime to flourish.

He has denied this, and accused the protesters of attempting to orchestrate a “color revolution” under unspecified orders from the West. The term “color revolution” has been used to describe a series of mass protests at the beginning of the 21st century that sometimes led to the toppling of governments in the former Soviet Union states, the former Yugoslavia, the Middle East and Asia.

Serbia's protesting university students collect signatures for their request for an early parliamentary election, in Belgrade, Serbia, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

Serbia's protesting university students collect signatures for their request for an early parliamentary election, in Belgrade, Serbia, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

People stand in silence to commemorate the 16 victims, killed after a railway concrete canopy fell in Nov. 2024 while Serbia's protesting university students collect signatures throughout the country for their request for an early parliamentary election, in Belgrade, Serbia, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

Serbia's protesting university students collect signatures for their request for an early parliamentary election, in Belgrade, Serbia, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)

Serbia's protesting university students collect signatures for their request for an early parliamentary election, in Belgrade, Serbia, Sunday, Dec. 28, 2025. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic)