Maurice called it arrogance and softness. The puck only says arrogance

Paul Maurice put two words on the last two nights, and I only buy one of them. This team isn't soft. It's been careless with the puck, and careless is what arrogance looks like on the ice.

After the 4-0 loss in Pittsburgh, Maurice said he didn't know "where on the spectrum of arrogance and softness" he had let the game slide. Then he pointed at himself. "I think it's coming from me," he said, and he said he needs to get their attention. Florida has been outscored 9-1 in two nights.

The hit column says no

Florida threw 42 hits in Ottawa and 32 in Pittsburgh, by our count. That's 74 hits in two losses. In the three straight wins before that, against Columbus, Vancouver and Seattle, the cats threw 72 combined.

Nobody stopped finishing checks, and nobody stopped answering the bell for a teammate. If anything, the physical stuff has been costing them time in the penalty box, which I went through this morning. A soft team doesn't lead the league in penalty minutes.

The puck says yes

Florida had 23 giveaways in Pittsburgh, by our count, tied for its most this season. In the three wins it averaged 17. That's where the arrogance lives.

Those three wins came with 18 goals, and Matthew Tkachuk named the hangover himself. "We win the 2-1, 1-0 type of games," he said. "Maybe we're thinking that the offense is going to come easy because it did a few games."

He's right. The 8-3 over Seattle isn't who this team is. The 1-0 in Raleigh on opening night is.

Anybody who's played knows what a cute drop pass at the offensive blue line does to the goaltender behind you. It becomes an odd-man rush the other way. With Jacob Markstrom injured, that goaltender is either a rookie making his debut or Akira Schmid, and neither one deserves that kind of defensive support.

Nobody showed up on the sheet

Not one Panther had a point in Pittsburgh. Sam Reinhart played 20:30, up 4.6 minutes from Ottawa per NHL data, and Seth Jones led everybody at 23:06. The top of the lineup absorbed enormous minutes and produced absolutely nothing. Matthew Tkachuk's point streak ended at nine.

I've watched this franchise lose its way for whole seasons at a time. Two bad nights on a back-to-back isn't that. But Maurice doesn't say "it's coming from me" by accident. He's won two Cups with this room, and that's what a coach says before a practice the room remembers.

Friday was a day off. They practice Saturday in Chicago, and I'd expect something resembling a Heat Culture conditioning session. Then it's the Blackhawks on Sunday afternoon and Winnipeg on Tuesday to finish the trip.

Pabs' read: Maurice is half right. Keep the hits, lose the hero passes. My call: Florida keeps it under 15 giveaways in Chicago and wins by two or more.