March 6 (UPI) -- Florida Panthers goaltender Roberto Luongo learned from experience and denied a puck that bounced off a referee Tuesday night against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Penguins defenseman Zach Trotman ripped a puck into the zone on a dump in. The puck had an awkward bounce off the glass and hit a referee in the chest.
Luongo, who faced a similar situation against the St. Louis Blues in December, made a save to deny the carom off the ref.
Against the Blues on Dec. 11, Luongo allowed a goal after Blues defenseman Robert Bortuzzo inadvertently fired a puck into the chest of a referee. The puck slipped by Luongo and into the net for a goal. The score was eventually waived off as a puck can't enter the net off the referee.
Luongo saved 34 of 37 shot attempts in the Panthers' 3-2 overtime loss to the Penguins. The veteran goalie has a 14-14-4 record in 34 starts this season. He has a 3.13 goals-against average with an .898 save percentage.
The Panthers (28-26-12) are 11 points behind the Montreal Canadiens for the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference. Florida plays the Boston Bruins on Thursday night.
