When: Friday, Dec. 20 at 6 p.m. CT
Where: Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise, FL
Watch: FanDuel Sports Network
Listen: 101 ESPN, Blues App
QUICK HITS
BLUES On Friday night the St. Louis Blues (15-16-3) are set to face off against the reigning Stanley Cup Champions, the Florida Panthers, for the first time this season.
The Blues will be on the second night of a back-to-back set after falling to the Tampa Bay Lightning 3-1 on Thursday. The Lightning had the first two tallies before Pavel Buchnevich netted his ninth goal of the season to cut the lead in half. Buchnevich's goal marked the forward's 10th point (four goals, six assists) in his last 11 games. Tampa added another goal to hold off St. Louis.
Although the Blues were unable to secure two points, they found success in key areas as they outshot the Lightning 32-18, had seven more hits and won 56 percent of the faceoffs. After the game, Robert Thomas reflected on the positive takeaways in Tampa Bay.
“Yeah, we’re starting to build something,” Thomas said. “We feel it every game; we’re getting a little bit better, getting a little bit more consistent. Obviously frustrated with the result, but there’s definitely some positives to look at. We got a big test tomorrow, so we’re up for it and ready.”
The Blues will look to channel their lessons from Thursday’s game into their next battle in the Sunshine State on Friday before heading north to the Motor City to take on the Detroit Red Wings on Monday.
PANTHERS The Florida Panthers (20-11-2) are coming into Friday night’s game riding a two-game win streak, with both coming against two of the NHL’s hottest teams. The Panthers squeaked out a 6-5 win against the Edmonton Oilers on Monday before dominating the Minnesota Wild 6-1 on Wednesday for their 20th win of the season.
Within the first four minutes of play in Minnesota, the Panthers capitalized for an early lead. Late in the period, the Wild scored the equalizer and lone goal of the evening. Florida netted five additional goals to secure the victory, including two from Matthew Tkachuk, his 12th and 13th on the season.
During the offseason, the Panthers retained a majority of their championship team. However, they did lose defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson and goaltender Anthony Stolarz in free agency, with both signing in Toronto. Ekman-Larsson had 32 points (nine goals, 23 assists) last season with the Panthers. Stolarz had a 16-7-2 record and a .925 save percentage in 27 games with Florida.
The Panthers are the reigning Stanley Cup Champions, defeating the Oilers in seven games for the title. This marked the Panthers' first Stanley Cup in their 31-year history. The Panthers currently rank second in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference.
