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Good morning and welcome to "Cats & Coffee," a weekly segment, presented by Koffee Kult, in which we serve up an exciting look at what's on deck for your Florida Panthers. Like our friends at Koffee Kult, this forecast serves up only the best -- so sit back, sip and enjoy our latest brew of news, notes and information.
After a successful homestand, the Panthers are hitting the road this week.
Kicking off their four-game trek through the Central Division, they'll first travel to Tampa Bay to face the rival Lightning on Monday. Clawing their way to a split of the first two games of their eight-game series this season, the Cats won 5-2 on Thursday before losing 6-1 on Sunday.

"We expected them to come out with a big push," Panthers defenseman MacKenzie Weegar said after Saturday's loss. "They're the Stanley Cup champions for a reason. We weren't ready for it, plain and simple. We didn't have the compete tonight. We'll look for a big bounce-back."
Following their rematch against the Lightning, the Panthers, who own a 3-0-1 record outside of Sunrise this season, will then travel north for a one-game pitstop against the Hurricanes. After that, they'll close out their trip with a back-to-back set versus the Red Wings in the Motor City.
Off to one of their best starts in franchise history, the Panthers have just two losses in regulation this season and are currently sitting in second place in the Central Division with an 8-2-2 record.
Here's everything you need to know for the week ahead…

THE GAMES

Monday: at Tampa Bay Lightning, 7:00 p.m. ET
After splitting the first two games of their three-game set at home, the Panthers will head to Tampa Bay to face the Lightning (10-2-1) in a rubber match on Monday at Amalie Arena. The only team ahead of the Panthers in the Central Division, the Lightning enter this week with wins in seven of their last eight games. Boasting the NHL's top-ranked defense (2.00 goals allowed per game), they've given up just a single goal in five of those seven wins. Brayden Point paces Tampa Bay in scoring with 16 points, while Victor Hedman has the most assists (12). Leading the team with seven goals, Steven Stamkos was removed from the NHL's COVID-19 protocol list on Sunday after missing one game. Between the pipes, Andrei Vasilevskiy has started 12 of 13 games for the Lightning, going 9-2-1 with a .933 save percentage. For the Panthers, keep an eye on Jonathan Huberdeau in this rivalry matchup. Leading the team with 15 points (four goals, 11 assists), the 27-year-old winger has done more damage against Tampa Bay than any other opponent in his career, producing 32 points (10 goals, 22 assists) over 33 career games.
TV:FOX Sports Florida
Radio:560 WQAM (DADE/BROWARD); 640 WMEN (PALM BEACH); 100.3 WCTH (FLORIDA KEYS); 107.9 FM/1370 AM WZTA (TREASURE COAST) SIRIUSXM STREAMING CH. 932
Wednesday: at Carolina Hurricanes, 5:00 p.m. ET
Squeezed into the schedule this week thanks to a postponement last month, the Panthers will make a one-game pitstop in Raleigh to face the Hurricanes (9-3-0) on Wednesday. Off to a hot start, Carolina enters this week with wins in eight of its last 10 games, including a 4-3 shootout victory at Dallas on Saturday. While they've been known for their success in the defensive zone over the last few seasons, it's their offense that has been clicking as of late. Over their last eight games, the Hurricanes have scored at least four goals six times. Locked in a three-way tie for the team's scoring lead, Andrei Svechnikov, Vincent Trocheck and Jordan Staal have each notched 12 points, while Sebastian Aho has chipped in 11. Riding into this week on a three-game point streak, Trocheck has posted five points (one goal, four assists) in that span. Across the ice, look for Aaron Ekblad to make his presence felt. Leading Florida's defenseman with nine points (four goals, five assists), the 25-year-old has also done a great job shutting down the opposition's top players this season while averaging a team-high 24:51 of ice time per contest.
TV:FOX Sports Florida
Radio: 560 WQAM (DADE/BROWARD); 640 WMEN (PALM BEACH); 100.3 WCTH (FLORIDA KEYS); 107.9 FM/1370 AM WZTA (TREASURE COAST) SIRIUSXM STREAMING CH. 932
Friday and Saturday: at Detroit Red Wings, 7:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. ET
The Panthers seem to be in a hurry to wrap up this season series. With four games between them already in the books, Florida will face the Red Wings (4-10-2) in a back-to-back set at Little Caesars Arena on Friday and Saturday. Despite sitting in last place in the Central Division, Detroit enters this week with wins in two of its last four games, including 4-2 victory at Nashville on Saturday. Anthony Mantha, Dylan Larkin and Filip Hronek are locked in a tie for the team-lead in scoring with nine points each, while Tyler Bertuzzi is tied with Mantha for the most goals (5). Against the Panthers this season, the Red Wings have dropped three of four games, with all three of those losses coming by just one goal. Given that the tiring nature of back-to-backs, it wouldn't be surprising to see both Sergei Bobrovsky and Chris Driedger start a game for Florida in Detroit. Owning a 5-1-1 record, Bobrovsky has gotten the start in each of the last three games entering this week. Driedger, meanwhile, is 3-1-1 behind an outstanding .937 save percentage.
TV: FOX Sports Florida, ESPN+ (Friday)
Radio:560 WQAM (DADE/BROWARD); 850 WFTL (PALM BEACH); 100.3 WCTH (FLORIDA KEYS); 107.9 FM/1370 AM WZTA (TREASURE COAST) SIRIUSXM STREAMING CH. 932

MILESTONE WATCH

Brett Connolly is one goal away from his 100th NHL goal.
Radko Gudas is five assists away from his 100th NHL assist.

FLEX PLANS

Come to the games you want, how you want.
To request more information on "Flex Plans" for tickets, click HERE.

FELTMAN'S VALUE PACK

This deal is good for both your stomach and your wallet.
New for this season, the Feltman's Value Pack includes upper-level Panthers tickets for either two to four people as well as a Feltman's all-natural hot dog, popcorn, soda and a parking pass. This offer is only valid for home games at BB&T Center, excluding games played on Saturday.
Now, this great deal isn't something you can find on the secondary market. In order to take full advantage of the Feltman's Value Pack, all patrons must make their purchase online through either only
Fevo
or FloridaPanthers.com. Right now, tickets are starting at just $34 per person.
For more information or to make a purchase, click HERE.

PROSPECT SPOTLIGHT

This feels like just the tip of the iceberg.
Blasting home a one-timer from the slot, Grigori Denisenko recorded the first goal of his AHL career in the third period of Syracuse's 5-4 loss to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton on Saturday night.

Selected by the Panthers with the 15th overall pick in the 2018 NHL Draft, Denisenko is only a few games into his first season in North America after spending three seasons in the KHL. So far, he's been very noticeable with Crunch, posting a goal and an assist through three contests.
In 2019-20, the 20-year-old forward tallied six goals and six assists in 38 games with Yaroslavl.

CATS CLIP OF THE WEEK

Panthers assistant general manager Brett Peterson recently sat down to discuss his past, present and future with Anson Carter on NBC Sports' multi-platform series Hockey Culture.
Click HERE to watch the full interview.

CATS IN THE COMMUNITY

TERRITORY TALK

On the latest episode of the Territory Talk podcast, defenseman Radko Gudas joined the show for a long chat about everything from the origin "The Butcher" to his ever-growing hat collection.
Territory Talk: Florida Panthers Podcast
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COLD COFFEE (IN CASE YOU MISSED IT)