Cats Forecast: High-Scoring Panthers Hit the Road in 1st Place

There's nothing better than perusing press clippings on Monday.
Especially when the Cats are coming off back-to-back wins in which they scored 16 goals.

"Start any kind of NHL-related conversation and, these days, you'll soon arrive at one unavoidable point: We need to talk about the Florida Panthers," Sportsnet writer Ryan Dixon penned in weekend takeaways. "I don't know how any exchange about the weekend that was in hockey wouldn't be headlined by the team that put up a sweet 16 goals on two opponents."
With chants of "We want 10!" coming out of FLA Live Arena all weekend, the Panthers followed up a 7-1 drubbing of the Stars on Friday with a 9-2 beatdown of the Blue Jackets on Saturday.
On the warpath ever since returning from the NHL's COVID-related pause around the holidays, the Panthers have gone 8-0-1 since getting back to work while outscoring the opposition 54-23.
Sitting atop the standings with an NHL-best .750 points percentage, they've posted a 21-3-0 record at home while scoring 114 goals in those games. During their current seven-game win streak in Sunrise, they've scored 45 goals, including putting nine up on the scoreboard twice.
Getting contributions from up and down the lineup, Jonathan Huberdeau leads the team and ranks tied for third in the league with 53 points (15 goals, 38 assists), but underneath him six other players have recorded at least 25 points: Aaron Ekblad (35), Carter Verhaeghe (31), Sam Reinhart (31), Anthony Duclair (30), Aleksander Barkov (29) and MacKenzie Weegar (25).
Not to be lost in this scoring spree, Sergei Bobrosky is 19-3-3 with a .921 save percentage.
"They can score right now like nobody else in the NHL can score," NHL insider Elliotte Friedman said while simply raving about the Panthers on the latest edition of his "32 Thoughts" podcast.
Sitting at 26-7-5, the Cats will now look to continue their impressive run when they open up a five-game swing through the Western Conference on Tuesday at Calgary. After that, they'll visit Edmonton on Thursday, Vancouver on Friday and then wrap up the week at Seattle on Sunday.
Full of confidence, the Panthers are eager to show our neighbors to the north what they can do.
"I think confidence is a big thing in the NHL, and I can tell you firsthand that every guy in that room has a lot of confidence," Weegar said. "All four lines, all six D, Bob and Knighter, we all have a lot of confidence right now. Even the coaching staff has a lot of confidence back there. They've done a great job getting us ready and making adjustments throughout the game."
From big games to great ticket packages, here's what you should look out for this week…

THE GAMES

Tuesday: at Calgary Flames, 9 p.m. ET
The Panthers will kick off their five-game road trip with a rematch against the Flames (17-11-6) at the Scotiabank Saddledome on Tuesday. In their first meeting of the season back on Jan. 4, Patric Hornqvist scored a pair of goals and Sergei Bobrovsky made 47 saves to lead the Panthers to a 6-2 win in Sunrise. Yet to win since that lopsided defeat, the Flames enter this week mired in a four-game losing streak in which they've been outscored 20-7. Johnny Gaudreau leads Calgary in assists (24) and points (39), while Andrew Mangiapane is first in goals (18). In net, Jacob Markstrom has gone 12-8-5 with a .924 save percentage, but is 2-4-1 with a .887 save percentage over his last seven appearances. For the Panthers, this game will be a big one for Sam Bennett. Facing off against the team that drafted him fourth overall all the way back in 2014, the grizzled forward has been lighting it up ever since he was shipped from Calgary to Florida at last year's trade deadline. In just 29 games this season, he's already scored 15 goals while centering Jonathan Huberdeau and Anthony Duclair on the second line.
TV & Streaming: Bally Sports Florida, ESPN+ (Out of Region)
Radio:790 WAXY (Dade/Broward); 850 WFTL (Palm Beach); 100.3 WCTH (Florida Keys); SiriusXM App & Streaming 932
Thursday: at Edmonton Oilers, 9 p.m. ET
They'll be no shortage of superstars on the ice when the Panthers continue their road trip with a matchup against the Oilers (18-15-2) at Rogers Place on Thursday. As of right now, three of the top-four scorers in the NHL are expected to suit up in this contest: Leon Draisaitl (54 points) and Connor McDavid (53 points) for Edmonton, and Jonathan Huberdeau (53 points) for Florida. Not where they want to be in the standings, the Oilers have struggled to find consistent success so far this season despite having those top-tier talents. Of course, part of that might be due to the fact that they've had 10 of their games postponed since Dec. 20 due to COVID-19. When they have been able to get on the ice, they've lost each of their last six games while scoring just 14 goals during that slump. And while Draisaitl and McDavid have each already cross the 50-point plateau, the scoring drops off a bit until you get to Ryan Nugent-Hopkins in third with 26 points. Earning the bulk of the starts, Mikko Koskinen has gone 12-7-1 with a .900 save percentage. As for the Panthers, look for Huberdeau to keep on rolling and show that he can do more than just hang with the other top players in the league. Entering this week on an eight-game point streak, the dazzling playmaker has amassed 20 points (five goals, 15 assists) during that stellar span.
TV & Streaming: Bally Sports Florida, ESPN+ (Out of Region)
Radio:560 WQAM (Dade/Broward); 640 WMEN (Palm Beach); 100.3 WCTH (Florida Keys); SiriusXM App & Streaming 932
Friday: at Vancouver Canucks, 10 p.m. ET
Closing the book on another season series, the Panthers will wrap up their back-to-back set by clashing with the Canucks (17-18-3) at Rogers Arena on Friday. When the two teams first met in Sunrise on Jan. 11, Sam Reinhart compiled three points (two goals, one assist) to help lead the Panthers to a convincing 5-2 win. Overall, Vancouver has come up short in four of its last seven games, but enters this week fresh off a 4-2 win at Washington on Sunday. J.T. Miller paces the Canucks in points (38), while Quinn Hughes has the most assists (28) and Bo Horvat has tallied the most goals (13). Carrying a hot stick, Horvat has lit the lamp in each of his last two outings. Between the pipes, Thatcher Demko has gone 16-14-1 with a .915 save percentage, but owns a .875 save percentage over his last four appearances. Likely to give Demko quite a bit of trouble, keep an eye on Anthony Duclair for the Cats in this game. Leading the team with 16 goals, the super speedy forward has found the back of the net seven times over his last nine contests.
TV & Streaming: Bally Sports Florida, ESPN+ (Out of Region)
Radio:560 WQAM (Dade/Broward); 640 WMEN (Palm Beach); 100.3 WCTH (Florida Keys); SiriusXM & Streaming 932
Sunday: at Seattle Kraken, 9 p.m. ET
Briefly hopping over the border back into the United States, the Panthers will play their first ever game at Climate Pledge Arena against the expansion Kraken (10-23-4) on Sunday. One of only three teams to take down the Panthers in Sunrise this season, Seattle secured a 4-1 win in that meeting back on Nov. 27. Since then, however, things haven't been going great for the Kraken. Looking to break out of a nine-game losing streak entering this week, they've been outscored 37-19 and are the only team in the league without a win since their slump began on Dec. 15. Jordan Eberle leads Seattle in scoring with 24 points (12 goals, 12 assists), while former Cat Jared McCann is second in points (23) and first in goals (15). Getting the bulk of the starts in net, Philipp Grubauer has posted a 7-15-4 record with a .880 save percentage. Looking at all three goaltenders for the Kraken - Grubauer, Chris Driedger and Joey Daccord - none have a save percentage above .900 this season. Hoping to help get the Panthers a bit of revenge, look for Carter Verhaeghe to turn his up-tempo play into a few points in this battle. Tied for third on the team in scoring with 31 points, the energetic forward has scored five goals in his last four games.
TV & Streaming: Bally Sports Florida, ESPN+ (Out of Region)
Radio:560 WQAM (Dade/Broward); 640 WMEN (Palm Beach); 100.3 WCTH (Florida Keys); SiriusXM App & Streaming 932

MILESTONE WATCH

• Aleksander Barkov is two assists away from his 300th NHL assist.
  - Aleksander Barkov is four goals away from his 200th NHL goal.
  - Aleksander Barkov is six points away from his 500th NHL point.
  - Gustav Forsling is two games away from his 200th NHL game.

FELTMAN'S VALUE PACK

When the Panthers return from their road trip, the Feltman's Value Pack has you covered.
Available for purchase online only through Fevo, this ticket package includes tickets for four people as well as a Feltman's all-natural hot dog, popcorn and soda for each ticketed person.
Starting at $149 per ticket package, click HERE to purchase your plan now.

PROSPECT SPOTLIGHT

Now seems like a good time to check back in with Ty Smilanic.
Putting together at strong sophomore season for No. 1 Quinnipiac, the 19-year-old forward currently ranks second on the team in goals (10) and fifth in points (16) through 20 games. On Jan. 14, he scored two goals and also added an assist during a 3-0 win over Harvard.

Taken by the Panthers in the third round (74th overall) of the 2020 NHL Draft, Smilanic, who will celebrate his 20th birthday on Thursday, is coming off a stellar freshman season in which he was a finalist for ECAC Hockey Rookie of the Year after leading the nation's rookies with 14 goals.

CATS CLIP OF THE WEEK

With the Panthers slated to visit Calgary on Tuesday, now seems like a good time take a look back at Sam Bennett's second hat trick of the season during last week's 7-1 win over the Stars.
In 39 games since being acquired from the Flames, Bennett has scored 21 goals.

CATS IN THE COMMUNITY

TERRITORY TALK

Heating up as the midway point of his rookie season approaches, forward Anton Lundell joined last week's episode of the Territory Talk podcast to talk about the lessons he's already learned, his excellent celly game, getting to play hockey with his family back home in Finland and more.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

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5 TAKEAWAYS: 'We Want 10!' Chants Fill Arena as Cats Light Up Columbus
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Vote for Barkov: 'Every Single Game He Proves He's an All-Star'
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5 TAKEAWAYS: Bennett Scores Hat Trick, Panthers Squash Stars 
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Jonathan Huberdeau Named To 2022 NHL All-Star Game Roster 
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NOTEBOOK: Acciari at Practice; Bobrovsky Standing Tall 
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Andrew Brunette Named Atlantic Division Coach at 2022 NHL All-Star Game 
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Panthers Sign Goaltender Evan Fitzpatrick to a One-Year, Two-Way Contract 
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