After sitting out one game with a lower-body injury, Aleksander Barkov will be a game-time decision when the Panthers open their four-game road trip against the Rangers on Monday.
"We'll see how he makes out here after skate," Interim Head Coach Andrew Brunette said of the Panthers superstar captain's status following this morning's skate at Madison Square Garden.
PREVIEW: Barkov 'Game-Time Decision' as Streaking Panthers visit Rangers
In addition to Barkov, goalie Sergei Bobrovsky is also a game-time decision, but will only be serving as the team's backup if cleared. As for centers Sam Bennett and Joe Thornton, both players skated this morning, but remain day-to-day while recovering from injuries of their own.
Despite missing these keys players, the Panthers, who sit atop the league's standings with a 10-0-1 record, came together and managed to extend their season-opening point streak to 11 games with a convincing 5-2 victory over the previously undefeated Hurricanes on Saturday.
Jumping out to a four-goal lead in the first period and never looking back, Frank Vatrano, Anton Lundell and Patric Hornqvist all lit the lamp once against Carolina, while Anthony Duclair, who leads the team with eight goals, led the charge up front with four points (two goals, two assists).
Taking on an elevated role in Barkov's absence, Eetu Luostarinen served as the club's top-line center, while Spencer Knight, who manned the crease in place of Bobrovsky, made 30 saves.
Earning 21 out of a possible 22 points out of the gate, the streaking Panthers have matched the 1994-95 Penguins and 2006-07 Sabres for the best 11-game start to a season in NHL history.
"The leadership group really stepped up and made everyone feel comfortable," Panthers defenseman MacKenzie Weegar said. "Lundy, Luosty, and obviously Duke, had great nights. We just try to get the puck up to those guys. I'm really proud of the way everybody stepped up."
Outstanding at both ends of the ice, the Panthers rank second in the league in goals per game (4.18) and third in goals-against per game (2.09). After a 3-for-5 performance on the power play against the Hurricanes, they also now rank tied for seventh on the man advantage at 26.3%.
Tied with Barkov and Duclair for the team-scoring lead, Jonathan Huberdeau has tallied 12 points (three goals, nine assists). After them, 10 other players have notched at least five points, including Aaron Ekblad (10), Gustav Forsling (9), Sam Reinhart (9) and Carter Verhaeghe (9).
Returning to the crease, Knight will get the start in the Big Apple. Owning a 4-0-1 record with a 2.51 goals-against average and .918 save percentage, the 20-year-old rookie's 8-0-1 career record stands as the fourth-longest point streak by a goalie to begin a career in NHL history.
"Just the growth of this group for the last three years, it's been a lot of fun to watch them grow into being such a competitive group," Brunette said of the strides the Panthers have made in a short amount of time. "We continue to get more competitive, and that's what great teams do."
Looking to shake out of a minor slump, the Rangers have lost each of their last three games entering tonight's matchup. Following consecutive overtime losses to the Canucks and Oilers, they were kept off the scoresheet completely in a 6-0 beatdown by the Flames on Saturday.
During that slump, New York has scored just four goals at even-strength.
"We were obviously pretty bad tonight," New York coach Gerard Gallant said after the loss to the Flames. "It's been a grind and tonight, I'm glad we're done playing Calgary. Put it that way."
The reigning Norris Trophy winner, Adam Fox leads the Rangers in scoring with 12 points (two goals, 10 assists), including posting one goal and seven assists in his last five games. After him, three players have at least 10 points, including Artemi Panarin with 11 (two goals, nine assists).
Between the pipes, Igor Shesterkin could get the nod as he's started nine of 12 games thus far. In that stretch, he's gone 5-2-2 behind a 2.30 goals-against average and .930 save percentage.
"We just think about our team and how we win the games, not so much focus on the other team," Weegar said of the tilt. "It's the NHL. Every team is going to come in and put up a good fight every single night. They've got a good team over there and we have to respect them."
If they can walk away from tonight's game with at least one point, the Panthers will match their longest-ever point streak to start a season. In 1996-97, they opened up their campaign with a 12-game streak in which they went 8-0-4. That season, they would go on to make the playoffs.
Facing off for the first time since 2019-20, Florida went 2-0-0 against New York that season.
PANTHERS NOTES
- The Panthers rank second in the NHL with 114 takeaways.
- Jonathan Huberdeau (21 points in 22 games) and Sam Reinhart (20 points in 21 games) have both produced at nearly a point-per-game pace in their careers against the Rangers.
- Florida leads the NHL with 36 points (six goals, 30 assists) from defensemen.
- The Panthers have scored first in eight of 11 games this season.
- Gustav Forsling is tied for first on the Panthers and ranks third among NHL blueliners with nine assists. He also ranks second on the team in takeaways (13) and third in blocked shots (16).
- Carter Verhaeghe has tallied four assists over his past three games.
- Aaron Ekblad ranks tied for first among the league's defensemen with four goals. He also ranks tied for fourth in points (10), earning at least one point in eight of 11 games this season.
- Aleksander Barkov is one goal away from passing Olli Jokinen's franchise record of 188.
PANTHERS LINEUP (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)
Forwards
Carter Verhaeghe - Aleksander Barkov - Anthony Duclair
Jonathan Huberdeau - Anton Lundell - Owen Tippett
Frank Vatrano - Sam Reinhart - Maxim Mamin
Mason Marchment - Eetu Luostarinen - Patric Hornqvist
Defensemen
MacKenzie Weegar - Aaron Ekblad
Gustav Forsling - Radko Gudas
Kevin Connauton - Brandon Montour
Goaltenders
Spencer Knight
Christopher Gibson
RECENT TRANSACTIONS
- Nov. 7: D Chase Priskie reassigned to Charlotte (AHL); D Lucas Carlsson recalled from Charlotte (AHL)
- Nov. 6: F Sam Bennett placed on IR retroactive to Oct. 30; G Christopher Gibson recalled from Charlotte (AHL)
- Nov. 3: F Maxim Mamin and D Chase Priskie recalled from Charlotte (AHL)
- Oct. 31: F Zac Dalpe and D Chase Priskie reassigned to Charlotte (AHL)
- Oct. 30: F Joe Thornton placed on IR; F Zac Dalpe recalled from Charlotte (AHL)
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Panthers Celebrate Head Equipment Manager's 1,500th Professional Game
HOW TO WATCH / LISTEN
When: Monday, Nov. 8 at 7:00 p.m. ET
Where:Madison Square Garden - New York, NY
TV: Bally Sports Florida
Stream: Bally Sports App, ESPN+ (Out of Region)
Radio:560 WQAM (Dade/Broward); 640 WMEN (Palm Beach); 100.3 WCTH (Florida Keys); SiriusXM App & Streaming 932
