ELMONT, NY – The Florida Panthers will continue their road trip through the Empire State when the face off against the New York Islanders at UBS Arena on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. ET.
Despite the Islanders being on the second half of a back-to-back, the Panthers don’t expect the legs to be too heavy on the other side of the ice in tonight’s matchup.
“We want to be ready to go,” head coach Paul Maurice said. “I don’t think there’s any benefit to us this early in the season. … At times, back-to-backs this early in the year, the other team actually has the advantage because neither team has a lot of hockey on them.”
Improving to 5-3-1, the Panthers opened their road with two points in the Big Apple.
Handing the New York Rangers their first regulation loss of the season, Anton Lundell, Carter Verhaeghe and Sam Bennett scored to lift the Panthers to a 3-1 win on Thursday.
Named the first star of the game, Sergei Bobrovsky made 24 saves to become only the 14th goaltender in NHL history to reach 400 wins. In doing so, the two-time Vezina Trophy winner became the fastest to ever hit that lofty mark, achieving the feat in just 707 games played.
In the win, the Panthers also killed off four power plays for the Rangers.
“Huge win in a big building with good energy from the fans,” forward A.J. Greer said. “For us, it was to set the tone right early and force them to make mistakes just by being consistent.”
Making a dent on the scoresheet in seven of nine games to start the season, Sam Reinhart leads the Panthers in scoring with 13 points (five goals, eight assists). Bennett and Lundell have each posted nine points, with Lundell touching twine five times in his last six games.
Set for his third start of the season, Spencer Knight will be between the pipes for Florida.
Expected to make his return to the lineup on Monday at Buffalo, captain Aleksander Barkov participated in this morning’s skate, joining the main group for the first time since he suffered a lower-body injury on Oct. 10. Additionally, Jonah Gadjovich, whose return isn’t as close, was also on the ice this morning.
Outside of Knight drawing in, the Panthers are expected to have no lineup changes tonight.
“It’s great seeing him healthy and close to being back,” forward Patrick Giles said of Barkov.
Sitting at 3-2-2, the Islanders enter tonight’s tilt full of adrenaline following a 4-3 overtime win over the New Jersey Devils on Friday. Brock Nelson, Anders Lee and Kyle Palmieri all scored for the Islanders in regulation, while Bo Horvat netted the winning goal in overtime.
In net, Ilya Sorokin stopped 32 of 35 shots.
Held without a goal in three of their seven games this season, the Islanders rank 28th in the NHL with an average of 2.43 goals per game. Palmieri, Nelson and Noah Dobson are tied for the team’s scoring lead with five point each, while three other players have notched four.
With Sorokin manning the crease less than 24 hours ago against the Devils, backup goaltender Semyon Varlamov will likely get the nod against the Panthers. In three appearances this season, Varlamov owns a 1-1-1 record with a .868 save percentage.
The last time the Panthers were on Long Island, Matthew Tkachuk and Reinhart each scored a power-play goal in a 3-2 win on Jan. 27, 2024.
“Home or away, it’s the same thing – just being consistent,” Greer said.
MORNING SKATE VIDEO
