Preview: Marchment Moved Up, Bobrovsky to Start in Columbus

If Mason Marchment were a stock, now would be a good time to invest.
After racking up two goals and three assists over his last six games, the 25-year-old will get a look on the top line when the Panthers visit the Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena on Tuesday.

"He brings a controlled aggression in the game," Panthers coach Joel Quenneville said of Marchment, who was acquired from Toronto last season. "There's a little bit of unpredictability, and I think it's a positive one. He's dangerous around the net. He's got quick hands, can make plays and brings some physicality. He's kind of like a bull in a china shop on some days."
Winning two of the first three games on their five-game journey through the Central Division, the Panthers enter tonight's matchup coming off a 4-2 loss at Carolina. In the loss - which ended their five-game point streak - Marchment and MacKenzie Weegar each lit the lamp for Florida.
Overall, the Cats currently reside in third in the division with an impressive 15-5-4 record.
Jonathan Huberdeau leads the Panthers in scoring with 29 points (10 goals, 19 assists) and has tallied a goal and an assist in each of his last two outings. Close behind, Aleksander Barkov sits in second with 27 points (eight goals, 19 assists) and is currently riding a six-game point streak.
On a hot streak of his own, Sergei Bobrovsky is expected to get the nod in net against the Blue Jackets. Sitting at 8-2-2 on the season, the 32-year-old veteran has looked solid over his last four starts, posting a 3-0-1 record while stopping 126 of 137 shots for a .920 save percentage.
Spending seven seasons with Columbus before signing with the Panthers in the summer of 2019, Bobrovsky has also been on top of his game the four times he's faced his former team thus far, going 2-1-1 on top of a .930 save percentage during those head-to-head matchups.
"He's an unbelievable goalie," Panthers forward Alex Wennberg said of Bobrovsky, who has started four of the last six games. "He's making some big saves. He's been really good for us."
Coming off the injured reserve list, fellow former Blue Jacket Markus Nutivaara is expected to return to action for the Panthers after missing the last 12 games with an upper-body injury. In seven games prior to being injured, the 26-year-old defenseman had registered three assists.
Quenneville also noted that speedy forward Anthony Duclair, who has been out since Feb. 27 with a lower-body injury, could also potentially return to the lineup at some point later this week.
"Duke is skating right how with the [Taxi Squad]," Quenneville said. "He's close."
Just on the outside of the playoff picture in the division, the Blue Jackets currently reside in fifth place with a record of 10-11-5. Entering this week, they've dropped six of their last eight games, including a 5-0 loss to the Stars their last time on the ice. During that eight-game stretch, the goals have been hard to come by, as the team has averaged fewer than two scores in each tilt.
Up front, Cam Atkinson leads Columbus in both goals (10) and points (19), including scoring eight goals over his last 13 games. A threat to score even when the team is back on its heels, the 31-year-old forward also leads the NHL with a whopping four shorthanded goals this year.
A threat to come out firing, the Blue Jackets have outscored teams 26-18 in first period.
"I've actually liked where we're starting to get to," Blue Jackets captain Nick Foligno told the team's official website following Monday's practice. "Obviously the 5-0 loss was a stinger just in our start, but there were some good minutes in that as well."
According to BlueJackets.com, Joonas Korpisalo is expected to make his eighth straight start in net tonight. Bobrovsky's former protégé between the pipes, the 26-year-old has gone 7-8-4 with a 3.15 goals-against average and .894 save percentage over his 20 appearances this season.
In five career starts against the Panthers, Korpisalo is 3-1-1 with a .904 save percentage.
Their third meeting of the campaign, Florida previously split its opening series with Columbus, winning 4-3 in a shootout on Jan. 26 before losing 3-2 in a shootout two days later on Jan. 28.
"They're a team that plays hard and plays right away," Panthers forward Ryan Lomberg said. "We definitely have to be moving our feet and bring that physical game tonight, for sure."

TEAM RECORDS

FLA:15-5-4, 34 PTS
CBJ: 10-11-5, 25 PTS
FLA all-time vs. CBJ: 11-14-0-10

PANTHERS NOTES

-- Patric Hornqvist ranks tied for second on the Panthers in goals (9). In the midst of his first season with Florida, he's producing at nearly a point-per-game clip, racking up 20 points (nine goals, 11 assists) in 24 games. In 46 career games against Columbus, he's scored 16 goals.
-- MacKenzie Weegar leads Florida's defensemen in points (11) and minutes (477:51) at even-strength. Additionally, he also leads the team in blocked shots (28) and sits second in hits (60).
-- Radko Gudas leads the Panthers and ranks second in the NHL with 115 hits.
-- Frank Vatrano has registered four goals over his last six contests, with each of those goals coming in the third period. Additionally, all eight of his goals this season have come at 5-on-5.
-- Aaron Ekblad ranks first among NHL defensemen in goals (tied-9) and power-play goals (5), while also sitting 10th in average ice time per game (25:10). Over his last three contests, he's been on quite the offensive tear, posting a team-leading six points (three goals, three assists).
-- The Panthers have scored nine goals in the third period over their last five games.
-- Florida leads the NHL in shots per game, firing off an average of 34.1 per contest.

PROJECTED LINEUP (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)

Forwards
Mason Marchment - Aleksander Barkov - Carter Verhaeghe
Jonathan Huberdeau - Alex Wennberg - Patric Hornqvist
Frank Vatrano - Eetu Luostarinen - Noel Acciari
Ryan Lomberg - Juho Lammikko - Vinnie Hinostroza
Defensemen
MacKenzie Weegar - Aaron Ekblad
Gustav Forsling - Radko Gudas
Keith Yandle - Markus Nutivaara
Goaltenders
Sergei Bobrovsky
Chris Driedger
Scratches: Riley Stillman, Anton Stralman (lower body)
Taxi squad: Brett Connolly, Grigori Denisenko, Owen Tippett, Kevin Connauton, Philippe Desrosiers
Injured reserve: Anthony Duclair (lower body), Noah Juulsen (upper body)

RECENT TRANSACTIONS

• March 9: F Owen Tippett was recalled from the Taxi Squad; D Markus Nutivaara was activated from IR.
  - March 8: D Riley Stillman was recalled from the Taxi Squad; F Grigori Denisenko and D Kevin Connauton were loaned to Taxi Squad.
  - March 7: F Owen Tippett was loaned to the Taxi Squad.
  - March 6: F Owen Tippett and F Grigori Denisenko were recalled from the Taxi Squad; D Riley Stillman was loaned to the Taxi Squad.

HOW TO WATCH / LISTEN

When: Tuesday, March 9 at 7:00 p.m. ET
Where: Nationwide Arena - Columbus, OH
TV: FOX Sports Florida
Stream:
FOX Sports GO
Radio:560 WQAM (Dade/Broward); 640 WMEN (Palm Beach); 100.3 WCTH (Florida Keys) 107.9 FM / 1370 AM WZTA (Treasure Coast); SiriusXM Streaming 932 50/50
Raffle: Help out the Florida Panthers Foundation and test your luck with the tweet below!