OTTAWA – The Florida Panthers will look to get back in the win column when they continue their final regular-season road trip with a matchup against the Ottawa Senators at Canadian Tire Centre on Thursday.
With their playoff spot already in the bag, the Panthers (47-24-5) have gone 2-7-1 over their last 10 games while weathering a storm of both illness and injuries throughout their lineup.
That being said, they know they can still bring their ‘A’ game even when faced with adversity.
“It’s just a matter of focus,” Panthers head coach Paul Maurice said. “We’re really good when we do a handful of things and that’s it. All the other things sort of just fall into place. When we try to do all things at all times, we’re not very good. In this stretch, we’ve had some hockey that I’ve loved. … We’re fine. I think we’re in a really good place right now.”
With high-scoring forward Carter Verhaeghe already week-to-week with an upper-body injury, top-pair defenseman Aaron Ekblad is also out for the Panthers until likely the playoffs after suffering an injury in a 5-3 loss at Montreal on Tuesday.
Also sitting out against the Canadiens due to an illness, Matthew Tkachuk will return to action tonight.
"We’re quite confident that he’s 100% and ready to go by the first game,” Maurice said of Ekblad. “This is not new and it's not unknown to us, what it is. He's got a real good handle on how long it's going to take. He's progressing really well today from it. We’re good there.”
Having the best season of his career, Sam Reinhart leads the Panthers in goals (52) and points (87), with his 27 power-play goals pacing the entire NHL. Tkachuk ranks second in points (80) and first in assists (57), while Aleksander Barkov ranks third in points (73).
Acquired from the Senators at the trade deadline, tonight’s matchup marks the first game for Vladimir Tarasenko against his former teammates. Fitting in nicely in Florida, the skilled veteran has notched five goals and five assists in 13 contests since joining the Panthers.
Starting to heat up down the home stretch, Tarasenko, who’s been looking very strong on the top line alongside Barkov and Reinhart, has cracked the scoresheet in five of his last six games entering tonight’s tilt, registering three goals and four points during that hot stretch.
“I met a lot of good people here,” said Tarasenko, who appeared in 57 games with Ottawa prior to the trade. “It’s nice to see them all, but the focus is on the game.”
Despite the playoffs being well out of reach, the Senators have been playing some of their best hockey down the home stretch. After filling up the scoresheet during a season-long, five-game winning streak, they cooled off just a bit with 3-2 loss at Minnesota on Tuesday.
During their winning streak, they outscored the opposition 21-9.
In the loss to the Wild, Drake Batherson and Jakob Chychrun each lit the lamp, while Joonas Korpisalo stopped 16 of 19 shots. At 13:04 of the third period, Vinnie Letteri scored the go-ahead goal for Minnesota, which got 30 saves from Marc-Andre Fleury in net.
"We outshot them for most of the game, and I think they just capitalized on our mistakes and made the most of it," Batherson told OttawaSenators.com after the loss to the Wild.
Tim Stutzle leads the Senators in scoring with 70 points (18 goals, 52 assists). Brady Tkachuk, Matthew’s brother, sits in second with 66 points, including scoring a team-high 33 goals. Tied for third, Batherson and Claude Giroux have each registered 60 points.
One of Ottawa’s top defenseman, Thomas Chabot, who’s racked up 28 points (eight goals, 20 assists) in 44 games, has been sidelined the last three games with a lower-bod y injury. Per reports from the Senators’ morning skate, he’ll remain out of the lineup against Florida.
Korpisalo has been the primary option for the Senators in net this season, posting a 19-22-4 record with a .890 save percentage in 49 appearances. Backing him up, Anton Forsberg has gone 13-12-0 with a .888 save percentage and two shutouts in 26 appearances.
Korpisalo was the first goaltender off the ice this morning and is expected to start tonight.
“Just get back to our game and try to simplify some of the stuff,” Panthers forward Anton Lundell said of getting back on track against the Senators. “Just bring some good energy, try to play hard and fast. That’s all we can do.”
Facing off for the third time this season, the Panthers, who will host the Senators in Sunrise on April 9, have claimed both games in the season series thus far. After winning 5-0 in Ottawa on Nov. 27, the Panthers squeezed out a 3-2 win in overtime at home on Feb. 20.
Barkov, Reinhart and Brandon Montour have each tallied three points against Ottawa this season, while 10 total skaters have registered at least one point. Bobrovsky has gotten the nod in each game in the season series, stopping 48 of 50 shots for a .960 save percentage.
Per Maurice, Bobrovsky, who ranks tied for third in the NHL in wins (33), will man the crease again tonight.
“Just play hard, play our game,” Tarasenko said when asked about the keys to coming out on top in Ottawa. “Don’t give them space. They have a lot of skill guys who make plays. Don’t take a lot of penalties. They’re pretty god on the power play. Work together for 60 minutes.”
PREGAME QUOTES
“Everybody wants to get out of his healthy. I think you see that in our games.” – Paul Maurice
“It’s always exciting when playoffs are close, but we have a game to play and have to be focused on that and use those games to prepare for playoffs.” – Vladimir Tarasenko
“There’s not many games left in the season. I feel like every game is an opportunity. The playoffs are coming, so we want to get our game better. This is a good game for us.” – Anton Lundell
FIVE CATS STATS
- With one more win, Paul Maurice will break a tie with Lindy Ruff (864) for the fourth-most wins by a head coach in NHL history.
- The Panthers are tied for first in the NHL with 25 road wins.
- Sam Reinhart has scored six goals in his last nine games.
- The Panthers own the best penalty kill on the road this season at 86.6%.
- The Panthers rank second in the NHL in fewest goals allowed per game (2.51).
PROJECTED LINEUP (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)
Forwards
Vladimir Tarasenko – Aleksander Barkov – Sam Reinhart
Nick Cousins – Sam Bennett – Matthew Tkachuk
Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Evan Rodrigues
Steven Lorentz – Kevin Stenlund – Ryan Lomberg
Defensemen
Gustav Forsling – Oliver Ekman-Larsson
Niko Mikkola – Brandon Montour
Josh Mahura – Dmitry Kulikov
Goaltenders
Sergei Bobrovsky
Anthony Stolarz
RECENT TRANSACTIONS:
- April 3: D Uvis Balinskis recalled from Charlotte (AHL)
- April 2: Signed G Cooper Black to two-year, entry-level contract commencing in the 2024-25 season.
- March 27: D Uvis Balinskis loaned to Charlotte (AHL)
HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN
When: Thursday, April 4 at 7 p.m. ET
Where: Canadian Tire Centre – Ottawa, ON
TV & Streaming: Bally Sports Florida, Bally Sports+
Radio: 790 WAXY (Dade/Broward); 92.1 WZZR (Palm Beach); 100.3 WCTH (Florida Keys); 101.7 WCZR (Treasure Coast); SiriusXM App & Streaming 932; Panthers App
