After earning consecutive 5-1 wins, the Panthers, who are missing several key players due to injuries, closed out their five-game road trip with a 5-2 loss to the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday. Carter Verhaeghe and veteran call-up Zac Dalpe found the back of the net for the Panthers in the loss, while Connor Hellebuyck turned aside 39 of 41 shots in between the pipes for the Jets.
With no skate being held this morning at FLA Live Arena, updates on the statuses of Aleksander Barkov (non-COVID illness), Anton Lundell (upper body) and Radko Gudas (upper body) will not be made available until Panthers head coach Paul Maurice addresses the media at 5 p.m. ET.
Patric Hornqvist (upper body) was place on LTIR on Monday.
"We've got to take some confidence back to home ice," Panthers forward Sam Reinhart said after the loss to the Jets. "It seems like a few months ago we were back there. We've got to get back in a groove there. It's a quick turnaround once we get home."
In their own barn for the first time since Nov. 26, the Panthers own a 6-2-3 record at home this season for a .682 home points percentage, which ranks fifth among NHL teams this campaign.
Leading the Panthers in scoring with 35 points (12 goals, 23 assists), Matthew Tkachuk has earned 16 of those points (five goals, 11 assists) in Sunrise. Chipping in from the blue line, Brandon Montour leads the team's defensemen with 12 points (one goal, 11 assists) at home.
Overall, 12 different Panthers own a positive plus/minus at home this season.
Snapping out of a three-game skid, the Red Wings have won each of the first two games on their current four-game road trip. After beating the Columbus Blue Jackets by a score of 4-2 on Sunday, they secured a second 4-2 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Tuesday.
In the win over the Lightning, Michael Rasmussen, Jonatan Berggren, Adam Erne and David Perron all scored, while Ville Husso pieced together a stellar performance in net. Earning first-star honors with 44 saves, Husso improved to 11-4-3 with a .916 save percentage this season.
"Defend well and try to get the offense as well," Husso told DetroitRedWings.com. "Just those little things that we do right are a good way to play."
Dylan Larkin leads Detroit in scoring with 26 points (nine goals, 17 assists). Next up is Dominik Kubalik with 25 points, including a team-high 10 goals. Over the 20-point plateau as well, Filip Hronek (24 points) and David Perron (20 points) have also been contributing on the attack.
Facing the Red Wings for the first time this season, the Panthers won all four of their games against Detroit in 2022-23 and own a perfect 6-0-0 record in their last six meetings overall.
