"I think it's important," Panthers interim head coach Andrew Brunette said. "Lots of things can happen. Sometimes it's a little refreshing to change it up. We've kind of stayed with similar lines for a long period of time here. … We're going to get all kinds [of looks] going down the stretch and into the playoffs here, so it's good to get a little familiar and a comfort level with everybody."
Among the notable changes up front, Sam Reinhart is climbing up from the third to the first line, Claude Giroux is shifting down from the right side of the first to the center of the second, Ryan Lomberg is moving up from the fourth to the second, and Sam Bennett now centers the third.
On the blue line, MacKenzie Weegar and Gustav Forsling, who teamed up to form a potent defensive pairing late last season and in the playoffs, are back together, while Ben Chiarot is moving down to the second pairing to form an incredibly physical tandem with Radko Gudas.
Out of action due to injuries, Brunette said that Noel Acciari and Patric Hornqvist are day-to-day in their recoveries, with both of their ailments considered to be "nothing serious" as of right now.
"It's nice to get a chance to play with new guys," Bennett said. "You can find some new chemistry. It's exciting. There are so many great players on this team that it really doesn't matter who's playing with who. You're going to find chemistry and some new matches that work."
Winning 10 of their last 13 games, the Panthers, who sit atop the Atlantic Division with a record of 45-15-6, opened their two-game homestand with a 7-4 win over the Canadiens on Tuesday.
Tied 4-4 after two periods after letting a 3-1 lead slip away, Jonathan Huberdeau, Mason Marchment and Aleksander Barkov scored in the third period to lift the Panthers to the win.
Earning his promotion into the top-six tonight, Lomberg, who is rumored to be going by the nickname "Lomberdeau" in the locker room these days, was named first star of the game after registering a career-high three points (two goals, one assist) and two hits against Montreal.
"Reward him," Brunette said of Lomberg, who has three goals in his last two games. "He's done everything that we've asked of him all year. Him and Huby, I thought they were really good."
Posting two goals and an assist against the Canadiens, Huberdeau reached several milestones in the game, including dishing out his league-leading 70th assist of the season -- and 400th of his career -- to tie Joe Juneau for the most helpers by a left wing in a single season in NHL history.
Third in the NHL in scoring with 93 points (23 goals, 70 assists), the all-star needs to notch just three more points to match Aleksander Barkov's franchise record of 96 points from 2018-19.
"When you see a guy like that on a daily basis, you see what he's capable of on the ice, it's pretty special," Reinhart said of Huberdeau. "To be a part of it is an honor and a lot of fun."
Sitting seventh in the Central Division with a record of 24-33-10, the Blackhawks have lost five of their last seven games, including a heartbreaker against the Sabres their last time out. Up 4-0 in the second period over Buffalo, they were then outscored 6-1 from that point on to lose 6-5.
Patrick Kane leads Chicago in scoring with 79 points (21 goals, 58 assists). After him, Alex DeBrincat sits in second place with 64 points, including a team-high 38 goals. Chipping in from the blue line, Seth Jones paces the team's defensemen with 45 points (five goals, 40 assists).
By taking the ice against the Panthers, Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews will become the 366th player in NHL history to skate in 1,000 games. Drafted third overall in the 2006 NHL Draft, the 33-year-old veteran forward helped Chicago capture Stanley Cups in 2010, 2013 and 2015.
"I played with Toewser," said Brunette, who played with Toews in Chicago during the 2011-12 campaign. "Unbelievable career. ... His driving force to win is greater than anybody I've been around. Happy for him and hope to say hi to him tonight."
Looking to pick up his seventh straight win, Sergei Bobrovsky will start in net for the Panthers. Owning a 32-6-3 record with a .914 save percentage, the two-time Vezina Trophy winner needs just three more wins to tie Roberto Luongo's franchise record for goalie wins in a season (35).
For the Blackhawks, Kevin Lankinen has started each of the last two games. In 20 appearances this season, he's gone 4-9-5 with a .886 save percentage. Also seeing some time in the crease since Marc-Andre Fleury was moved, Collin Delia has gone 1-1-0 with a .897 save percentage.
Facing off for the second and final time this season, Barkov tallied three points (one goal, two assists) to lead Florida to a 5-2 win over the Blackhawks at United Center back on Feb. 20.
"These are important games for us, important points," Reinhart said. "You don't really want to be jockeying for position in the last couple games if you don't have to be. We need to keep our foot on the gas. Hopefully [the lineup changes] provide another spark for us."
