TEMPE, AZ – The Florida Panthers will look to keep on rolling when they kick off a four-game road trip with a battle against the Arizona Coyotes at Mullett Arena on Tuesday.
Since going 2-3-0 on their last long road trip in December, Florida has posted a 4-0-0 record.
“We’ve been playing some good hockey lately,” Panthers defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson said. “We were not happy with the road trip we went on and felt we could play better, play a little bit smarter. I think we cleaned that up when we came home.”
In second place in the Atlantic Division at 22-12-2, the Panthers closed the book on 2023 with a 4-1 win over the Canadiens on Dec. 30. Eetu Luostarinen scored a pair of power-play goals against Montreal, while Anthony Stolarz stopped 18 of 19 shots.
Winning each of their last four games, the Panthers need just one more win to match their longest winning streak of the season. In those four wins, they’ve outscored the opposition 15-8 while netting at least three goals in every game.
“Everybody gets more fun from winning,” Panthers forward Anton Lundell said. “That’s what we want to keep doing. We’ve played some hard teams and were able to get points and play good. But every game is new and today’s a new challenge for us.”
Sam Reinhart leads the Panthers in goals (23) and points (44), while captain Aleksander Barkov ranks second in points (38) and first in assists (27). Lighting the lamp in three of his last four games, Carter Verhaeghe sits second in goals (18).
With one more assist, Barkov will stand alone as the franchise's all-time leader at 416.
Following this morning’s skate, Panthers head coach Paul Maurice said there would be not lineup changes against the Coyotes, other than Sergei Bobrovsky getting the start.
Over his last five starts, Bobrovsky has gone 4-1-0 with a .927 save percentage.
After dropping four straight games in early December, the Coyotes have been on a tear.
Sitting at 19-14-2, they’ve won six of their last seven games, including a 2-0 win at Anaheim in their final game of 2023 on Dec. 29. Clayton Keller and Lawson Crouse each scored against the Ducks, while Connor Ingram stopped all 28 shots he faced.
Tied for first in the NHL with four shutouts, Ingram is in the midst of the best season of his young career. Owning a 13-7-0 record with a .919 save percentage, the 26-year-old has gone 7-4-0 with a .928 save percentage over is last 12 appearances.
But with the Coyotes sticking to alternating their goaltenders, Karel Vejmelka will get the nod in net against the Panthers. Even hotter than Ingram, the 27-year-old has gone 4-0-0 while stopping 93 of 99 shots (.939%) over his last four appearances.
In order to break through, the Panthers must make Vejmelka uncomfortable.
“If you get a [goalie] that’s playing well and you feed a lot of pucks to him without any traffic, he keeps that feeling,” Maurice said. “Goaltenders are always looking for that good feeling early in the game. You’ve gone into games, put up a lot of shots in the first period and thought you were doing well, but all you were doing was warming the guy up and you couldn’t break him after that. The puck’s got to get to the net before he thinks it’s coming and there’s got to be some traffic.”
Averaging just over three goals per game as a team, the Coyotes are led up front by Keller (31 points), Matias Maccelli (27 points), Crouse (23 points) and Nick Schmaltz (23 points). Crouse also leads the team with 16 goals, while Michael Carcone has 14.
Dangerous with the extra attacker, Arizona ranks 10th in the NHL on the power play at 23.3%.
The Panthers and Coyotes split their season series in 2022-23, with each team coming out on top in their own barn. Matthew Tkachuk led the Panthers in scoring over the course of those two games, registering four points (three goals, one assist).
Prepared for another tough test, the Panthers know these aren’t the struggling Coyotes of old.
“It's good to walk into an opposing building and be in the playoffs and be looked at [that way]," Maurice said of Arizona's resurgent start to the season. "It builds your confidence. It makes you love the game more.”
PREGAME QUOTES
“You start the road trip just trying to rest as much as we can between the games. We have a little travel, but it’s the same for everybody. We’re all used to it. I think it’s fun for the team as well. We can spend more time together.” – Anton Lundell
“We feel comfortable. We’re defending good. Bob and Stoly have been good back there. I feel like everybody is chipping in and playing good hockey. When we do that, we’re a good hockey team and a tough team to beat.” – Oliver Ekman-Larsson
FIVE CATS STATS
- Since Dec. 8, the Panthers own a 92.8% success rate on the power play.
- Sam Reinhart has scored five goals over his last four games.
- Gustav Forsling leads Florida’s defensemen with a +20 plus/minus rating.
- Matthew Tkachuk has tallied six assists over his last six games.
- Carter Verhaeghe is two assists away from his 100th NHL assist.
PROJECTED LINEUP (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)
Forwards
Evan Rodrigues – Aleksander Barkov – Sam Reinhart
Carter Verhaeghe – Sam Bennett – Matthew Tkachuk
Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Nick Cousins
Ryan Lomberg – Kevin Stenlund – Will Lockwood
Defensemen
Gustav Forsling – Aaron Ekblad
Niko Mikkola – Brandon Montour
Oliver Ekman-Larsson – Dmitry Kulikov
Goaltenders
Sergei Bobrovsky
Anthony Stolarz
RECENT TRANSACTIONS
- Dec. 16: F Will Lockwood recalled from Charlotte (AHL)
- Dec. 15: D Uvis Balinskis loaned to Charlotte (AHL)
HOW TO WATCH
When: Tuesday, Jan. 2 at 9 p.m. ET
Where: Mullett Arena – Tempe, AZ
TV & Streaming: Bally Sports Florida, Bally Sports+
Radio: 560 WQAM (Dade/Broward); 1230 WBZT (Palm Beach); 100.3 WCTH (Florida Keys); 101.7 WCZR (Treasure Coast); SiriusXM App & Streaming 932; Panthers App
