In the first game, Frank Vatrano recorded a hat trick and Sam Bennett scored in overtime to lift the Panthers to a 5-4 win. Coming out on top again in the second game, Brandon Montour and Aleksander Barkov each notched three points and Spencer Knight made 29 saves in a 3-1 win.
"I thought in both of our games against the Predators, both teams played hard and played with purpose," head coach Joel Quenneville said after Tuesday's practice at FLA Live Arena. "I think they were above average from what you are normally accustomed to seeing in training camp right off the bat. You want to see the guys work together with a little bit of a purpose and a little bit of structure that we'll continue to add as we go along in camp. That's what we're expecting."
With the Panthers in possession of arguably their deepest roster in franchise history, the internal battles in training camp have been nearly as intriguing as the action on the ice. Sure, there are a few things already set in stone, but there's still plenty of players that can improve their positions.
That being said, Quenneville appears to be using this matchup with the Stars as a chance to give some of the organization's up-and-coming rookies or veterans on the bubble a chance to really make their mark and prove that they deserve to be in the conversation for a roster spot.
You can scroll down to check out Florida's entire roster for the game, but a few players you'll find are Grigori Denisenko, Aleksi Heponiemi, Serron Noel, Kevin Connauton and Matt Kiersted.
Among the players set to lace up their skates, only Owen Tippett, Juho Lammikko and Eetu Luostarinen spent more than 40 games with the Panthers last season. Tippett tallied 18 points (seven goals, 11 assists), while Luostarinen had eight points and Lammikko netted four goals.
Between the pipes, Christopher Gibson will make his preseason debut with Florida.
Inked to a one-year, two-way contract in the offseason, the 28-year-old goaltender appeared in two games with the Lightning in 2020-21, recording a 1-1-0 record, a .875 save percentage and 2.66 goals against average. He also suited up for two games in the AHL with Syracuse, which also housed Panthers prospects last season, posting a 2-0-0 record and .925 save percentage.
"They can position themselves to make an impact on our staff," Quenneville said of the group traveling to Dallas. "It's an opportunity for these guys to get some consideration going along. … We've had some injuries here. … We've still got a lot of guys that can make it tough on us."
Sitting at 0-0-1 in the preseason, the Stars are coming off a 2-1 loss to the Blues in overtime on Monday. Rookie Riley Tufte scored the lone goal for Dallas, while goaltenders Jake Oettinger (12 saves on 13 shots) and Braden Holtby (15 saves on 16 shots) each saw some time in net.
"I was very happy with the goaltending," Stars head coach Rick Bowness told the team's official website following the loss to St. Louis. "Both guys went in and played very solid and made the saves they had to make. They both looked very confident."
While the Panthers are opting to roll with a younger lineup, the Stars will be wheeling out most of their big guns in tonight's matchup as three of their top four scorers from last season - Joe Pavelski (51 points), Jason Robertson (45 points) and John Klingberg (36 points) - are playing.
Back in the blue paint, Oettinger and Holtby will handle the goaltending duties. Finishing with the fourth-best record in the league last season at 37-14-5, the Panthers piled up a lot of points against the Stars in 2020-21, going a solid 6-2-0 in eight head-to-head matchups.
"It's been good," Quenneville said of training camp. "I like what we're seeing here."
For fans in South Florida, tonight's game can be streamed on ESPN+.
