COLUMBUS, OH – The Florida Panthers will close out their first road trip of the season when they clash with the Columbus Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena on Tuesday.
With this being the Home Opener in Columbus, the organization is planning for an emotional night as they remember Blue Jackets forward Johnny Gaudreau.
Gaudreau and his brother, Matthew, were struck and killed while bicycling on Aug. 29.
Among the many unique and heartfelt displays of remembrance that are expected to take place, the Blue Jackets will have Gaudreau’s No. 13 frozen into the ice behind each net.
This night will be bigger than hockey.
“Whatever they need,” Panthers head coach Paul Maurice said. “Whatever the fans need and whatever the team needs to start that healing process, we’ll be proud to be a part of it.”
But even with all the emotions, a game will still be played.
Sitting at 2-2-0, the Panthers enter tonight’s matchup riding high after a gutsy win over the Boston Bruins in the first stage of their back-to-back on Monday at TD Garden.
Despite missing Aleksander Barkov (upper body) and Matthew Tkachuk (illness), the Panthers clawed their way to a 4-3 win behind a pair of two-goal performances from Sam Reinhart and Anton Lundell.
Lighting it up on special teams, Reinhart became just the third player in franchise history to score a power-play goal and a shorthanded goal in the same game.
With Barkov and Tkachuk both remaining out against the Blue Jackets, the line of Lundell, Reinhart and Eetu Luostarinen will continue to see increased responsibilities.
“They were absolutely fantastic,” Maurice said of the line following the win over the Bruins. “The absolute maturation of Anton. They scored the goals, both those guys, that are certainly worthy of the highlight, but the win came in all the other parts of it.”
After his big game in Boston, Reinhart leads the Panthers in scoring with five points (three goals, two assists). Making a dent on the scoresheet in three of four games out of the gate, Sam Bennett ranks second with four points (three goals, one assist).
With Sergei Bobrovsky earning the win over the Bruins with a 24-save performance, Spencer Knight is likely to get the nod in net in Columbus on the second half of the back-to-back.
Across the ice, the Blue Jackets sit at 1-1-0 following a two-game road trip to open their season. After a 3-2 loss at Minnesota on Oct. 10, they responded with an impressive 6-4 win at Colorado on Saturday.
After letting a 3-1 lead get away in the second period, Kirill Marchenko and Yegor Chinakhov each lit the lamp to give Columbus a 5-3 lead heading into the final frame.
In the win, six different skaters scored for the Blue Jackets.
“It's obviously nice to keep a lead, but to not sit back and just defend was exciting for us as a staff,” Columbus coach Dean Evason told NHL.com. “We stayed aggressive. We didn't risk a whole lot, but we didn't shut down and just go into a shell and just try to defend and block shots. Our guys still played the game the right way.”
Chinakhov leads the Blue Jackets in scoring with four points (one goal, three assists). Kent Johnson, Sean Monahan and Marchenko are in a three-way tie for second with three points apiece. Spreading out of the offense, 10 different skaters have a point through two games.
After taking the loss in the season opener, Elvis Merzlikins is expected to get the start against the Panthers.
THEY SAID IT
“We protected the middle of the ice very well. There were a couple blocked shots, good stick. It was resilience. The compete and fight for each other was outstanding.” – Sergei Bobrovsky on the win over the Bruins
“You guys have had a front-row seat since the start of the playoffs last year. He’s just elevated his intensity, his compete level. He’s coming out with the puck almost every time. It’s easy to forget with the big situations he’s been put in his career that he’s still so young. To see him kind of learn and adapt that quick is pretty incredible.” – Sam Reinhart on Anton Lundell
FIVE CATS STATS
- Since joining the Panthers, Sam Reinhart has logged 19 points (6G, 13A) in nine games against the Blue Jackets.
- The Panthers went 3-0-0 against the Blue Jackets in 2023-24.
- Sam Bennett is winning 55.8% of his faceoffs.
- Gustav Forsling is tied for first in the NHL with a +6 plus/minus rating.
- Aaron Ekblad is averaging a team-high 24:13 of ice time per game.
PROJECTED LINEUP (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)
Forwards
Carter Verhaeghe – Sam Bennett – Evan Rodrigues
Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Sam Reinhart
A.J. Greer – Jesper Boqvist – Mackie Samoskevich
Jonah Gadjovich – Patrick Giles – Uvis Balinskis
Defensemen
Gustav Forsling – Aaron Ekblad
Niko Mikkola – Dmitry Kulikov
Nate Schmidt – Adam Boqvist
Goaltenders
Spencer Knight
Sergei Bobrovsky
RECENT TRANSACTIONS:
- Oct. 11: F Patrick Giles recalled to Florida
- Oct. 9: F MacKenzie Entwistle and G Chris Driedger assigned to Charlotte (AHL) | G Spencer Knight recalled to Florida
- Oct. 8: Carter Verhaeghe signed an eight-year contract extension starting in 2025-26.
HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN
When: Tuesday, Oct. 15 at 7 p.m. ET
Where: Nationwide Arena -- Columbus, OH
TV & Streaming: Panthers+, WSFL-TV, WHDT, WFTX, ESPN+ (out of market)
Radio: 790 WAXY (Dade/Broward); 1230 WBZT (Palm Beach); 100.3 WCTH (Florida Keys); 101.7 WCZR (Treasure Coast); Panthers App; SiriusXM App & Streaming 931
Cats on Tap: Click to View Participating Bars & Restaurants
