Ducks continue long road trip in Florida

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LAST 10: Anaheim 6-1-3; Florida 5-4-1

Season Series: This will be the first and only meeting between the teams this season. The Ducks scored a 5-3 victory over the Panthers in the last meeting between the clubs at the Honda Center on Dec. 1, 2011, when George Parros struck for two goals and Bobby Ryan, Corey Perry and Ryan Getzlaf one each. Jonas Hiller made 29 saves in the triumph.

Big Story: The Panthers, 5-4-0 since the All-Star break, are trying to fend off the Washington Capitals in the Southeast Division and obviously need a little more separation. Florida is 14-7-7 at home this season; the Panthers' seven regulation losses at home are tied with the Rangers for fewest in the Eastern Conference. Friday's 2-1 loss to the Capitals was the first regulation loss when Florida led going into the final period -- the Panthers are now 16-1-4 when leading after two periods.

Team Scope:

Ducks: The Ducks dropped a 3-2 shootout decision to the New Jersey Devils on Friday in a thrilling contest at Prudential Center. If not for the play of Devils goalie Martin Brodeur, who made 36 saves, Anaheim would have likely came away with its fourth straight road victory. The team is 3-0-2 during a franchise-high eight-game road trip. While the Ducks have clawed their way back into the playoff hunt, they still need points -- despite their recent surge, they are still 13th in the Western Conference race.

Panthers : Florida led the Caps 1-0 after 40 minutes but lost 2-1 when Alex Ovechkin and Alexander Semin scored third-period goals. The loss ruined a solid effort between the pipes by Florida's Jose Theodore, who had 30 stops through two periods. Theodore, who would finish with 39 saves, played for Washington from 2008-10. The Panthers had six players missing from the lineup due to injury, bringing their man-games lost total to 250 for the season.

Who's Hot: Panthers left wing Tomas Fleischmann extended his point streak to five games with a goal against the Capitals on Friday. He's currently second on the team with 44 points in 57 games this year. … Ducks wing Corey Perry scored his seventh goal in the last six games in the loss to the Devils. His next goal will give him 30 for the third time in his seven NHL seasons.

Injury Report: The Ducks are without goalie Dan Ellis (groin). Forward Bobby Ryan (leg) suffered an injury after getting hit by Anton Volchenkov late in the second period against the Devils but is probable against the Panthers. … For the Panthers, defensemen Ed Jovanovski (hand), Dmitry Kulikov (knee) and Jason Garrison (lower body) are out. Forwards Scottie Upshall (sports hernia), Marco Sturm (knee) and John Madden (lower body) are also sidelined until March.

Stat Pack: Florida is 21-2-4 when tallying at least three goals (including shootouts) this season, but is 6-17-7 when notching two goals or less.

Puck Drop: Defenseman Sheldon Brookbank scored his first goal in 167 games against the Devils, his former team, on Friday, connecting with just 2:13 left in regulation to give the Ducks a 2-2 tie and send the game into overtime. It was his second career goal and first since March 31, 2009.

"It's probably about how many goals I scored on him the whole time I was here," said Brookbank, referring to his practice sessions for parts of two seasons in New Jersey with Brodeur.