Bobrovsky made 24 saves in his first game at Nationwide Arena since signing a seven-year contract with the Panthers (20-14-5). He played seven seasons for Columbus.
"All the emotions are weird," he said. "It's tough to describe, to be on the other side of the bench, it's different."
Werenski scored at 4:13 and 8:04 of the third period to make it 4-1. It was the first home hat trick by a Blue Jackets defenseman, third overall.
"It was pretty cool," Werenski said. "After I scored that third goal I kind of looked at the crowd and just saw hats coming down. I've never had that feeling before."
Korpisalo was named to the 2020 Honda NHL All-Star Game on Monday, the day he had surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee. He was injured during a 3-2 shootout loss to the Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday and is expected to be out 4-6 weeks.
Merzlikins, who played his 11th NHL game, made his previous eight starts on the road.
"I was really nervous at the start playing at home in front of a big crowd," the 25-year-old said. "It's a little different to play at home than on the road. I felt a little bit more pressure."
Werenski gave Columbus a 1-0 lead at 4:54 of the first period.
Colton Sceviour tied it 1-1 at 3:39 of the second. Boone Jenner made it 2-1 on the power play at 15:34.
"We didn't mind how we were going after 40 minutes," Panthers coach Joel Quenneville said.
Werenski extended the lead to 3-1 when Florida's challenge for goaltender interference on Nick Foligno was unsuccessful.
"When your goaltender's kickin' like Elvis was tonight, it's tough to get one by him," Panthers defenseman Keith Yandle said. "Sometimes you've got to tip your cap."
