Panthers at Red Wings preview
Bobrovsky returns for Florida, which seeks fourth straight win; Pickard in goal for Detroit
by Dave Hogg / NHL.com Independent Correspondent
PANTHERS (25-16-5) at RED WINGS (12-32-4)
7 p.m. ET; FS-D+, FS-F, NHL.TV
The Game
The Florida Panthers will have starting goalie Sergei Bobrovsky back in the lineup as they try to extend their winning streak to four games when they play the Detroit Red Wings at Little Caesars Arena on Saturday.
Florida defeated the Los Angeles Kings 4-3 on Thursday with third-string goalie Sam Montembeault playing the final 49:55 after Chris Driedger left the game with a lower-body injury. Bobrovsky was missing his second straight game with an upper-body injury.
The Red Wings lost 2-1 to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Sidney Crosby's overtime goal Friday. Detroit is winless in three (0-2-1) and is 5-20-3 in its past 28 games.
With Jonathan Bernier (lower body) expected to be out until at least the All-Star Game,Calvin Pickard is expected to start for Detroit. The Red Wings' other goalies -- Pickard, Jimmy Howard and Eric Comrie -- are 0-15-2 since Howard defeated the Edmonton Oilers 3-1 on Oct. 29.
Players to watch
Panthers forward Jonathan Huberdeau has 25 points (seven goals, 18 assists) in his past 14 games.
Red Wings center Dylan Larkin has seven points (two goals, five assists) in his past eight games and needs one goal for 100 in the NHL.
They said it
"The best recipe is to make them play in their zone, put them back on their heels and play our game for the full 60 minutes." -- Florida defenseman Mike Matheson
"I think the reality of the NHL is you have to have good goaltending to have a chance to keep you in games and have a chance to win, especially when you aren't a high-scoring team." -- Red Wings coach Jeff Blashill on his team's goaltending issues
Panthers projected lineup
Jonathan Huberdeau -- Aleksander Barkov -- Evgenii Dadonov
Brett Connolly -- Vincent Trocheck -- Noel Acciari
Frank Vatrano -- Dominic Toninato -- Mike Hoffman
Colton Sceviour -- Brian Boyle -- Mark Pysyk
Mike Matheson -- Aaron Ekblad
Keith Yandle -- Josh Brown
Riley Stillman -- Anton Stralman
Sergei Bobrovsky
Sam Montembeault
Scratched: Denis Malgin, Jayce Hawryluk
Injured: MacKenzie Weegar (upper body), Chris Driedger (lower body)
Red Wings projected lineup
Tyler Bertuzzi -- Dylan Larkin -- Luke Glendening
Filip Zadina -- Valtteri Filppula -- Robby Fabbri
Darren Helm -- Frans Nielsen -- Adam Erne
Justin Abdelkader -- Christoffer Ehn -- Givani Smith
Patrik Nemeth -- Mike Green
Trevor Daley -- Filip Hronek
Madison Bowey -- Alex Biega
Calvin Pickard
Jimmy Howard
Scratched: Brendan Perlini
Injured: Danny DeKeyser (back), Anthony Mantha (upper body), Jonathan Ericsson (face), Andreas Athanasiou (lower body), Jonathan Bernier (lower body)
Status report
The Panthers used the same lineup at the morning skate that they used against the Kings, with the exception of Bobrovsky replacing Driedger, who they said will miss several weeks with his injury. … The Red Wings did not skate after playing Friday.
Stat pack
Hoffman has five goals and four assists in a seven-game point streak. … The Red Wings have been outscored 15-4 in their three-game winless streak.