Senators at Panthers

SENATORS (19-28-5) at PANTHERS (35-13-5)

Senators projected lineup
Brady Tkachuk -- Josh Norris -- Zach Sanford
Alex Formenton --
Tim Stutzle
-- Connor Brown
Nick Paul -- Colin White -- Tyler Ennis
Parker Kelly -- Dylan Gambrell -- Austin Watson
Thomas Chabot -- Nikita Zaitsev
Nick Holden -- Artem Zub
Erik Brannstrom -- Josh Brown
Anton Forsberg
Matt Murray
Scratched: Victor Mete, Dillon Heatherington, Adam Gaudette
Injured: Shane Pinto (upper body), Drake Batherson (ankle), Chris Tierney (lower body)
Panthers projected lineup
Carter Verhaeghe -- Aleksander Barkov -- Mason Marchment
Jonathan Huberdeau -- Sam Bennett -- Anthony Duclair
Frank Vatrano -- Anton Lundell -- Sam Reinhart
Ryan Lomberg -- Eetu Luostarinen -- Patric Hornqvist
MacKenzie Weegar -- Aaron Ekblad
Gustav Forsling -- Radko Gudas
Lucas Carlsson -- Brandon Montour
Sergei Bobrovsky
Jonas Johansson
Scratched: Noel Acciari, Maxim Mamin, Olli Juolevi
Injured: Markus Nutivaara (lower body), Joe Thornton (undisclosed)
Status report
Norris will return after missing 15 games with a shoulder injury. ... Tierney, a forward, will "be out at least a week," Senators coach D.J. Smith said. … Josh Brown will be a game-time decision after missing practice Friday with a lower-body injury; if he can't play, Heatherington, a defenseman, would take his place. ... Thornton, a forward, wore a white non-contact jersey during the Panthers morning skate Thursday. ... Marchment remains on the first line after swapping positions with Vatrano during a 4-3 loss to the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday.