Penguins at Panthers preview

PENGUINS (36-22-4) at PANTHERS (27-25-6)
7 p.m. ET; FS-F, ATTSN-PT, NHL.TV

Pittsburgh forward Derick Brassard, acquired from the Ottawa Senators in a three-team trade on Friday, has yet to report to the team because of visa issues.
The Penguins, who have a one-point lead over the Washington Capitals for first place in the Metropolitan Division, defeated the Carolina Hurricanes 6-1 on Friday.
Roberto Luongo will make his third start in four games for the Panthers since returning from a groin injury. Florida is five points behind the Columbus Blue Jackets for the second wild card into the Stanley Cup Playoffs from the Eastern Conference with three games in hand.

Players to watch

Penguins forward Evgeni Malkin had a goal and two assists against Carolina to extend his point streak to five games (four goals, six assists).
Panthers forward Aleksander Barkov has two goals and six assists in his past six games.

They said it

"We've got a great opportunity in front of us. We've got to go out and earn it each and every day."--Penguins coach Mike Sullivan
"This is a good measuring stick for us. We know we've got to win games to get in (the playoffs) and you've got to beat some real good teams, and this might be one of the best teams."--Panthers coach Bob Boughner

Penguins projected lineup

Conor Sheary -- Sidney Crosby - Patric Hornqvist
Carl Hagelin -- Evgeni Malkin -- Bryan Rust
Jake Guentzel -- Riley Sheahan -- Phil Kessel
Dominik Simon -- Carter Rowney -- Zach Aston-Reese
Brian Dumoulin -- Kris Letang
Olli Maatta -- Justin Schultz
Matt Hunwick -- Jamie Oleksiak
Matt Murray
Tristan Jarry
Scratched:Chad Ruhwedel, Derick Brassard
Injured:Tom Kuhnhackl (lower body)

Panthers projected lineup

Evgenii Dadonov -- Aleksander Barkov -- Nick Bjugstad
Jonathan Huberdeau -- Vincent Trocheck -- Denis Malgin
Jamie McGinn -- Jared McCann -- Maxim Mamin
Micheal Haley -- Derek MacKenzie -- Colton Sceviour
Keith Yandle -- Aaron Ekblad
Michael Matheson -- Mark Pysyk
Ian McCoshen -- Alex Petrovic
Roberto Luongo
James Reimer
Scratched: Radim Vrbata, Connor Brickley, MacKenzie Weegar
Injured:Frank Vatrano (ankle)

Status report

The Penguins did not have a morning skate. … Brassard told the Penguins website he hopes to be in the lineup by Tuesday when they host the New Jersey Devils. ... Hornqvist played 13:47 against Carolina in his return after missing eight games with a lower-body injury. … McGinn will return after being a healthy scratch in a 3-2 win against the Washington Capitals on Thursday. … Boughner said Vatrano, acquired in a trade with the Boston Bruins on Thursday, could return in two weeks.

Stat pack

Penguins captain Sidney Crosby has a five-game goal streak against the Panthers and has eight goals in that span. … The Penguins are 6-5-2 in the second game of back-to-back sets this season. … The Panthers power play has an NHL-best 39.3 percent success rate since Feb. 5.