SUNRISE, Fla. - The Panthers will peer into what looks to be a very bright future between the pipes when they wrap up a back-to-back set with the Blue Jackets on Tuesday at BB&T Center.

After serving as Sergei Bobrovsky's backup during Monday's 4-2 win over Columbus, highly-touted goaltending prospect Spencer Knight is now expected to make his NHL debut tonight.

CALGARY, Alta. - Hockey Canada has appointed Roberto Luongo (Montreal, Que./Florida, NHL) general manager of Canada's National Men's Team for the 2021 IIHF World Championship, May 21-June 6 in Riga, Latvia.

As general manager, Luongo will oversee and lead all hockey operations, including staff and player selection and evaluation as Canada looks to win its first gold medal since 2016. Joining Luongo on the management group will be Shane Doan (Halkirk, Alta.) and Scott Salmond (Creston, B.C.), senior-vice-president of national teams with Hockey Canada.

SUNRISE, Fla. - There's a rubber rodent infestation brewing at BB&T Center.

In a one-of-a-kind display that will only continue to pick up steam as the playoffs approach, the plastic rats came flying down on the ice after Frank Vatrano scored a pair of goals to help the Florida Panthers open up their four-game homestand with a 4-2 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets on Monday.

With the victory, the Panthers (29-12-5) are now tied with the Hurricanes (29-10-5) for the most points in the Central Division. And with two head-to-head matchups on the docket for later this week, Carolina only holds a tiebreaker over Florida due to having played two fewer contests.

SUNRISE, Fla. -- The Florida Panthers will look to build off a strong finish to their road trip when they return home to kick off a back-to-back set with the Columbus Blue Jackets at BB&T Center on Monday.

"Let's make sure we respect our opponent here," Panthers coach Joel Quenneville said. "It's one of those games where you're coming back [from the road] and you want to play the right way and keep it as simple as possible knowing a workman-like effort is going to be necessary."

Good morning and welcome to "Cats & Coffee," a weekly segment, presented by Koffee Kult, in which we serve up an exciting look at what's on deck for your Florida Panthers. Like our friends at Koffee Kult, this forecast serves up only the best -- so sit back, sip and enjoy our latest brew of news, notes and information.

Let's give the new guys a warm welcome, shall we?

Acquired by the Panthers prior to the NHL's trade deadline, newcomers Sam Bennett, Brandon Montour, Nikita Gusev and Lucas Wallmark are all expected to take the ice at BB&T Center this week during the team's crucial four-game homestand against the Columbus Blue Jackets and Carolina Hurricanes.

If this is a preview of what we're going to see in the postseason, sign me up!

Pulling even in their heated season series, the Panthers got contributions from up and down their lineup in an exhilarating 5-3 victory over the rival Tampa Bay Lightning at Amalie Arena on Saturday.

With six games in the books and two more to go, each Sunshine State squad has won three.

SUNRISE, Fla. - Florida Panthers General Manager Bill Zito announced today that the club has reassigned forward Cole Schwindt and forward Scott Wilson from the Syracuse Crunch of the American Hockey League (AHL) to Florida's Taxi Squad.

Additionally, the Panthers have reassigned forward Aleksi Heponiemi , defenseman Lucas Carlsson and defenseman Brady Keeper from Florida's Taxi Squad to Syracuse.

Schwindt, 19, appeared in 10 games with Syracuse in 2020-21, his first professional season, recording two points (1-1-2). The 6-foot-2, 182-pound native of Kitchener, Ontario, amassed a team-leading 71 points (28-43-71) in 57 games with the Mississauga Steelheads of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL) in 2019-20.

He was originally selected by Florida in the third round (81st overall) of the 2019 National Hockey League Draft.

Wilson, 28, appeared in eight games this season with Syracuse, posting three points (1-2-3). The 5-foot-11, 178-pound native of Oakville, Ontario, has played in 193 career NHL games with the Buffalo Sabres (2017-18 to 2019-20), Detroit Red Wings (2017-18) and Pittsburgh Penguins (2014-15 to 2017-18), registering 51 points (20-31-51). Wilson won the 2017 Stanley Cup with Pittsburgh.

He was originally selected by Pittsburgh in the seventh round (209th overall) of the 2011 NHL Draft.

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Acquired at the trade deadline, Sam Bennett will make his debut when the Panthers close out their six-game road trip with a matchup against the rival Tampa Bay Lightning at Amalie Arena on Saturday.

Coming over from the Flames along with a 2022 sixth-round pick in exchange for a 2022 second-round pick and the rights to forward prospect Emil Heineman, Bennett had posted four goals and eight assists while averaging 13:28 of ice time during 38 games with Calgary this season.

Dear Panthers fans,

It's certainly been a hectic and exciting week.

On the day that I was traded to the Panthers, we were having practice up in Buffalo and were going to head out to Philadelphia right after. With the trade deadline coming up, I had a small bag packed just in case something happened, but hadn't heard anything about getting moved.

That being said, I knew it was possible and wanted to be prepared the best I could. Luckily, the trade call came in before we took off for our road trip, and I was obviously excited when I heard that I'd be joining up with the Panthers.

Considering what's at stake, the point in the season, and the quality of the teams, last night was probably the biggest Panthers-Lightning matchup in the history of the cross-state rivalry; a title last night's game will hold until 7:00 PM tomorrow, when the Panthers are set to finish their six-game road trip against the Lightning. The pace was that of a playoff game from the outset, and with today being the off-day between two massive Springtime games, it really does taste like the playoffs.

Joel Quenneville talked after yesterday's morning skate about the game feeling like more than a regular season game. Newcomers to the lineup on both sides added to the magnitude of the game. Nikita Gusev, Brandon Montour and Lucas Wallmark for the Panthers, and David Savard for Tampa Bay were new to this season's edition of the rivalry, but their presence further illustrated the importance of the upcoming matchups between the two teams. The Panthers and Lightning both have plans to make some noise in the playoffs, and I think I speak for every one of us when I say I can't wait for the puck to drop tomorrow.

With the games getting bigger each day, and the trade deadline in the rearview, it's let's dive into your questions!