In today's Baptist Health Practice Notebook, Aleksander Barkov continues to impress, Markus Nutivaara is feeling good on the blue line, and a look at the Panthers' latest lines and pairings.

SUNRISE, Fla. - While there will be plenty of time to pen numerous articles about Aleksander Barkov's greatness in the coming weeks and months - especially around awards season - it's never a bad time to simply check in on the current state of the Panthers captain's dominance.

On fire heading into a Saturday's matchup against the rival Lightning, the 25-year-old center has racked up 18 goals over his last 23 games to increase his team-leading total to 26. During that torrid stretch, he's scored at least one goal in 14 games, including four multi-goal performances.

SUNRISE, Fla. - Florida Panthers President and CEO Matthew Caldwell announced today that Sam Doerr has been named Chief Strategy Officer and Bryce Hollweg has been named Executive Vice President.

Additionally, the Panthers have hired Joshua Korlin as Vice President of Corporate Partnerships and promoted Adam Summerell to Senior Vice President, Sales, Services & Ticket Operations, Adam Lawson to Vice President, Sales & Service, Chiara DeLuca to Vice President, Ticket Operations & Event Sales and Janine Kurpiel to Vice President of Merchandising and Retail Operations.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. - An all-new episode of "Inside the Panthers" will debut on Bally Sports Sun tomorrow, May 8 upon conclusion of Florida's game vs. Tampa Bay Lightning. On this edition of "Inside the Panthers: Stepping into the Spotlight," Jessica Blaylock hosts and brings fans the latest on how the team has rallied after losing star defenseman and Norris Trophy contender Aaron Ekblad to injury.

With the challenge of filling the void left by Ekblad's injury, Florida's defensemen elevated their game with contributions by many, including MacKenzie Weegar . Drafted by the Panthers in the seventh round of the 2013 NHL Draft, Weegar is playing the best hockey of his career and has grown into an integral member of the team.

The Panthers are heading to the playoffs, and they have huge games Saturday and Monday against the Lightning; a possible playoff preview. What's also important? The fact that the Panthers just enjoyed a rarity in this condensed sprint of a season: four consecutive days without a game. For the Panthers, the time off couldn't have come at a better time.

According to Joel Quenneville after yesterday's practice, the Panthers potentially stand to have three players available to return from injury tomorrow. Regarding Sam Bennett, Patric Hornqvist, and Carter Verhaeghe, Quenneville said everyone "looks like they're ready to go." This four-day break in the schedule was indeed a scheduling break for the Panthers. During the span, the Lightning will have played two games against the Dallas Stars. The Panthers, meanwhile, were able to enjoy two full off days on Tuesday and Wednesday, and two solid practice days between yesterday and today.

Following the full off days, Quenneville noticed the positive effect on the team. Quenneville said, "I loved the pace of practice today. I loved the way we practiced. I was impressed with it." With the schedule being as rigorous as it has been, he went on to say, "It's been awhile since we've even had a normal practice. The guys had some life and some good spirit." A four-day rest followed by a two-game tune-up for the playoffs could be the perfect timeline.

Now, your questions!

In today's Baptist Health Practice Notebook, the Panthers have some key players return to the ice, Owen Tippett is starting to hit his stride, and Chris Driedger's new mask earns rave reviews.

SUNRISE, Fla. - The ice was packed during this morning's practice at BB&T Center.

After being bitten time and time again by the injury bug in the past several weeks, the Panthers appear to finally be back operating at close to full capacity as Carter Verhaeghe, Chris Driedger, Patric Hornqvist and Sam Bennett were all full participants during the team's up-tempo session.

In a potential playoff preview, the Panthers will close out their regular season with a two-game set against the Lightning at BB&T Center. On this week's episode of the Territory Talk podcast, TampaBayLightning.com's Bryan Burns joins the show to talk about the exciting battle for Florida, the state of Tampa Bay's roster and much, much more.

Plus, co-hosts Doug Plagens and Jameson Olive also take a closer look at how both Florida's rookies and superstars have been playing at an extremely high level heading down the home stretch.

Highlights of the episode include:

• Young guns are stepping up for the Panthers down the stretch. (4:00)

• A dream come true for Philippe Desrosiers. (7:30)

• The "unstoppable" Aleksander Barkov continues to light it up. (12:20)

• TampaBayLightning.com's Bryan Burns joins the show! (23:15)

• Burns provides an update on Tampa Bay's injured stars. (27:30)

• From print media to doing it all with the Bolts, Burns shares his career path. (35:10)

• Let's make some predictions! (41:30)

If you'd like new episodes of Territory Talk delivered directly to your phone or inbox each week, click HERE to subscribe to the show on your preferred podcasting platform.

In any sport, a trip to the general manager's office can be a stressful experience.

So when he arrived at BB&T Center on Monday morning to begin his usual pre-game routine, Philippe Desrosiers, with a sharp chill running down his spine, immediately started to think the worst when he heard that Panthers general manager Bill Zito wanted to have a word with him.

SUNRISE, Fla. - The opportunity was too good to pass up.

Sent to the power play in overtime, Aleksander Barkov rocketed a one-timer into the top right corner of the cage to lift the Panthers to a 5-4 win over the Stars at BB&T Center on Monday.

SUNRISE, Fla. -- Still jockeying for position heading into the playoffs, the Panthers will look to pick up another big two points when they close the book on their season series with the Stars at BB&T Center on Monday.

As it stands now, the Panthers (34-14-5) are tied with the Lightning (35-14-3) for second place in the Central Division, while both teams trail the Hurricanes (34-10-7) by just two points for first.

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.

While their ticket to the playoffs has already been punched, the Panthers enter this week still jockeying for position within the Central Division with just three games left on their schedule.

As it stands now, the Panthers (34-14-5) are tied with the Lightning (35-14-3) for second place in the division, while both teams trail the Hurricanes (34-10-7) by just two points for the top spot.