Cats & Coffee: Stepping Up at Home

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.
The road was not kind to the Panthers.
Despite closing out their five-game trek with consecutive wins over the Stars, the Panthers lost three of their key players to injuries -- Aleksander Barkov, Patric Hornqvist and Aaron Ekblad.

And while Barkov and Hornqvist are both expected to return to action at some point this week, Ekblad, who leads the Panthers in average ice time (25:05) and ranks tied for first among NHL defensemen in goals (11), is set to miss an "extensive amount of time" after he fell awkwardly to the ice during the second period of Sunday's 4-1 win at American Airlines Center in Dallas.
Needing to be stretchered off the ice, updates on Ekblad's status are expected on Tuesday.
"You lose a guy like Ek [Ekblad], and you know the severity of it, you see it, and it's not an easy game to go through," Panthers coach Joel Quenneville said. "I thought the guys stayed with it and battled. It was a big two points for [Ekblad], and for us.
"At the same time, you're losing a guy that's having one of those seasons. You have a defenseman controlling [play] and playing big minutes and in all situations and you lose him. You lose his leadership. It's tough. It'll be a good test for us, for sure."
With a chance to other players to step up in the wake of these injuries, the Panthers, who enter this week sitting in third place in the Central Division with a stellar record of 22-9-4, will continue to push toward the playoffs with four games at home against the Red Wings and Blue Jackets.
After hosting Detroit on Tuesday and Thursday at BB&T Center, Florida will close out its homestand with a crucial back-to-back set against Columbus on Saturday and Sunday.
"You get some excitement in certain ways, but right now is not the time to be excited," Quenneville said when asked about moving forward without Ekblad. "At the same time, I think there's a group here that has an ability to find ways to win hockey games."
Here's everything you need to know for the week ahead…

THE GAMES

Tuesday and Thursday: Detroit Red Wings, 7 p.m. ET
With a chance to extend their winning streak, the Panthers will battle the Red Wings (12-20-4) for two games at BB&T Center on Tuesday and Thursday. Although they occupy last place in the Central Division, the Red Wings have been showing a lot of fight as of late, winning four of their last seven games, including a two-game sweep of the Blue Jackets over the weekend. In those wins, they outscored Columbus 7-2 while veteran backup Calvin Pickard was solid in net. Oddly enough, it's a defenseman that leads Detroit in scoring, as Filip Hronek has registered a team-high 20 points (two goals, 18 assists). Not far behind him, Robby Fabbri and Dylan Larkin have each tallied 18 points. In six games against the Panthers this season, Larkin has notched one goal and four assists. Speaking of Florida, which boasts a 4-2-0 record against Detroit this season, look for Jonathan Huberdeau to step up on the offensive side of the puck in this two-game series. Leading the Panthers in scoring with 40 points (13 goals, 27 assists), the 27-year-old winger has dished out a ton of helpers against the Red Wings so far this season, racking up seven assists in six games. Overall, he's posted 27 points in 30 career games against Detroit.
TV:FOX Sports Florida (Tues) / Bally Sports Florida (Thurs)
Radio: 560 WQAM (Dade/Broward); 640 WMEN (Palm Beach); 100.3 WCTH (Florida Keys); 107.9 FM/1370 AM WZTA (Treasure Coast); SiriusXM Streaming 932
Saturday and Sunday: Columbus Blue Jackets, 7 p.m. ET (Sat); 5 p.m. ET (Sun)
Closing out their homestand, the Panthers will host the Blue Jackets (13-15-8) for back-to-back games at BB&T Center on Saturday and Sunday. Quickly falling out of the playoff picture in the Central Division, Columbus enters this week mired in a four-game losing streak. In that stretch, the goals seemingly dried up, as they were outscored 14-5 in losses to Carolina and Detroit. Up front, Oliver Bjorkstrand leads the Blue Jackets in scoring with 29 points (12 goals, 17 assists), including three goals and two assists in four games against Florida this season. Sitting second on the team, Cam Atkinson has 24 points (12 goals, 12 assists), while Jack Roslovic has 21 (six goals, 15 assists). For the Panthers, look for MacKenzie Weegar to make his presence felt in this series. One half of the team's top-pairing on the blue line, the 27-year-old is not only a staunch defender, but also a solid point producer. Of his career-high 19 points (two goals, 17 assists) this season, 18 have come at even-strength, which are currently the third-most among the league's rearguards.
TV:Bally Sports Florida
Radio:560 WQAM (Dade/Broward); 640 WMEN (Palm Beach); 100.3 WCTH (Florida Keys); 107.9 FM/1370 AM WZTA (Treasure Coast); SiriusXM Streaming 932

MILESTONE WATCH

Radko Gudas is one assist away from his 100th NHL assist.
Anthony Duclair is six assists away from his 100th NHL assist.
Keith Yandle is seven points away from his 600th NHL point.
Brett Connolly is one goal away from his 100th NHL goal.

SCHOOL SUPPLY DRIVE

Bring your pencils and your books, but leave your dirty looks.
In partnership with Twin Peaks, the City of Fort Lauderdale and the Rotary Club of Fort Lauderdale, the Panthers will be hosting a school supply drive on the JetBlue Tarmac prior to their matchups with the Blue Jackets on Saturday and Sunday.

All school supplies (notebooks, markers, paper, pencils, etc.) that are collected during the drive will be distributed to elementary school students experiencing homelessness in Fort Lauderdale. For every donation on the JetBlue Tarmac, Twin Peaks will also be providing a $5 gift card as a token of appreciation.
Fans unable to attend either game can make a monetary donation to the drive HERE.

TERRITORY MEMBERSHIPS

There's still one big prize up for grabs.
All Territory Members that renew their plans by March 31 and haven't won a prize yet will be placed in a drawing on April 1 for a chance to win a Panthers "away game experience" for a future game in Boston that includes airfare, tickets and a two-night stay at the Beacon Hotel.
Not bad, right? Additionally, all Territory Members that renew their plans can earn up to 5% CATS CA$H and can enjoy other perks during the 2021-22 season, including access, savings and more. For more information on renewing, please visit
FloridaPanthers.com/Renewals
.
As for future Territory Members, we haven't forgotten about you! Stay tuned in the coming weeks for more information on how you can get in on the fun moving forward. Until then, to learn more about all of the incredible benefits of a Territory Membership, visit
FloridaPanthers.com/Memberships
.

RETRO JERSEY AUCTION

Support a good cause and look great while doing it.
Until April 5, bid for a chance to win an autographed Reverse Retro jersey from either Jonathan Huberdeau or Sergei Bobrovsky, with all proceeds benefitting the Florida Panthers Foundation.

To check out these sweet sweaters or make a bid, click HERE.

PROSPECT SPOTLIGHT

Grigori Denisenko achieved a nice milestone last week.
In his first game back in the AHL after spending some time in South Florida with the Panthers, the 20-year-old forward circled around the right faceoff dot before wiring home a powerful wrist shot with 2:23 left in overtime to lift Syracuse to an exciting 4-3 win over Rochester on Friday.
His first game-winning goal in the AHL, Denisenko was mobbed by his teammates afterwards.

Taken with the 15th overall pick in the 2018 NHL Draft, Denisenko appears to be gettering better every game during his first season since transitioning to North America. In five games with the Crunch, the Novosibirsk, Russia native has tallied three goals, one assist and 14 shots on goal.
Making his NHL debut on March 6, Denisenko has also skated in two games with the Panthers.

CATS CLIP OF THE WEEK

Can we put a mic on Patric Hornqvist every game? Check out the clip below for some great insights and more than a few laughs.

CATS IN THE COMMUNITY

TERRITORY TALK

On the latest episode of the Territory Talk podcast, defenseman Gustav Forsling joined the show to talk about his hockey origins, newfound role with the Panthers and much more!

COLD COFFEE (IN CASE YOU MISSED IT)

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Check out the latest mailbag from Panthers radio play-by-play man Doug Plagens.
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Spencer Knight has been named a finalist for the Hobey Baker Award.
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Catch up on Sunday's win in Dallas with "5 Takeaways."
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You can catch the Panthers twice on NBC Sports Network in April.
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The Panthers have moved one of their games against the Lighting.
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Panthers prospect Ty Smilanic shined bright during his freshman season at Quinnipiac.
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Looking to come to a game? The Feltman's Value Back is both a great deal and delicious!
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Mobile ordering is now available at BB&T Center. 
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Make sure to sign up for the new "93 Society" newsletter.
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There's plenty of amazing game-used items available right now at FLATeamShop.com.