After surrendering 14 goals over their past two games, the Florida Panthers will hope for a return to form on the defensive side of the puck when they wrap up their final back-to-back set of the season against the Montreal Canadiens at Bell Centre on Tuesday night.
Panthers Wrap Up Final Back-to-Back of Season in Montreal
Following a 7-3 loss to Boston at home on Saturday, the Panthers kicked off their four-game road trip with a 7-5 loss in Toronto on Monday in which John Tavares lit the lamp four times.
After winning four in a row, the Panthers (33-31-12) have lost four of their last five games.
"It's embarrassing the way we've played the last three or four games, me included," Panthers defenseman and alternate captain Aaron Ekblad said after the loss to the Leafs. "It's unfortunate, and as part of the leadership group, we're taking full responsibility for it. The best we can do is learn from it and move on."
In moving on, the Panthers will look to play spoiler against the Canadiens, who enter tonight's matchup with a slim two-point lead over Columbus for the second wild card spot in the Eastern Conference. Additionally, Montreal has also played one more game than the Blue Jackets.
The Canadiens (40-28-8) saw their three-game winning streak snapped with a 2-1 overtime loss in Carolina on Sunday. In defeat, Montreal goaltender Carey Price turned away 38 of 40 shots.
"Obviously you know you're playing one of the best goalies in the world, if not the best goalie in the world, so it's going to take some something a little uglier to beat him,"
Hurricanes defenseman Trevor van Riemsdyk told reporters after the game
. "You just gotta stick with it. You can't get frustrated. We just kept trudging away."
With Price expected to be back in net tonight, the Panthers know they will need a big night from their offense as well as their defense. As it has been for most of the season, however, the goals have been coming for Florida, which is averaging 3.9 goals per game over their last 10 contests.
A big reason for that consistency on offense has been the production of Aleksander Barkov and Jonathan Huberdeau, who are the first duo in franchise history to reach the 80-point mark in the same season. Since Feb. 17, they rank first and second, respectively, in scoring in the league.
In that 20-game span, Barkov has notched 35 points, while Huberdeau has tallied 32 points.
Leading the team with a career-high 88 points (34 goals, 54 assists), Barkov is just six points away from matching Hall of Famer Pavel Bure's franchise record for most points in a season (94). The 23-year-old center has also picked up at least one point in 18 of the last 20 contests.
As for Huberdeau, who scored two goals in Monday's loss to the Leafs, the 25-year-old winger sits only behind Barkov in team-scoring with a career-best 84 points (25 goals, 59 assists). His 59 assists not only stand as a franchise record, but also place him 10th in the NHL this season.
Barkov has posted three goals and two assists in three games against Montreal in 2018-19.
The Canadiens won the first two of those meetings by a combined score of 10-4, but Florida took the most-recent matchup, earning a 6-3 win on Feb. 17 in Sunrise. Max Domi, who leads Montreal with 67 points (26 goals, 41 assists), has three goals and an assist in those contests.
"We obviously haven't lived up to what we expect we're capable of," Panthers forward Jayce Hawryluk said after the loss in Toronto. "It's just another tough night and another new day tomorrow. We can't have any quit in here. There are still six games left in the season. We're going to leave it all out there and try and win every game."
Florida has scored the second-most goals (46) and power-play goals (12) in the NHL in March.
NOTES
-- Aaron Ekblad leads the Panthers in average ice time per game (23:35), while also pacing the club's defensemen and ranking tied for eighth among NHL blueliners in goals (13). The 23-year-old enters tonight's matchup with three goals and eight assists over his last 16 games.
-- Evgenii Dadonov has registered 14 points (three goals, 11 assists) over his last 10 games. The 30-year-old winger ranks third on the team in goals (25), while also sitting fourth in assists (38) and points (63). Since 2017-18, he has recorded a team-leading 39 even-strength goals.
-- Mike Hoffman leads the Panthers with a career-high 35 goals. Of those scores, 17 have come on the power play, which are the tied for the third-most in the NHL this season. The 29-year old winger has notched 24 points (10 goals, 14 assists) over his last 21 games.
-- Frank Vatrano is expected to suit up in his 200th NHL game tonight. In his second season with the Panthers, he has reached new career-highs in goals (22), assists (15) and points (37). The 25-year-old winger also paces the club's forwards in blocked shots (71).
-- Florida's all-time leader for points by a defenseman in a single season, Keith Yandle ranks first among the team's blueliners in both points (58) and assists (49). Additionally, his 38 points on the power play also stand as a franchise record and rank third in the NHL this season.
-- Jayce Hawryluk had the first three-point game (two goals, one assist) of his career on Monday in Toronto. The 23-year-old rookie winger has lit the lamp three times over his last two games.
-- Florida enters tonight's game owning the league's second-ranked power play (27.3 percent).
GEICO GOALIE MATCHUP OF THE GAME (UNCONFIRMED)
Sam Montembeault (4-3-1, 3.24 GAA, .886 SV%) vs. Carey Price (32-22-6, 2.51 GAA, .917 SV%)
It's hard to predict who will start for the Panthers tonight. Initially, it was supposed to be Roberto Luongo. But after relieving Montembeault in net on Monday, it's hard to say if the 39-year-old will return to the crease in Montreal on short rest. If they do end up going back to Montembeault, the 22-year-old rookie will be looking to snap out of a personal three-game losing streak.
With a playoff spot on the line, it's hard to imagine the Canadiens going with anyone but Price. The 31-year-old has started each of the last eight games, posting a 4-3-1 record with a .917 save percentage and one shutout in that span. In his career against Florida, he's gone 11-6-3 with a 1.85 goals-against average, .937 save percentage and two shutouts.
PROJECTED LINEUP (NO MORNING SKATE)
Forwards
Jonathan Huberdeau - Aleksander Barkov - Evgenii Dadonov
Jayce Hawryluk - Vincent Trocheck - Mike Hoffman
Frank Vatrano - Riley Sheahan - Troy Brouwer
Jamie McGinn - Henrik Borgstrom - Denis Malgin
Defense
Mike Matheson - Aaron Ekblad
Keith Yandle - MacKenzie Weegar
Ian McCoshen - Josh Brown
Goalies
Sam Montembeault
Roberto Luongo
Scratches:Colton Sceviour, Dryden Hunt, Mark Pysyk, Brady Keeper, James Reimer
Injured Reserve: Derek MacKenzie (shoulder)
RECENT TRANSACTIONS
- March 18: The Panthers signed D Brady Keeper to a two-year, entry-level contract.
- March 15: F Colton Sceviour was activated from the injured reserve list.
- March 8: G Sam Montembeault's emergency conditions of his recall were terminated.
- March 1: D Riley Stillman was loaned to Springfield (AHL).
HOW TO WATCH
When: Tuesday, March 26, 7:30 p.m.
Where: Bell Centre - Montreal, QC
TV:Fox Sports Florida (Alternate Channels Below)
Dish: 441
Dish HD:9579
Dish Hopper:412-29
DTV HD: 654-1
AT&T: 721
AT&T HD: 1721
Stream:
HERE
Florida Panthers Radio Network: 560 WQAM (Dade/Broward); 640 WMEN (Palm Beach); 100.3 WCTH (Florida Keys); 1370 WAXE (Treasure Coast)
Watch Party:Thanks to the new "Territory on Tap" program, every road game now offers a chance for a watch party in South Florida! To see which local bars and restaurants have drink specials and giveaways for tonight's game,
please visit the official "Territory on Tap" page!