SUNRISE, Fla. – It’s time to empty the tank.
With one game left until getting a well-deserved break for the 4 Nations Face-Off, the Florida Panthers will host the Ottawa Senators at Amerant Bank Arena on Saturday.
Winning seven of their last 10 games, Florida leads the Atlantic Division at 33-20-3.
“It’s important,” said captain Aleksander Barkov, who will also be captaining Team Finland at the 4 Nations Face-Off. “It’s a big game against a division rival. Both teams are going to try their best. We’ve been playing really well, so we want to keep that going.”
Ending their two-game road trip in dramatic fashion, Matthew Tkachuk scored with 11.8 seconds left on the clock to lift the Panthers to a thrilling 3-2 win at St. Louis on Thursday.
Extending his goal streak to five games, Tkachuk led the charge against the Blues with three points (two goals, one assist). Mackie Samoskevich also lit the lamp in the win, while Spencer Knight turned aside 20 of 22 shots to improve to 5-2-0 in his last seven starts.
Shutting it down in St. Louis, the Panthers allowed just three shots on goal in the third period.
“It was good, especially in the third period when it was a tight game,” Barkov said. “Obviously we want to learn how to be really good in those moments. I think our third period was really good. We didn’t give up much, and we didn’t get much.”
Sam Reinhart leads the Panthers in goals (31) and points (61). Tkachuk is second in scoring with 54 points (21 goals, 33 assist) and has notched multiple points in two of his last three games. Barkov ranks third in scoring with 50 points, including a team-leading 37 assists.
Sergei Bobrovsky, who’s 4-1-0 with a .931 save percentage in his last five starts, will man the crease against the Senators.
After suffering an upper-body injury in the second period against the Blues, Samoskevich won’t suit up for the Panthers against Ottawa, but should be fine after the break.
A good sign, the 22-year-old rookie participated in this morning’s skate.
“If it was a playoff game, he’d be in,” head coach Paul Maurice said.
Occupying the first wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference, the Senators are currently enjoying a resurgent season. Owning a 29-22-4 record, they strung together a five-game winning streak before dropping consecutive games at Tampa Bay by a combined score of 9-4.
In their most-recent outing, the Senators suffered a 5-1 loss to the Lightning on Thursday.
Tim Stutzle leads the Senators in scoring with 55 points (17 goals, 38 assists), while Drake Batherson is second with 44 points (16 goals, 28 assists). Brady Tkachuk, Matthew’s younger brother, is third on the team with 43 points, including a team-leading 20 goals.
Despite an impressive young core of offensive talent, Ottawa’s calling card has been defense and goaltending this season. The backbone of the team’s seventh-ranked defense (2.73 goals allowed per game), Linus Ullmark sits a 12-8-2 with a .915 save percentage.
Their second of three head-to-head meetings this season, the Senators got the better of the Panthers in their first matchup back on Oct. 10. Ottawa’s season opener, Ullmark led the way with a 31-save performance, while Stutzle potted a pair of goals in a 3-1 victory.
At the time of this writing, the Senators have yet to announce a starting goaltender.
“You just have to be on your toes all the time,” Barkov said. “They’re a highly-skilled offensive team. They make plays and score goals when you give them chances. You have to be aware of that all the time when you’re on the ice, and at the same time try to play your game as much as possible.”
THEY SAID IT
"The good part is I don't have to pay to watch that show. They're always fun games to watch those two guys against each other. Elite players, brothers. I've gotten to know them both. Really excited for tonight." – Aleksander Barkov on the battle of the Tkachuk brothers
“Our analytics have really started to improve – zone time, chances for and against, expected goals differential. We’ve been really consistent with that, far more consistent than our record.” – Paul Maurice on Florida’s recent stretch of success
FIVE CATS STATS
- The Panthers rank first in the NHL with 11 shorthanded goals.
- The Panthers own a 9-2-0 record in their last 11 games vs. Ottawa.
- Eight different Panthers have scored at least 12 goals.
- Sam Reinhart is one point shy of his 600th NHL point.
- Anton Lundell has logged seven points (3G, 4A) over his last 11 games.
PROJECTED LINEUP (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)
Forwards
Carter Verhaeghe – Aleksander Barkov – Sam Reinhart
Evan Rodrigues – Sam Bennett – Matthew Tkachuk
Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Jesper Boqvist
A.J. Greer – Tomas Nosek – Jonah Gadjovich
Defensemen
Gustav Forsling – Aaron Ekblad
Niko Mikkola – Dmitry Kulikov
Uvis Balinskis – Nate Schmidt
Goaltenders
Sergei Bobrovsky
Spencer Knight
RECENT TRANSACTIONS:
- Jan. 31: D Adam Boqvist claimed on waivers by New York Islanders
HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN
When: Saturday, Feb. 8 at 7 p.m. ET
Where: Amerant Bank Arena – Sunrise, FL
TV & Streaming: Panthers+, WSFL-TV, WHDT, WFTX, ESPN+ (out of market)
Radio: 560 WQAM (Dade/Broward); 1230 WBZT-AM & 92.1 WZZR-FM (Palm Beach); 100.3 WCTH (Florida Keys); Panthers App; SiriusXM App & Streaming 931
Tickets: Click Here
