ELMONT, N.Y. – On the Island.
Beginning their weekend back-to-back in New York, the Florida Panthers (35-33-3) will take on the New York Islanders (41-27-5) at UBS Arena on Saturday at 1 p.m. ET.
Their third and final meeting of the season, the Panthers took the first meeting 4-1 on Dec. 7 at Amerant Bank Arena and the Islanders countered with 5-4 win on March 1 at UBS Arena.
“We’re putting a lot into these (games),” said Matthew Tkachuk. “There’s a lot of gamers in here. There’s so many competitive people.”
Coming off a tight battle in their last game, the Panthers fell 3-2 to the Minnesota Wild on Thursday after Joel Eriksson Ek scored the go-ahead goal with just five seconds left in the third period.
In the loss, Tkachuk continued to carry a hot stick, recording two points (1G, 1A).
Since the Olympic break, the gold medalist for the United States has notched 17 points (7G, 10A) and 42 shots in 14 games.
Tkachuk leads the team in all four categories during that span.
"He's been scoring, he's been finishing, he's been making plays," head coach Paul Maurice said of Tkachuk's game.
The Panthers will be without Sam Bennett (personal reasons) and Evan Rodrigues after the veteran forward suffered a broken finger in his opening shift against the Wild on Thursday.
Rodrigues could miss four to six weeks depending on if surgery is needed, per Maurice.
“We got used to having five or six guys (out), and now we're getting to nine and ten,” Maurice said of the injuries. “It's tough, but they treat each other the way they're supposed to, so proud of that.”
Mackie Samoskevich will draw back in the lineup after missing the last three games.
Daniil Tarasov will get the start in net for the matinee.
The Panthers netminder is coming off a 47 save performance against the Wild on Thursday.
Hosting the Panthers, the Islanders enter Saturday’s tilt right in the playoff mix.
Controlling the second wild card spot in the Eastern Conference with 87 points, the Islanders sit right behind the Columbus Blue Jackets (87 points – tiebreaker) and Pittsburgh Penguins (88 points) for the second and third spot in the Metropolitan Division.
Just behind, the Ottawa Senators (86 points) and Detroit Red Wings (84 points) are in the Islanders’ rearview mirror with games in hand.
Picking up an important two points, the Islanders took down the Dallas Stars 2-1 on Thursday at UBS Arena.
Scoring his 30th of the season in the win, Bo Horvat has racked up nine points (4G, 5A) over the last 10 games.
One of the league’s best in the faceoff circle, Horvat has snapped back at 56.3% rate to go along with his 52 points (30G, 22A) this season.
On the back end, rookie Matthew Schaefer has been the talk around the league.
With 54 points (22G, 32A), the 18-year-old has the second most goals amongst all NHL defenseman and leads all rookie blueliners in goals, assists, points, and plus/minus rating (+18).
Ilya Sorokin is expected to get the nod in net for the Islanders.
One of the NHL’s best the season, Sorokin ranks amongst the top in wins (27), save percentage (.914), goals against average (2.48), and shutouts (7).
THEY SAID IT
“We're fighting together. Nobody's quitting on each other.” – Matthew Tkachuk
“The veteran guys are being so good to the new guys and the young guys that they’ll play hard. So they’re going to play hard.” – Paul Maurice
FIVE CATS STATS
- Eight different Panthers skaters have reached the double-digit goal mark.
- Gustav Forsling has recorded 25 points for five straight seasons.
- Jesper Boqvist ranks second on the Panthers with 126 hits.
- The Panthers are 5-5-0 against the Islanders in the last 10 games.
- Carter Verhaeghe has 11 points (6G, 5A) in 14 games against the Islanders as a Panther.
PROJECTED LINEUP (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)
Stay tuned ahead of puck drop for lineup
RECENT TRANSACTIONS
- March 24: F Noah Gregor recalled from Charlotte (AHL)
- March 15: F Nolan Foote recalled from Charlotte (AHL)
- March 12: D Mike Benning recalled from Charlotte (AHL)
HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN
When: Saturday, March 28 at 1 p.m. ET
Where: UBS Arena – Elmont, NY
TV & Streaming: WSFL, WHDT, WFTX, PanthersPlus.TV
Radio: 104.3 WQAM-FM/560 WQAM-AM (Dade/Broward); 106.3 WESP-FM (Palm Beach); 100.3 WCTH-FM (Florida Keys); 101.7 WCZR-FM (Treasure Coast); Panthers GameDay App; SiriusXM App & Streaming 931
Cats on Tap: Click here
