Sitting just four points out of a playoff spot with a record of 21-20-5, the Panthers have been really trending upward in the early goings of the second half. Going 5-2-1 over their last seven games, they opened up their road trip by picking up three of a possible four points.
In their latest outing, officiating took center stage during a 5-4 overtime loss at Toronto on Tuesday. Despite facing down seven opposing power plays, the Panthers managed to build up a 4-2 lead on goals from Carter Verhaeghe, Anton Lundell, Josh Mahura and Aleksander Barkov.
But after Auston Matthews pulled the Maple Leafs to within a goal on the power play with seconds left on the clock in the second period, William Nylander deflected in the game-tying goal early in the third period to make it a 4-4 game and eventually get the action to overtime.
In the extra frame, Nylander tucked in the game-winner to keep the Cats from an extra point.
"We're getting that momentum back," Panthers forward Sam Reinhart said when asked about the second-half push. "We're getting the confidence in ourselves, and it's starting to show."
Extending his point streak to five games with a goal and an assist against the Maple Leafs, Barkov is producing at better than a point-per-game clip this season. Limited to 36 contests due to an early-season non-COVID illness, the captain has tallied 37 points (12 goals, 25 assists).
A 2023 NHL All-Star, Matthew Tkachuk leads Florida in goals (22), assists (34) and points (56).
After making 32 saves against Toronto -- including a whopping 14 high-danger stops -- Sergei Bobrovsky will man the crease once again in this important matchup with the Canadiens.
Starting 16 of the last 20 games, Bobrovsky has posted an 8-7-1 record with a .909 save percentage in that stretch, while also owning a very strong .921 save percentage at 5-on-5.
"He looks like he did in his prime, so we're going to run him," Maurice said of Bobrovsky.
Even though they're sitting in last place in the Atlantic Division with a record of 19-23-3, the Canadiens have been playing better as of late. Winning four of their last six games, they enter tonight's matchup feeling confident following a 4-1 win over the Winnipeg Jets on Tuesday.
After falling behind 1-0 to the Jets, the Canadiens scored four unanswered goals to cruise to their second straight win. Evgenii Dadonov lit the lamp twice, Mike Hoffman and Josh Anderson each scored once, and Sam Montembeault stopped 25 of 26 shots between Montreal's pipes.
Expected to make his sixth straight start and face down his former team, Montembeault, who was drafted by and played in 25 games over parts of two seasons with the Panthers from 2018-2020, has posted a 3-2-0 record with a .946 save percentage over his previous five contests.
Up front, Montreal is led by three young former first-round picks. Nick Suzuki, 23, leads the team in scoring with 37 points (16 goals, 21 assist), while Cole Caufield, 22, is second in points (36) and first in goals (26). Kirby Dach, 21, sits third in points (29) and tied for first in assists (21).
Dropping the puck for the second time this season, the Panthers secured a 7-2 win over the Canadiens in their first meeting on Dec. 29 at FLA Live Arena. Barkov led the charge for Florida by matching a career-high with five points, including recording the fourth hat trick of his career.
Over their last six matchups with Montreal, the Panthers own a 5-1-0 record.
"We're looking forward to it," Reinhart said of the critical tilt. They've got a lot of skill. I think just take away their time and space and it'll give us the best odds."
