ST. LOUIS – The Florida Panthers will close the book on their two-game road trip when they face-off against the St. Louis Blues at Enterprise Center on Thursday.
“We have to get it,” forward Matthew Tkachuk said “It’s just a quick two-game road trip. For us to lose the first one, it kind of puts us in a tough spot here. But if we get a win here, we can make it a decent road trip. We’re all excited for this.”
First in the Atlantic Division with a record of 32-20-3, the Panthers have won four of their last six games, but saw their three-game winning streak snapped at Washington on Tuesday.
Tied 2-2 after two periods, the Capitals scored a pair of goals within the first 6:10 of the third period to take a 4-2 lead. Despite Tkachuk scoring top shelf to cut Florida’s deficit to 4-3, Washington went on to add two empty-net goals to lock in the 6-3 win.
Likely deserving of at least a point for their effort, the Panthers posted some impressive numbers in defeat, dominating the Capitals in scoring chances (28-12), shot attempts (51-36) and high-danger shot attempts (11-3) at 5-on-5, according to NaturalStatTrick.com.
“We liked most of the game,” Tkachuk said. “Obviously if we’re giving up six goals, we’re not going to win. We have to tighten up defensively, for sure, especially if we want to go further into playoffs and beyond. We’ve got to tighten it up a little bit.”
The first player in franchise history to record four straight 30-goal seasons, Sam Reinhart leads the Panthers in goals (31) and points (60). Also producing at a point-per-game pace, Tkachuk has registered 51 points, while Aleksander Barkov has tallied 48 points.
Heating up, that trio has combined for 21 points (eight goals, 13 assists) over the last four games.
After missing three games due to an illness, Mackie Samoskevich will return to the lineup for the Panthers. Off to a good start in his NHL career, the 22-year-old rookie forward has posted 16 points (seven goals, nine assists) in 47 games this season.
Owning a .940 save percentage in his last seven appearances, Spencer Knight will man the crease for Florida.
“I really believe we’re closing in on the style of game we’re very good at and going to need to play in the playoffs,” head coach Paul Maurice said. “I want that continuation.”
Falling below .500, the Blues sit at 24-25-5 after dropping five of their last six games, including a 3-2 overtime loss to the Edmonton Oilers in their last contest on Tuesday.
Leading 2-1 late in the third period, the Blues saw their potential win over the Oilers start to slip away when Leon Draisaitl lit the lamp with just 2:14 left in regulation to force overtime.
In the extra frame, Connor Brown netted the game-winning goal for Edmonton.
“We got it going in the second period there a bit, had some chances,” St. Louis captain Brayden Schenn told NHL.com after the loss. “I think we were more direct and harder to play against in the third. At the end of the day, we had some chances to make it 3-1 and didn’t capitalize unfortunately and gave some good players time and space.”
Owning the 27th offense in the NHL with an average of 2.67 goals per game, crucial goals have been especially hard to come by for St. Louis during the team’s current 1-4-1 slump. Over the course of those six games, the Blues haven’t scored more than two goals once.
Jordan Kyrou leads St. Louis in goals (23) and points (44). Plucked from the Oilers via an offer sheet last summer, Dylan Holloway is second in scoring with 39 points (16 goals, 23 assists), while Robert Thomas is third with 38 points (12 goals, 26 assists).
“I think the reason that he’s excelled here is that he hasn’t changed his game,” Maurice said of Holloway, who scored two goals against the Panthers in last year’s Stanley Cup Final. “He’s a really strong skater. He’s got some good hands and can make a play.”
Owning a 10-6-1 record with a .903 save percentage, Joel Hofer will start for St. Louis.
In their previous battle this season, Aleksander Barkov lit the lamp with 19 seconds left in overtime to lift the Panthers to a 2-1 win over the Blues at Amerant Bank Arena on Dec. 20.
THEY SAID IT
“Even though we’re playing well, we’ve still got to win. That’s the goal tonight.” – Matthew Tkachuk
“Our 5-on-5 game defensively right now is very, very strong. We’re going to need that to continue to be our strength.” – Paul Maurice
FIVE CATS STATS
- The Panthers are converting on 29% of their power plays on the road.
- Matthew Tkachuk has dished out 18 assists in 19 career games vs. St. Louis.
- Aleksander Barkov and Sam Reinhart are each on four-game point streaks.
- Carter Verhaeghe has scored four goals over his last three games.
- Sam Reinhart is two points shy of his 600th NHL point.
PROJECTED LINEUP (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)
Forwards
Carter Verhaeghe – Aleksander Barkov – Sam Reinhart
Mackie Samoskevich – Sam Bennett – Matthew Tkachuk
Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Evan Rodrigues
A.J. Greer – Tomas Nosek – Jesper Boqvist
Defensemen
Gustav Forsling – Aaron Ekblad
Niko Mikkola – Dmitry Kulikov
Uvis Balinskis – Nate Schmidt
Goaltenders
Spencer Knight
Sergei Bobrovsky
RECENT TRANSACTIONS:
- Jan. 31: D Adam Boqvist claimed on waivers by New York Islanders
- Jan. 26: D Tobias Bjornfot loaned to Charlotte (AHL)
HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN
When: Thursday, Feb. 6 at 8 p.m. ET
Where: Enterprise Center – St. Louis, MO
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
Cats on Tap: Click Here
