The Florida Panthers, who have lost consecutive games for the first time since mid-December, look to snap back Saturday afternoon when they host the Edmonton Oilers.
Florida still leads the NHL in home wins (23-5-0), but the Panthers’ 6-3 defeat to Columbus on Thursday was stunning, coming on the heels of a 6-4 loss to Nashville two nights earlier. Preceding the two games, the Panthers had won nine home games in a row, dating back to Dec. 29.
“We need more energy,” Panthers winger Jonathan Huberdeau said after the loss to Columbus. “I thought we looked a bit tired.”
Huberdeau, though, set a franchise record on Thursday with at least one assist in nine consecutive games. He has two goals and 14 assists in that span. Through Thursday’s games, Huberdeau leads the NHL in points (74) and assists (56).
Edmonton’s Connor McDavid and teammate Leon Draisaitl are tied for second in the NHL in points with 73 each, as McDavid is second in assists (45) and Draisaitl is second in goals, with 35 (one behind Toronto’s Auston Matthews).
Panthers star goalie Sergei Bobrovsky, who was given the night off on Thursday, will likely get the start on Saturday. The last time Bobrovsky faced the Oilers, he shut them out 6-0 at Edmonton on Jan. 20.
Perhaps the presence of the Oilers and their marquee players will reinvigorate the Panthers.
“We’re going to face adversity at times throughout the year, and this is one of them,” Panthers defenseman MacKenzie Weegar said. “This will be a big one against the Oilers on Saturday.”
The Panthers, who lead the NHL in goals (4.1 per game), should provide a tough test for Oilers goalies Mikko Koskinen and Mike Smith.
Koskinen is 17-8-2 with a 3.13 goals-against average and an .899 save percentage.
Smith, who is 5-6-1 with a 3.65 GAA and an .891 SP, made just 18 saves on Wednesday in Edmonton’s 5-3 loss at the Tampa Bay Lightning.
“We had a chance to win that game — we gave up (just) 23 shots on net,” Oilers coach Jay Woodcroft said, including an empty-net goal. “Were there some breakdowns? Yes. But we were in a one-goal game in a tough environment against the two-time Stanley Cup champions.”
Indeed, Edmonton hit the post on a shot that could have tied the score just before Tampa Bay sealed the outcome with the empty-netter.
McDavid has scored at least one goal in six straight road games. He leads the Oilers with 28 goals for the season, including a team-high 21 at even strength.
Nugent-Hopkins, who played his 700th career game on Wednesday, is third on the Oilers with 37 points. He is second on the team in power-play assists with 16.
They will likely face a hot goalie in Bobrovsky, who is 26-5-3 with a 2.58 GAA and a .917 save percentage.
Besides Huberdeau, Florida’s offense is led by Aleksander Barkov, who has 23 goals despite missing 13 games earlier this season.
–Field Level Media