FLORIDA PANTHERS NOTES:
PANTHERS vs. LIGHTNING
ALL-TIME vs. TBL: 75-50-10-19
ALL-TIME HOME vs. TBL: 44-17-4-11
2022-23 vs. TBL: 2-1-1
CATS STATS
– Aleksander Barkov has amassed 33 points (7-26-33) over 31 career games vs. Tampa Bay. – Carter Verhaeghe has registered 11 points (5-6-11) across 12 career regular season matchups against the Lightning. – Head Coach Paul Maurice will appear in his 1,800th game behind the bench tonight vs. Tampa Bay.
CATS AND BOLTS
The Panthers travel across the state for their first matchup against the Tampa Bay Lightning of the 2023-24 campaign. Last season, the Cats collected five of a possible eight points, posting a 2-1-1 record against the Bolts. On Feb. 6, Matthew Tkachuk matched a career-high with a five-point outing (2-3-5). Carter Verhaeghe posted four points (2-2-4), while Sam Bennett collected three (1-2-3) en route to a 7-1 victory at home. Sergei Bobrovsky appeared in net for all four contests, posting a .932 save percentage and a 2.24 goals against average. The last time the two teams met in Tampa Bay on Feb. 28, 2023, Florida ended Tampa Bay’s 16 game home point streak with a 4-1 victory. Anton Lundell (1-0-1) and Eetu Luostarinen (1-1-2) found themselves on the score sheet with a first period goal each.
SHORTHANDED SHUTDOWN
The Panthers have not allowed a power-play goal against in each of their past four games (10-10), surrendering just one PPGA over their past eight contests since Dec. 8. Over that span, Florida’s 94.7% penalty kill success rate ranks third among NHL teams. Since Nov. 20, Florida’s 92.2% rate leads all NHL teams.
PANTHERS AT THE ‘PLEX
On Friday, Dec. 22, the Panthers held a first-look practice at the Baptist Health IcePlex at FTL War Memorial, marking the club’s first official practice at their new facility in downtown Fort Lauderdale. With the South Florida community remaining at the heart of this project, the Baptist Health IcePlex will include a dedicated public community rink offering a robust variety of youth and adult hockey programs, public skating, figure skating and more for community members of all ages. The completed Fort Lauderdale War Memorial Auditorium will transform the city’s largest park into a vibrant community recreation and entertainment destination and serve as an integral part of the city’s bright future for decades to come
TAMPA BAY LIGHTNIING NOTES:
TONIGHT’S MATCHUP
The Lightning and Panthers are playing the first of three matchups this season and the first of two meetings at AMALIE Arena…Tampa Bay posted a 2-2-0 record vs. FLA last season, recording one win at home and one win on the road…Nikita Kucherov (1-4—5) and Brayden Point (4-1—5) were tied for the Bolts team lead in points vs. FLA last season with Point leading the way in goals and Kucherov pacing the team in assists…Point is riding an eightgame point streak vs. FLA (8-2—10) and has scored a goal in seven of those eight contests…Point has scored a goal in five consecutive home games vs. FLA (5-1—6)…Kucherov is riding a six-game point streak vs. FLA (4-9—13) and has recorded two or more points in seven of his last 12 contests vs. FLA (9-15—24)…Kucherov has points in 10 of his last 11 home games vs. FLA (7-9—16)…Steven Stamkos has recorded more career goals and points vs. FLA than he has against any other NHL franchise (39-38—77, 64 GP)…Stamkos has found the scoresheet in five of his last six contests vs. FLA (5-4—9)…Conor Sheary has posted 11 points over his last 14 games vs. FLA (3-8—11)…Tyler Motte has found the scoresheet in six of his nine career contests vs. FLA (2-4—6)…Victor Hedman has recorded 10 points over his last 10 games vs. FLA (2-8—10) and has 11 points over the last 11 meetings at AMALIE Arena (4-7— 11)…Mikhail Sergachev has pointed in three of his last four contests vs. FLA (1-2—3)…In his 14 career home games vs. FLA, Andrei Vasilevskiy is 10-4-0 with a .928 save percentage, 2.51 goals against average and one assist…Over the last 20 meetings between Tampa Bay and FLA, the winning team has scored four or more goals 16 times…The Bolts are 6-4-0 in their last 10 homes games vs. FLA and 4-6-0 in the last 10 meetings overall…The Lightning are 69-62-13 with 10 ties all-time vs. FLA, including a home record of 41-25-6 with six ties…Stamkos (39-38—77) holds the Tampa Bay franchise records for career goals and points vs. FLA, while Vincent Lecavalier (26-42—68) leads the way in assists
RECENT TRANSACTIONS
DATE PLAYER MOVE
December 24, 2023 Sean Day Re-assigned to AHL Syracuse
INJURIES
PLAYER INJURY STATUS GAMES MISSED
Mikhail Sergachev Lower-Body Day-to-Day 2
2023-24 Total Man Games Lost: 55
