FORT LAUDERDALE – It’s that time of year.
Get the coffee ready for some late-night hockey.
Sitting in first place in the Atlantic Division with a 17-9-2 record – and with points in six straight games (5-0-1) after Saturday’s 3-1 win over the San Jose Sharks -- the Florida Panthers will now head west for a five-game road trip.
With visits to Seattle, Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton and Minnesota, the Panthers will have no shortage of playoff-level opponents.
“I think the way it sits today, Seattle's a point or two out, and then the other four [teams] are in, so a heavy schedule with quality of opponent,” said head coach Paul Maurice following Monday’s practice at Baptist Health IcePlex.
Not afraid to play in away barns, the Panthers have been one of the best road teams in the NHL.
Since the 2023-24 season, the team has a .676 winning percentage on the road, going 34-15-5.
In those games, the Panthers have outscored opponents 190-139, are 27.2% on the power play, and 86.5% on the penalty kill.
Going toe-to-toe with some heavy hitters, the Panthers will try to keep their road success clicking and return to South Florida during the holidays with some more points in their back pocket.
“It's a tough one,” said Carter Verhaeghe on the upcoming trip. “It's going be a lot of fun being around the guys and going on the road is always a lot of fun, but it definitely takes a toll on you. Our recovery team here is so good, they take good care of us and make sure that we're well rested and give us all the stuff to get prepared for the next game.”
VISITING OLD FRIENDS
The trips to Seattle and Calgary will come with a little more sparkle this year.
For the first time, the team will play against former Panthers Brandon Montour and Josh Mahura in Seattle, and Ryan Lomberg in Calgary.
“We obviously miss those guys a ton,” said Verhaeghe. “All those guys were such good guys and kept the room so light and great friends. It's going to be fun playing against them, a little weird seeing them in different colors, but anytime we can reconnect and see each other and catch up on things, it's going to be a lot of fun.”
Montour skated in 239 games with the Panthers, registering 147 points (37 goals, 110 assists).
Mahura appeared in 112 games, recording 25 points (four goals, 21 assists).
Lomberg played in 246 games, notching 49 points (28 goals, 21 assists) and 535 hits.
Of course, all three players also have their names etched into the Stanley Cup.
JESPER BOQVIST BRINGING FIRE
No matter where he’s lined up, Jesper Boqvist has fit right in.
Playing on the second line right now with Sam Bennett and Matthew Tkachuk, the 26-year-old forward has provided a little bit of everything while playing up and down in the lineup.
“He's (one of the) leaders on our team in hits and he’s not the biggest guy,” said Maurice. “He's got a lot of fire in this game.”
In addition to his 65 hits, the first-year Panther has tallied nine points (four goals, five assists) and 11 blocked shots in 28 games.
“It's a lot of fun, for sure,” Boqvist said of playing with Bennett and Tkachuk. “I think I said it before, not trying to change too much and try to read off them, and do what I can do to bring to the game. It's been a lot of fun.”
While he’s proven he can play with several different centers, Maurice said that he wants to continue to see what Boqvist can do alongside Bennett and Tkachuk.
MONDAY’S PRACTICE LINES
Forwards
Carter Verhaeghe – Aleksander Barkov – Sam Reinhart
Jesper Boqvist – Sam Bennett – Matthew Tkachuk
Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Evan Rodrigues
A.J. Greer – Tomas Nosek – Mackie Samoskevich
Jonah Gadjovich
Defensemen
Gustav Forsling – Aaron Ekblad
Niko Mikkola – Nate Schmidt
Dmitry Kulikov – Uvis Balinskis
Adam Boqvist
Goaltenders
Sergei Bobrovsky
Spencer Knight
