SUNRISE, Fla. – The Florida Panthers will continue their season-opening homestand with a matchup against the Philadelphia Flyers at Amerant Bank Arena on Thursday at 7 p.m. ET.
“One down, 81 to go,” forward A.J. Greer said. “It’s a good feeling.”
After raising their second straight Stanley Cup banner, the defending-champion Panthers picked up right where they left off with a 3-2 win over the Chicago Blackhawks on Tuesday.
With multiple players stepping up in the absence of injured stars Aleksander Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk, Greer, Jesper Boqvist and Carter Verhaeghe all lit the lamp in the win, while Mackie Samoskevich had two assists and Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 17 of 19 shots.
Fired up by the pregame ceremony, Florida led 17-3 in shots in the first period.
“Obviously, the ceremony beforehand was awesome,” Greer said. “It gets you going. It’s easy. I think we fully appreciated that moment with the fans and with our teammates. … We didn’t get too much preseason action as far as 5-on-5 play, so being able to get right to it, it wasn’t perfect, but overall, I thought to come out of it with a win in the first one [was big].”
Not expected to make any lineup changes, the Panthers will get their second straight look at their new top line of Sam Bennett, Brad Marchand and Verhaeghe against Philadelphia.
Despite only having one practice together, the trio appeared dominant for much of the game against the Blackhawks, finishing with a 25-6 edge in shot attempts at 5-on-5, per NaturalStatTrick.com.
As time goes on, the Panthers have high hopes for the line.
“Style of game-wise, Bennett-Tkachuk and Bennett-Marchand are fairly similar,” head coach Paul Maurice said. “They were our most-dynamic offensive line [against Chiago], although they didn’t score. What we’ll be watching tonight is … that they’re not looking for more now. That’s as dominant offensively as you need to be. Some nights it goes in, some nights it doesn’t.”
Dropping the puck for the first time this season, the Flyers are hoping to show signs of improvement after finishing last in the Metropolitan Division with 76 points in 2024-25.
After ranking 24th in the NHL on offense last season with an average of 2.83 goals per game, the Flyers went out and acquired forward Trevor Zegras from the Anaheim Ducks in June.
Once considered a rising star in the NHL after he notched 65 points (23G, 42) in 81 games in 2022-23, the former first-round pick’s production has dipped drastically over the past two seasons. Over his last 88 games, the 24-year-old has posted only 47 points (18G, 29 A).
With a change of scenery, the Flyers hope he’ll rediscover his game.
In terms of the top returning talent on offense, Travis Konecny led Philadelphia in assists (52) and points (76) last season, while rookie Matvei Michkov burst onto the scene to the tune of a team-high 26 goals and 63 points, which placed him second behind on Konecny.
Heading into his 14th season, Sean Couturier logged 45 points (15G, 30A) in 2024-25.
Between the pipes, the Flyers will likely lead with Samuel Ersson, who went 22-17-5 with a 3.14 goals-against average and .883 save percentage over 47 appearances last season.
Signed to a two-year contract in the summer, Dan Vladar is also an option in net.
“There are a handful of teams where I haven’t fully understood the game yet,” Maurice said of game planning for Philadelphia. “You watch it over. Quick break, broken-play quickness is how they’ve kind of had our number at times in the last few years. It’s a little bit like early-season hockey in what they’re good at, their danger, is that. You have to be sharp.”
THEY SAID IT
“We‘ve got one under our belt. Now, it’s time to go right from the puck drop.” – A.J. Greer
“It feels really good [to win on Opening Night]. It feels really good to get in front of the fans again. I thought the building was buzzing. It gave us energy, for sure, at the start and throughout the game.” – Mackie Samoskevich
“[Depth] is why our team is so good. We rely on everybody. Mackie has been unbelievable from the second he came to camp. It’s great to see that we can continue to rely on our depth throughout the entire year and that’s how I view success.” – Brad Marchand
FIVE CATS STATS
- Sam Reinhart tallied six points (3G, 3A) in three games against the Flyers in 2024-25.
- Brad Marchand has produced 52 points (20G, 32A) in 54 career games vs. Philadelphia.
- Anton Lundell won a team-high 14 faceoffs during Tuesday’s win over Chicago.
- Florida led the NHL with an average of 33.9 shots on goal per game at home in 2024-25.
- A.J. Greer racked up a team-high five hits during Tuesday’s win over Chicago.
PROJECTED LINEUP (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)
Forwards
Carter Verhaeghe – Sam Bennett – Brad Marchand
Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Sam Reinhart
Mackie Samoskevich – Evan Rodrigues – Jesper Boqvist
A.J. Greer – Luke Kunin – Jonah Gadjovich
Defensemen
Gustav Forsling – Aaron Ekblad
Niko Mikkola – Seth Jones
Dmitry Kulikov – Jeff Petry
Goaltenders
Sergei Bobrovsky
Daniil Tarasov
RECENT TRANSACTIONS
- Oct. 7: Forward Noah Gregor signed to a one-year, two-way contract
- Oct. 6: Forward Jack Studnicka loaned to Charlotte Checkers (AHL)
- Oct. 5: Defenseman Tobias Bjornfot loaned to Charlotte Checkers (AHL)
- Oct. 3: Forward Cole Schwindt claimed off waivers from Vegas Golden Knights
HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN
When: Thursday, October 9 at 7 p.m. ET
Where: Amerant Bank Arena – Sunrise, FL
TV: WSFL, WHDT, WFTX, PanthersPlus.TV
Radio: 104.3 WQAM-FM/560 WQAM-AM (Dade/Broward 100.3 WCTH (Florida Keys); 101.7 WCZR (Treasure Coast); Panthers App; NHL App; SiriusXM 222 / App & Streaming 931
Tickets: Click Here
