Panthers wrap up home preseason schedule against rival Tampa Bay
Florida is facing the Lightning for the second of three preseason meetings
A packed preseason schedule for the Florida Panthers continues Monday night in Sunrise.
Florida will play their fourth game in six nights when they host the Tampa Bay Lightning at Amerant Bank Arena.
This will be the final preseason game played in South Florida, as afterward the Cats will hit the road for games in Tampa and Quebec City on Wednesday and Saturday, respectively.
So far, Florida holds a 3-2-0 record following Saturday’s 5-4 overtime comeback victory over the Carolina Hurricanes.
The Panthers and Lightning met last week in Orlando, with the Bolts coming out on top of a bonkers 8-7 affair that saw nine goals scored during the third period.
So far during camp, the main storylines surrounding the Panthers have been the few roster battles among playing fighting to stick around for Opening Night.
The upper-body injury suffered by Tomas Nosek that could potentially keep him out of the lineup into the regular season has created an opening on Florida’s fourth line.
Several players are vying for the spot, with Patrick Giles receiving much of the attention so far as he’s been the guy skating on what would seemingly be the Cats fourth line.
It would make sense that Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice would want to see at least one or two other options during the preseason before settling on a decision, and with three exhibition games coming up this week, there are several opportunities to sample different line combinations.
Outside of the fourth line, there is also the question of who will play right wing on Anton Lundell's line, and how the defensive pairings will ultimately shake out.
Aside from two goaltenders last week, Florida has yet to cut any players from its training camp roster.
With the preseason schedule finally calming down and nearing its end, it's likely that moves are coming soon.
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