Panthers 2021 first-round pick Mackie Samoskevich will make NHL debut
Opening Night is finally upon us.
It may feel like it's been a long time since the Florida Panthers have played a meaningful hockey game, but really, has it been?
Florida's incredible run to the Stanley Cup Final extended their season by two months, so the offseason was actually on the short side.
Still, it's great to be back.
The Panthers enter the 2023-24 season as the defending Eastern Conference Champions and are poised to not only repeat the feat, but finish the job this time and take home the Stanley Cup.
If Florida is going to pull off such an amazing accomplishment, they're going to have to overcome some adversity to do it.
Right off the bat, the Cats will be without defensemen Aaron Ekblad and Brandon Montour. Both are recovering from offseason shoulder surgery and aren't expected back until mid-December.
Panthers General Manager Bill Zito was busy during the summer and brought in several blueliners to beef up Florida's back line while Ekblad and Montour recover.
Entering Game No. 1 against the Minnesota Wild, here are the Panthers projected forward lines and defensive pairings based off their morning skate:
Carter Verhaeghe – Sasha Barkov – Evan Rodrigues
Nick Cousins – Eetu Luostarinen – Matthew Tkachuk
Mackie Samoskevich – Anton Lundell – Sam Reinhart
Ryan Lomberg – Kevin Stenlund – Steven Lorenz
Gus Forsling – Oliver Ekman-Larsson
Niko Mikkola – Dmitry Kulikov
Josh Mahura – Uvis Balinskis
Sergei Bobrovsky
Anthony Stolarz
For coverage of Florida's Opening Night opponent, visit THN.com/Minnesota.
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