Panthers wrap up homestead against Seattle looking to climb above .500
Florida enters Saturday's matchup with the Kraken having won three of its past four games
The Florida Panthers will look to wrap up their season opening four-game homestand on Saturday by doing something they haven’t been able to yet this season.
Improve their record above .500.
The Panthers, who are an even 3-3-0 through their first six games of the 2023-24 season, are set to host the Seattle Kraken at Amerant Bank Arena.
After dropping their first two contests in Minnesota and Winnipeg, the Panthers have bounced back by winning three of their past four games, including two of three on their current homestand.
That includes Tuesday’s 3-1 win over the San Jose Sharks, a game Florida came out on top despite missing captain Sasha Barkov with an illness.
Barkov is expected to be back in his spot centering Florida’s top forward line on Saturday, but there are several other questions that remain about what the Panthers lineup will look like when the puck drops.
Center Sam Bennett, who has yet to play this season, and defenseman Dmitry Kulikov, one of several Panthers players under the weather this week, are both game-time decisions.
In goal for Florida will be Sergei Bobrovsky, who enters the game with a 2-3-0 record to go along with a 3.06 goals against average and .899 save percentage.
Here are the projected forward lines and defensive pairings for Saturday’s game against Seattle:
Evan Rodrigues – Sasha Barkov – Sam Reinhart
Carter Verhaeghe – Sam Bennett – Matthew Tkachuk
Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Nick Cousins
Ryan Lomberg – Kevin Stenlund – Steven Lorentz
Gus Forsling – Oliver Ekman-Larsson
Niko Mikkola – Dmitry Kulikov
Josh Mahura – Uvis Balinskis
If Bennett doesn’t play, look for Luostarinen to continue skating as the second line center and for Will Lockwood to draw into the lineup and skate on the third line.
Kulikov, also a game-time decision, would be replaced by Mike Reilly if he is unable to go.
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