Florida Panthers defenseman Gus Forsling speaks after a team practice on March 22 The Florida Panthers lost a heartbreaker in a shootout Saturday night to the New York Rangers to make it a now 4 game losing streak for the Cats. Despite the loss, the Panthers played a much better game Saturday and looked like they were going to pick up the win when Carter Verhaeghe scored the go-ahead goal for the Panthers with just 4:08 remaining in the game. However Ranger star Artemi Panarin answered less than a minute later to tie the game and the Panthers would go on to lose in a shootout. [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0YgrCGxZ9O8[/embed] The Panthers look to put an end to this losing skid Sunday as they take on the Flyers. It’s likely Florida Captain Sasha Barkov will miss his third game in a row, and his absence is noticeably missed. The Flyers are coming off a win over the Atlantic division leading Boston Bruins on Saturday. Philly has had far from a quiet week of its own. Philadelphia named Sean Couturier captain on February 14th, and he might have set the NHL record for the fastest captain to be healthy scratched. Flyers Coach John Tortorella would not elaborate on his reasons why, but Couturier was scratched from this lineup twice this week, before returning to the lineup Saturday. Torts’ mind games seem to have paid off however, as the Flyers picked up points in all 3 games including a win over the Bruins on Saturday, since his bold decision to sit Couturier down. The Panthers played a much better game Saturday and were unfortunate to not come out it with two points. They really hope to get back to their winning ways on Sunday, as they are letting their games in hand on the Bruins go to waste. With Barkov likely out of lineup, here are the projected lines and pairings for the Panthers battle with a tough Flyers team on Sunday. Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Sam Reinhart Carter Verhaeghe – Sam Bennett – Matthew Tkachuk Evan Rodrigues – Kevin Stenlund – Vladimir Tarasenko Nick Cousins – Steven Lorentz – Kyle Okposo Gus Forsling – Oliver Ekman-Larsson Niko Mikkola – Brandon Montour Josh Mahura – Uvis Balinskis LATEST STORIES FROM THE HOCKEY NEWS - FLORIDA Shorthanded Panthers put up strong effort, lose in shootout to Rangers [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/game-day/shorthanded-panthers-put-up-strong-effort-lose-in-shootout-to-rangers] Panthers prospect Spencer Knight shines in shutout victory for Charlotte [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/latest-news/panthers-prospect-spencer-knight-shines-in-shutout-victory-for-charlotte] Sasha Barkov not expected to play as Panthers visit Metro-leading Rangers [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/game-day/sasha-barkov-not-expected-to-play-as-panthers-visit-metro-leading-rangers] The Hockey Show: John Buccigross talks college puck and NHL playoffs [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/latest-news/the-hockey-show-john-buccigross-talks-college-puck-and-nhl-playoffs] Florida Panthers get national TV treatment as they take on the New York Rangers in the ABC game of the week on Saturday [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/latest-news/florida-panthers-get-national-tv-treatment-as-they-take-on-the-new-york-rangers-in-the-abc-game-of-the-week-on-saturday]
