The Florida Panthers will look to start their 2025-26 campaign with three straight wins when they wrap up their first homestand of the season on Saturday night. Coming off one-goal victories over the Chicago Blackhawks and Philadelphia Flyers, the Panthers will face their first playoff team from a season ago when they host the Ottawa Senators at Amerant Bank Arena. In recent years, meetings between the Panthers and Senators have often featured a plethora of penalty minutes and punches thrown. Perhaps things will be more subdued this time with Florida missing their emotional leader, Matthew Tkachuk. While he and his brother Brady, the captain in Ottawa, haven’t gone toe to toe, they are often the catalysts to much of the fun extracurriculars. The Senators arrive in Sunrise fresh off an exhilarating season opening victory. Ottawa overcame a pair of two-goal deficits while playing the Tampa Bay Lightning in Amalie Arena, clawing back on the Bolts and earning a 5-4 statement win. Now the Sens will face a Panthers squad looking to complete a perfect three-game homestand. Florida has picked up one-goal victories over the Chicago Blackhawks and Philadelphia Flyers over the past several days, but will now face what should be their toughest test of the young season in Ottawa. The Panthers will be forced to utilize a different lineup than what they’ve deployed during their first two outings after defenseman Dmitry Kuilkov suffered an upper-body injury during Thursday’s win over Philly. Kulikov has since been placed on IR by Florida, according to the team’s roster on the NHL Media site, which means Uvis Balinskis will see his first action of the season. Balinskis played 76 games for the Cats last season, finishing with four goals and 18 points while earning the trust of his coaching staff with steady defensive play. Here are the Panthers projected lines and pairings for Saturday’s showdown with the Sens: 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 Gus Forsling – Aaron Ekblad Niko Mikkola – Seth Jones Uvis Balinskis – Jeff Petry LATEST STORIES FROM THE HOCKEY NEWS - FLORIDA The Hockey Show: Discussing big contract extensions, exciting opening week with John Buccigross [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/latest-news/the-hockey-show-discussing-big-contract-extensions-exciting-opening-week-with-john-buccigross] Panthers' Uvis Balinskis Could Enter Lineup With No Update On Dmitry Kulikov [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/latest-news/panthers-uvis-balinskis-could-enter-lineup-with-no-update-on-dmitry-kulikov] Three takeaways: Blueline steps up after injury, Panthers win another tight game [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/latest-news/three-takeaways-blueline-steps-up-after-injury-panthers-win-another-tight-game] No update on Dmitry Kulikov after upper-body injury forces him out of Florida's win over Philly [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/latest-news/no-update-on-dmitry-kulikov-after-upper-body-injury-forces-him-out-of-florida-s-win-over-philly] Marchand, Lundell score as Panthers clip Flyers 2-1 [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/game-day/marchand-lundell-score-as-panthers-clip-flyers-2-1] Photo caption: Feb 20, 2024; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky (72) punches Ottawa Senators left wing Brady Tkachuk (7) during the third period at Amerant Bank Arena. (Jim Rassol-Imagn Images)
