The Florida Panthers are headed into the final stop of their four-game road trip tonight in Winnipeg, where they’ll meet a Jets team that has spent the last stretch searching for answers. Florida is 6-4-2, while Winnipeg sits at 4-4-3 heading into the matchup at Canada Life Centre in the capital of chilly Manitoba.
The Panthers arrive with some momentum after snapping out of a rough patch in Ottawa and Pittsburgh. On Sunday afternoon, they backed up that bounce with a hard-earned 3-2 win over the Chicago Blackhawks.
Lars Eller beat Spencer Knight with 2:23 left in regulation to seal it, but Florida had already gotten goals from Sandis Vilmanis, who scored his first of the season, and Matthew Tkachuk, who buried a power-play chance. Akira Schmid handled 19 of 21 shots, and Seth Jones stood out in his first game at United Center since the March 1, 2025 trade that sent him to the Panthers.
Jones also picked up the primary assist on Tkachuk’s goal.
Winnipeg, meanwhile, is still trying to steady itself without superstar goaltender Connor Hellebuyck. The Jets are on a five-game winless skid at 0-3-2, and Sunday’s 2-1 loss to the Montreal Canadiens in the Heritage Classic added another frustrating result.
Stuart Skinner made 19 saves in that one, while Isak Rosen’s first goal of the season was Winnipeg’s lone tally in the outdoor game. Kyle Connor continues to pace the Jets offensively, leading the club with nine goals and 12 points.
Elsewhere around the league, Boston visits Carolina at 8 p.m. on ESPN. Montreal is at St. Louis at 8 p.m., Ottawa visits Vegas at 10 p.m., and Buffalo plays at San Jose at 10:30 p.m.
In Other News...
Panthers Catch Winnipeg At A Desperate Time In This Road Test
Florida heads into Winnipeg coming off a win over the Blackhawks, and the timing could hardly be better for a road test against a Jets team trying to steady itself. The matchup arrives in the middle of a difficult stretch for Winnipeg, which has been stuck in a five-game skid, and each of those losses has come by a single goal. For the Panthers, it is the kind of night where recent form and a little road confidence can matter.
The Jets have also had trouble finding enough offense to turn close games their way, sitting near the bottom of the league in goals per game while several key players have not delivered at the level the club needs. Even with the standings still taking shape, this is the sort of opponent Florida can pressure if it keeps the pace up early and avoids letting a desperate team hang around too long. [Read more 🡒]