The Florida Panthers keep running into the same problem in the Atlantic Division: nobody is handing them anything.
Monday’s 5-3 loss to the Detroit Red Wings was the latest reminder that the division is loaded from top to bottom. Every Atlantic team has a winning percentage above .500, and Florida has already gone 0-3 against divisional opponents this season.
“We’re going to get everybody’s best,’’ Paul Maurice said Monday. “All the teams in the Atlantic are good teams.
When you get their best you have to match it. I think that was a really strong game by Detroit.
I wasn’t in love with ours.”
That’s a sharp turn from the recent past, when the Panthers had Detroit’s number. From 2019-20 through last season, Florida went 23-5-1 against the Red Wings, and Sergei Bobrovsky posted a 16-3-1 record in those games.
The Atlantic has changed around them, too. Buffalo ended a 14-year playoff drought last season.
Ottawa has made the postseason in each of the past two years after seven straight misses. Montreal has reached the playoffs in the last two seasons as well, then won two rounds before falling to the eventual Cup-winning Hurricanes in the conference finals.
Boston is next on the Panthers’ divisional list Sunday, and the Bruins are sitting first in the Atlantic with 23 points. Tampa Bay is still dangerous despite last season’s seven-game playoff loss to Montreal. Toronto, after missing the playoffs for the first time in nine years, has added Kirill Marchenko and No. 1 draft pick Gavin McKenna to a core that already includes Auston Matthews and William Nylander.
And then there’s Bobrovsky, who is now part of that mix as well.
The division is packed with star power on both ends of the age spectrum. Detroit can still lean on Alex DeBrincat and Viktor Arvidsson even with Dylan Larkin out.
Ottawa’s Brady Tkachuk is missing, but Tim Stǔtzle and Drake Batherson have stepped forward, with Shane Pinto not far behind. Buffalo has Tage Thompson, plus a defense led by Owen Power and Rasmus Dahlin.
Montreal’s Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield keep defenses busy, and Lane Hutson gives them a strong two-way presence on the back end. Boston still has David Pastrnak, who has been nearly a point-a-game player against Florida over his career.
Tampa Bay still has Nikita Kucherov and Andrei Vasilevskiy.
“We know it’s going to be tough,’’ Sam Bennett said. “We know we need to be better against divisional teams and that’s obviously going to be a focus for us. We’ll be aware of that for sure.”
For now, the Panthers turn to Chicago tonight, and that matchup comes with its own challenges. Florida edged the Blackhawks in their first meeting this season. Chicago has missed the playoffs for six straight years and sits near the bottom of the league, but Connor Bedard and a resurgent Patrick Kane still give them punch up front, and Spencer Knight is in goal.
The Blackhawks have dropped six of their last seven, but the Panthers know better than to treat anyone like an easy night.
CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS at FLORIDA PANTHERS
When: Wednesday, 7:30 p.m. - Hometown Remix Game No. 2
Where: Amerant Bank Arena, Sunrise
National TV: TNT/truTV
National Streaming: HBO Max
Radio: WQAM; WBZT 1230-AM (Palm Beach); WCTH 100.3-FM (Florida Keys); SiriusXM. Panthers Radio Streaming: SiriusXM, NHL/Panthers App
Last Season: Panthers won 2-0
All-time Regular Season Series: Blackhawks lead 30-23-4, 3 ties
Up Next for the Panthers: Saturday at Washington Capitals, 12:30 p.m.
In Other News...
Panthers Fans Are Caught In The NHLs Weirdest Remix Backlash
The NHLs Hometown Remix jersey rollout was supposed to be a fresh look for the league, but it also exposed one of those odd in-season wrinkles that only hockey can produce. Around the league, teams have been introducing the new uniforms while juggling the realities of changing ice surfaces, and for some clubs the solution has been a digital center-ice logo rather than a fresh paint job.
For Panthers fans, the result was a split-screen kind of experience, with the in-arena view not matching what television viewers were seeing. Other teams wearing the new collection managed to avoid that setup, which only added to the sense that this was a patchwork rollout rather than a seamless league-wide update. It is a small detail on paper, but for a fan base that notices every visual cue, it made the debut feel a little stranger than intended. [Read more 🡒]
Panthers Get A Notable Lineup Twist For Markstroms Return
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Jacob Markstroms return in goal gives Florida another important layer of stability as it tries to steady itself. His presence changes the feel of the night in a hurry, and the Panthers will be watching closely to see how the lineup adjustment and the goaltending reset work together against Chicago. [Read more 🡒]
Matthew Tkachuk Just Stirred Up Bradys Ottawa Return Again
Matthew Tkachuk has a way of keeping his brother Bradys Ottawa return in the conversation, even months after the game itself. The Florida Panthers forward took issue with the Senators announced sellout for Bradys visit to Canadian Tire Centre in October, suggesting the building looked and sounded closer to a loud 15,000 than the listed 17,010.
Brady Tkachuk had already dealt with the emotional side of the night, hearing boos from Senators fans while trying to stay locked in on the game. He said he was focused on playing and not the chants, and the night still included an opening goal for him before Ottawa pulled away for a 5-1 win. [Read more 🡒]