FLA Live Florida Panthers Arena — Courtesy: Shutterstock — Image by: YES Market Media
SUNRISE, Fl. — After a 13-day pause due to the COVID-19 omicron outbreak, the NHL and Florida Panthers are ready to hop back on the ice.
The Cats have been practicing for the last three days and their team is basically fully recovered. With three home games over the next few days, the Panthers have the perfect opportunity to build up some points, but it could be challenging.
Eyes on the Opponent
The stretch of three games starts against the Rangers who have a nearly identical record as the Florida Panthers. New York has played strong, featuring one of the league’s top goalies and defensemen. The Panthers need a big effort from Sergei Bobrovsky, with special teams being a major contributing factor. In the second game of the back-to-back stretch, the Tampa Bay Lightning head east for another installment of the Florida hockey rivalry. The Panthers start 2022 early with a 1 p.m. game on New Year’s Day against Montreal.
Goalies
The Cats are currently carrying three goalies. Besides Bobrovsky, Spencer Knight has returned from some AHL playing time. In addition, there’s Jonas Johansen who the panthers picked up on waivers from Colorado. We will see how the coaching staff divides starts and practice time as well.
Captain Comeback
After missing nearly six weeks due to an upper and lower body injury, Aleksander Barkov is back. He has only played in 16 of the 29 total games but has points in all but two of them. The COVID-19 break helped as Barkov was able to take advantage of more healing time without missing additional games. We expect him to be raring to go.
Getting Back in the Game
The Panthers had such a strong start to the season that it was impossible for them to keep up the pace. Besides tying the NHL record by winning their first 10 home games, the Panthers surprisingly only lost four regulation games in their first 26 played. There were some remarkable comebacks to keep the Cats on top, but as of late, their playing abilities have slipped due to injuries. Now, the Florida Panthers have the chance to get back their consistent speed back and grab some wins from the beginning of their restart.
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Chris began his writing as a hobby while attending Florida Southern College in Lakeland, Florida. Today he and his wife live in the Orlando area with their three children and dog.
