Panthers Return Home For Big Matchup With Bruins
Follow CBSMIAMI.COM: Facebook | Twitter
SUNRISE (CBSMiami/SportsDirect) – As the NHL enters the final weeks of the regular season, teams are busy jostling for playoff positioning.
The Florida Panthers have lost their hold of first place in the Atlantic Division and can drop another spot if they cannot post a victory over the visiting Boston Bruins on Monday.
The Panthers come home after a 1-3-1 road trip and have managed just five wins in their last 14 games while third-place Boston trails them by one point.
Florida dropped a 5-1 decision at Arizona on Saturday, prompting coach Gerard Gallant to tell reporters: "We should have played better. We didn't have our 60-minute team that it takes to win in this league, and it cost us on this trip."
Jaromir Jagr will attempt to snap the tie with Gordie Howe (1,850) for third place on the all-time scoring list against his former team, which has recorded a pair of 3-1 victories over the Panthers this season.
The Bruins are 2-0-1 in their last three overall after a 2-1 overtime loss to league-best Washington on Saturday and visit Atlantic-leading Tampa Bay on Tuesday.
Boston center Patrice Bergeron looks to extend his three-game goal-scoring streak.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, NESN (Boston), FSN Florida
ABOUT THE BRUINS (36-23-7): Bergeron leads the team in scoring (57 points) and has a chance to top his career-best campaign (73) in 2005-06 while Brad Marchand is having his top season with 33 goals.
Impending free agent Loui Eriksson is one short of his first 50-point season since 2011-12 with Dallas and fellow right wing Lee Stempniak has notched three assists in his first three games since being acquired from New Jersey at the trade deadline.
Tuukka Rask is 14-2-1 with a 1.28 goals-against average and .955 save percentage in 17 career games against Florida.
ABOUT THE PANTHERS (36-21-8): Three players acquired before the trade deadline - Teddy Purcell, Jiri Hudler and defenseman Jakub Kindl - finally were in the lineup at the same time Saturday but finished a combined minus-9.
Florida could get a boost if talented forward Jonathan Huberdeau (40 points) can return from a concussion that has cost him six games thus far.
Veteran Jussi Jokinen is riding a seven-game assist streak and 20-year-old center Aleksander Barkov has contributed six points in his last six contests.
OVERTIME
- Boston D Kevan Miller suffered an apparent upper-body injury after being hit by Alex Ovechkin on Saturday and his status is uncertain.
- Florida G Roberto Luongo, who was rested in the loss to Arizona on Saturday, is 14-15-1 with a solid .927 save percentage versus Boston in his career.
- The Bruins have dropped to eighth in the league on the power play (21.1 percent) after going 2-for-21 over their last seven games.
(TM and © Copyright 2016 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2016 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Sports Direct Inc. contributed to this report.)
