Florida Panthers (9GP 5-3-1 11P) vs Boston Bruins (8GP 4-3-1 9P)
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- WHEN: 7:30 p.m. ET – LBC GameThread right here at 7ish
- WHERE: BB&T Center – Miami Ft. Lauderdale Sunrise, FL; doors open at 6:00
- TICKETS: Single Game via the club; Hallo-Weekend Ticket Specials right here!
- ON THE TUBE: FOX Sports Florida, NESN
- ON THE DIAL: 560 WQAM, 640 WMEN, 107.9 WAXE, 97.7 The Wave, Panthers Official App (iOS, Android)
- SOCIALLY SPEAKING: #FlaPanthers, #NHLBruins, #BOSvsFLA & give us a follow @LitterBoxCats and toss us a “Like” at the LBC FaceBook page
- ENEMY INTEL: Stanley Cup of Chowder
- FLA IN SEASON SERIES: Game 1 of 4 (0-0)
- ALL-TIME vs BOS: 34W-37L-6T 2OTL 4SOL 208GF 237GA
- ALL-TIME vs BOS at FLA: 16W-17L-2T 1OTL 4SOL 114GF 116GA
- LAST FIVE vs BOS: 2-2-1 11GF 13GA
- PROJECTED STARTERS: Luongo (3-3-1 .939/2.01 0SO), Rask (2-3-1 .874/3.67 1SO)
- JAGR WATCH: All-time vs BOS (reg season): 78GP 33G-65A 98P 6GW
- PLAYER STATS: Florida / Boston
- NOTES: RW Logan Shaw was recalled from AHL Portland Thursday while D Dylan Olsen (no appearances) was sent the other way; Shaw has yet to see NHL regular season action and will likely slot in over the next 36 hours for his debut…Jaromir Jagr (lower body) remains day-to-day as of Friday morning; if pressed for a guess as to his return I’d say tomorrow vs Washington, but again, just a guess (UPDATE: he will not play tonight)…G Roberto Luongo suffered from dehydration in the latter portion of Tuesday’s victory over Colorado; coach Gallant says he’s fine; only question is in which game of the weekend set he will play (UPDATE 2: Lou gets the start vs BOS). His lifetime numbers vs Boston (14-13-1 2.40/.928 4SO) are a wee tad happier than backup Al Montoya’s (1-1 3.27/.884 11GA 0SO), despite a fine run to begin the year…Former Cat Big Jimmy Hayes (8GP 3-5 8P) faces the Panthers for the first time since being dealt to the Broons for Reilly Smith (9GP 4-3 7P)…Win or lose this evening, Florida gets little rest as the Capitals are in town Saturday.
- QUOTED: “My first year in Boston, it seemed we always cleaned up against the Panthers. Last year was definitely different. They were a lot stingier on defense, only let in one or two goals. We knew every game was going to be hard. We were both in for a dogfight.” – Smith via the Miami Herald /
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Last game for the Cats: 4-1 home win over Colorado on Tuesday. Past five: 2-2-1 16GF 13GA (streak: 2W)
Last game for the Broons: 6-0 pasting of the ‘Yotes in Bahhhston on Tuesday. Past five: 4-0-1 26GF 13GA (streak: 2W)
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NHL.com Preview:
The Boston Bruins and Florida Panthers split four games last season, with the home team winning each game. In their most recent game April 9 at BB&T Center, Jonathan Huberdeau scored the first of three Panthers goals in the third period en route to a 4-2 victory. Panthers forward Jussi Jokinen had three points in the four games. Bruins center Patrice Bergeron scored three goals.
Thursday Post-Practice Video:
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Friday in the Atlantic Division (Standings / Panthers Playoff Chances):
- Philadelphia (4-3-2 10P) at BUFFALO (3-7 6P), 7:00
- TORONTO (1-5-2 4P) at NY Rangers (6-2-2 14P), 7:00
- OTTAWA (4-3-2 10P) at DETROIT (4-4-1 9P), 7:30
- MONTREAL (9-2 18P) at Calgary (2-7-1 5P), 9:00
- Idle: TAMPA BAY (5-4-2 12P)/
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Panthers, SoFla Media & Loyal Opposition on the Tweets
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