Tonight, the Panthers will host the Philadelphia Flyers at BB&T Center in Sunrise, FL. It’s the second of of three meetings between the two clubs this season. Florida dropped the first one, 2-1 on October 8th on the road, and the series will conclude back in the Sunshine State on April 8th. The Panthers are coming off a moderately successful road trip, going 2-2-1 against the Western Conference. Tonight marks the first game of a five-game homestand. They’ll go on to host the New York Rangers on Wednesday, the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday, the Ottawa Senators on December 3rd, and the Winnipeg Jets on December 5th.
The Flyers have just finished a three-game homestand, earning six points. They defeated the Senators, 5-2 on Tuesday, the Buffalo Sabres 4-1 on Thursday, and the New York Islanders, 5-2 on Saturday. They’ll travel to Tampa Bay to take on the Bolts on Wednesday.
The Panthers and Flyers last faced off on October 8th, as the 0-3 Flyers were trying to earn their first points of the season against the visiting 1-1 Panthers. Brayden Schenn (2) and Braydon Coburn (1) each lit the lamp in the first period for the Flyers against Tim Thomas, who stopped only three shots before getting removed due to an apparent groin injury. The goals forced Florida to play catch up through the final two periods. Brad Boyes (1) halved the lead with seven seconds remaining in the second period, with helpers from Brian Campbell and Sasha Barkov. Jacob Markstrom stopped all 25 shots in a losing effort, while Steve Mason went 33-for-34 between the pipes. * Full Recap * Box Score
Panthers @ Flyers Highlights 10/08/13 (via NHL)
Then-coach Kevin Dineen spoke about the injury to Thomas afterward:
Just slightly pulled his groin, so I don’t think it’s anything long-term, but we will evaluate him [Wednesday] and see where he’s at.
Go to Broad Street Hockey for more on the Flyers.
In Florida’s last match, the Panthers came back from a two-goal third-period deficit to get the Calgary Flames to overtime, but ended up losing in the sixth round of a shootout. Tom Gilbert (1) opened the scoring for the Panthers in the first, and Jimmy Hayes (1) and Marcel Goc (6) also lit the lamp. Nick Bjugstad, Sean Bergenheim, and Scott Gomez tallied assists. Brad Boyes and Tomas Fleischmann each beat Calgary goaltender Reto Barra in the skills competition. For the Flames, Joe Colborne (3), Sevn Baertschi (PP, 2), and Blair Jones (1) earned the markers. Jiri Hudler, Mike Cammalleri, and Sean Monahan beat Tim Thomas in the shootout. * Full Recap * Box Score
Islanders @ Flyers Highlights 11/23/13 (via NHL)
They believe they can win. We killed off two big penalties there in the third period; huge kills. I thought they did a real good job, that’s important. We’ve been giving up power-play goals the last four or five games and we did a real good job against a real good power play. I thought overall the third period we were on our heels but we did what we had to do to win the games.
To read about the Islanders, go to Lighthouse Hockey.
Game Time: 7:30 PM ET
Broadcast: CSN-PH, FS-F
All-Time Series: The Panthers are 29-40-7-5 all-time against the Flyers, a .432 points percentage.
Season Series: Second of three meetings. Philadelphia won a regulation length match in early October, 2-1.
Standings
Florida Panthers: 6-13-5, .354, 17 points, on pace for 58 points. Seventh in the Atlantic Division, 15th in the Eastern Conference, 28th in the NHL. Last Five: L-W-W-L-O.
Philadelphia Flyers: 10-10-2, .500, 22 points, on pace for 82 points. Fifth in the Metropolitan Division, tied for 10th in the Eastern Conference, tied for 22nd in the NHL. Last Five: W-O-W-W-W.
This Date in Panthers History
The Panthers are 2-3-1 on November 25th since their inaugural season.
1998 – Bruins 1, Panthers 0
2000 – Panthers 2, Lightning 1, OT
2005 – Panthers 6, Penguins 3
2006 – Thrashers 1, Panthers 0
2009 – Rangers 2, Panthers 1, SO
2011 – Lightning 2, Panthers 1
Common Thread
Probable Lineups
Panthers
Forwards
Jonathan Huberdeau – Nick Bjugstad – Tomas Fleischmann
Scottie Upshall – Aleksander Barkov – Brad Boyes
Marcel Goc – Scott Gomez – Sean Bergenheim
Jimmy Hayes – Shawn Matthias – Krys Barch
Defensemen
Brian Campbell – Tom Gilbert
Erik Gudbranson – Dmitry Kulikov
Mike Weaver – Dylan Olsen
Goaltenders
Tim Thomas – Scott Clemmensen
Flyers
Forwards
Scott Hartnell – Claude Giroux – Jakub Voracek
Brayden Schenn – Vincent LeCavalier – Wayne Simmonds
Steve Downie – Sean Couturier – Matt Read
Zac Rinaldo – Adam Hall – Jay Rosehill
Defensemen
Kimmo Timonen – Braydon Coburn
Nicklas Grossmann – Mark Streit
Luke Schenn – Erik Gustafsson
Goaltenders
Steve Mason – Ray Emery
Special Teams
| Team | PP Rate | PP Rank | PK Rate | PK Rate |
| Panthers | 9.3% | 30th | 77.1% | 27th |
| Flyers | 15.1% | 24th | 82.4% | 16th |
Panthers Leaders
| Category | 1st | 2nd | 3rd |
| Goals | Brad Boyes 8 | Marcel Goc 6 | Jonathan Huberdeau 5 |
| Assists | Brian Campbell 9 | Tomas Fleischmann 9 | Scottie Upshall 7 |
| Points | Brian Campbell 12 | Tomas Fleischmann 12 | Jonathan Huberdeau 11 |
| Shots on Goal | Tomas Fleischmann 56 | Tomas Kopecky 51 | Brad Boyes 48 |
| Faceoffs | Marcel Goc 54.4% | Sasha Barkov 49.2% | Nick Bjugstad 48.8% |
| Hits | Erik Gudbranson 59 | Mike Weaver 48 | Shawn Matthias 45 |
| Blocked Shots | Mike Weaver 45 | Erik Gudbranson 40 | Tom Gilbert 34 |
Flyers Leaders
| Category | First | Second | Third |
| Goals | Vincent LeCavalier 8 | Matt Read 8 | Brayden Schenn 7 |
| Assists | Claude Giroux 12 | Jakub Voracek 9 | Brayden Schenn 7 |
| Points | Claude Giroux 15 | Brayden Schenn 14 | Vincent LeCavalier 13 |
| Shots on Goal | Matt Read 58 | Claude Giroux 57 | Wayne Simmonds 49 |
| Faceoffs | Adam Hall 64.0% | Claude Giroux 50.0% | Sean Couturier 49.9% |
| Hits | Zac Rinaldo 76 | Niklas Grossmann 62 | Luke Schenn 61 |
| Blocked Shots | Niklas Grossmann 60 | Braydon Coburn 35 | Kimmo Timonen 31 |
Thanks for reading today’s preview. Tune in for the Game Thread, going live at 7 PM. You can read more on today’s tilt over at Broad Street Hockey.