Winnipeg Jets (25-28-4 54P) vs Florida Panthers (33-18-7 73P)
- WHEN: 7:00 p.m. ET – LBC GameThread right here at 7ish
- WHERE: BB&T Center – gorgeous Sunrise, FL
- TICKETS: Single Game
- UPCOMING PROMOTIONS: Coke Zero Collectible Pins (details; Nick Bjugstad is February’s honoree)./
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- ON THE TUBE: FOX Sports Florida
- ON THE DIAL: 560 AM, 640 AM; Official App
- SOCIALS: #FlaPanthers, #NHLJets, #WPGvsFLA, @LitterBoxCats, LBC FaceBook
- ENEMY INTEL: Arctic Ice Hockey, Illegal Curve
- SB NATION: Game Hub
- GAME NOTES: via the club /
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- FLA IN SEASON SERIES: Game 1 of 2 (0-0)
- ALL-TIME vs WPG/ATL: 33W-33L-5T 8OTL 4SOL 226GF 267GA
- ALL-TIME at FLA: 20W-15L-1T 3OTL 3SOL 116GF 120GA
- LAST FIVE vs WPG: 2-3-0 15GF 24GA
- LAST GAME vs WPG: FLA 4 vs WPG 2 (LBC Recap) – 03/12/2015/
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- PROJECTED STARTERS: Luongo (24-14-5 2.29/.924 4SO), Hutchinson (6-10-1 2.87/.908 0SO)
- JAGR WATCH: All-time vs WPG/ATL (regular season): 43GP 22G-31A 53P 2GWG
- PLAYER STATS: Florida / Winnipeg /
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Notable:
F Kyle Rau and D Michael Matheson each received their first professional career NHL call-ups to Florida on Friday; F John McFarland and D Brent Regner were returned to AHL Portland…With his next goal (#741) F Jaromir Jagr will tie Brett Hull for 3rd place all time on the NHL career goal scoring list…Among those not expected to play this evening due to injury: forwards Aleksander Barkov (UB), Quinton Howden (UB), Brandon Pirri (LB), blueliners Erik Gudbranson (UB) & Willie Mitchell (LB)…G Roberto Luongo is 11-12-1 with 1 shutout in 28 appearances vs Winnipeg/Atlanta…From our Department of Confusion Avoidance: the Panthers are (forever) 3-2-0 (19GF/15GA) vs the original WHA-birthed Jets before morphing into the Phoenix (now Arizona) Coyotes in 1996; these stats are not included in the all time numbers above as we’re referencing two distinct franchises in WPG/ARZ and ATL/WPG…Florida completes the current six-game homestand Thursday against the above-mentioned Coyotes; yep, four solid days out of the spotlight…The NHL’s trading deadline for this season is 3 p.m. on Monday, February 29, and we’ll of course be doing our annual LBC all-day thing so stop on in…For more on tonight’s opposition check out our good buddies at Arctic Ice Hockey and Illegal Curve for everything behind the hangar door.
NHL.com Preview:
The Winnipeg Jets and Florida Panthers split two games last season. Forward Mathieu Perreault scored four goals in an 8-2 win at Winnipeg on Jan. 13, 2015. Florida won 4-2 at home on March 12, 2015. Jonathan Huberdeau had three assists in two games for Florida. (More)
Yahoo.com Preview:
Though the Jets have dropped eight of 12 and need a serious surge to move into playoff position, they haven’t lost their fight. Winnipeg came back from a three-goal deficit in the third period to force overtime in Thursday’s 6-5 shootout loss at Tampa Bay. After second-leading scorer Bryan Little endured a questionable hit to the head and neck from Anton Stralman, teammate Blake Wheeler went after the defenseman and was given four minutes for roughing. Coach Paul Maurice, who had a heated discussion with officials after the play, was given a game misconduct and voiced his displeasure with the demeanor of the officials throughout the incident. (More)
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Last game for the Cats: 2-1 shootout loss to San Jose on Thursday. Past five: 2-2-1 13GF 17GA (streak: 1L)
Last game for the Props: 6-5 shootout loss in Tampa on Thursday. Past five: 2-2-1 12GF 16GA (streak: 2L)
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Saturday in the Atlantic Division (Standings / Panthers Playoff Chances):
- TAMPA BAY (31-22-4 66P) at Pittsburgh (29-19-8 66P), 12:30
- Philadelphia (25-21-11 61P) at TORONTO (20-27-9 49P), 7:00
- DETROIT (29-20-9 67P) at OTTAWA (27-26-6 60P), 7:30
- BOSTON (31-21-6 68P) at Dallas (37-16-6 80P), 8:00
- Idle: MTL (28-27-4 60P), BUF (24-28-7 55P)/
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Panthers, SoFla Media & Loyal Opposition on the Tweets
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