Panthers put win streak to test, host Metro-leading Devils

The Florida Panthers are rolling, and now they’ll face a solid test as one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference is in town for a pair of games this week.

In an unusual scheduling outcome, the Panthers will host the New Jersey Devils both Tuesday and Thursday at Amerant Bank Arena.

Florida has won each of their past seven games and hold a strong 11-3-1 record, good for the top spot in the Atlantic Division.

The Cats have been scoring like crazy during their run, averaging 4.8 goals per game during the winning streak.

It’s been a group effort, as there are several Panthers currently riding impressive scoring runs.

Sam Reinhart has six goals and 11 points over his past seven games, Sasha Barkov has 11 points in the five games he’s played since returning from an eight-game absence, Carter Verhaeghe has 12 points in 11 games and Evan Rodrigues has three goals and six points over his past four games, just to name a few.

New Jersey arrives in South Florida sitting stop the Metropolitan Division, with both the most points and the most games played of all their divisional rivals.

Sheldon Keefe’s bunch has gone 10-6-2 through their first 18 games, with former Panthers goaltender Jacob Markstrom and young stars Jack Hughes and Nico Hischier leading the way.

Hischier has already scored 10 goals – on track to crush his career high of 31 – while Hughes and linemate Jesper Bratt are each scoring at a point per game pace.

The Devils will provide another solid test for Florida, in a situation that Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice compared to that of a playoff series.

We'll see if the Cats can jump out to a 2-0 lead on home ice or if the Devils can steal a game, or two, on the road.

Here are the Panthers projected lines and pairings and for Tuesday’s dance with the Devils:

Evan Rodrigues – Sasha Barkov – Sam Reinhart

Carter Verhaeghe – Sam Bennett – Matthew Tkachuk

Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Jesper Boqvist

A.J. Greer – Tomas Nosek – Jonah Gadjovich

Gus Forsling – Aaron Ekblad

Niko Mikkola – Dmitry Kulikov

Uvis Balinskis – Nate Schmidt

Scratches: Mackie Samoskevich, Adam Boqvist

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