1 – MARCHAND DEBUT: Talk about an up and down week for the Cats! After being acquired from Boston on March 7 in a shocking trade deadline deal, forward Brad Marchand made his long-awaited Florida Panthers debut on Friday versus Utah. The 36-year old Bruins great assisted on Sam Bennett’s game-winner in a 2-1 overtime triumph! Head coach Paul Maurice referred to Marchand as “dominant” in his debut. On the flipside, Marchand’s gone pointless in three games since. All losses.
2 – STREAKING #1: Reminiscent to last year at this time, the Panthers’ fortunes have dipped as they attempt to get healthy for the playoffs and assimilate new faces into their lineup. This week Florida lost 4-2 at home to Montreal on Sunday, 3-2 in OT at the Canadiens on Tuesday, and 3-2 at Toronto on Wednesday. At 44-27-4, they’ve dropped to third place in the Atlantic Division with two big road games this weekend before finally coming back to Sunrise for a lengthy homestead.3 – STREAKING #2: This all coincides with the cross-state Tampa Bay Lightning catching fire and, thanks to a four-game win streak, have propelled themselves into second place in the Atlantic Division at 44-25-5. They’re just three points back of division-leading Toronto with eight games to go. The Lightning & Panthers will conclude Florida’s regular season with a meeting at Amalie Arena on Tuesday, April 15. Imagine what that game will mean! And if the playoffs were to start today, Florida and Tampa Bay would meet in Round 1 for the fourth time in history.
4 – KOOOCH: Tampa Bay’s surge has been led chiefly by Russian sniper Nikita Kucherov who, as of today, is tied for the NHL scoring lead with Colorado’s Nathan MacKinnon with 111 points. The 31-year old has reached 100 points in three straight seasons and on five occasions since the lockout in 2013. That’s the most by any NHL winger.
5 – MIIIIIIKKOLA: A brain cramp by Nikko Mikkola has the star Florida defenceman a little lighter in the wallet this week. At the conclusion of Sunday’s 4-2 loss to Montreal at Amerant Bank Arena, Mikkola slapped the puck head-high the length of the ice surface which had Montreal players ducking, then chasing after him at the buzzer. It was a scene right out of the movie Slapshot, when Steve Hanson took a clapper which rattled the noggin of the arena organist. In this case, the NHL saw fit to fine Mikkola $5,000 within 24 hours of the incident. Scripps Sports TV Panthers analyst Ed Jovanovski shrugged on the postgame show, “He was just trying to score.” Ya right Jovo!
6 – STAR GAZING: Tampa Bay Lightning winger Nikita Kucherov, Dallas Stars centre Roope Hintz and Winnipeg Jets goaltender Connor Hellebuyck have been named the NHL’s three stars of the week. … Kucherov led the league with 11 points (three goals, eight assists) as his team moved into second place in the Atlantic Division. .. Hintz had nine points (two goals, seven assists) in four games as the Stars clinched a playoff berth and extended their winning streak to five games. … Hellebuyck went 3-0-0 with a 1.00 goals-against average and .961 save percentage to go along with one shutout for the NHL-leading Jets.
7 – NEW TV DEAL: Our Canadian readers were rejoicing on Wednesday when Sportsnet – now billing itself as Canada’s #1 sports network – announced a brand new 12-year, $11-billion (CDN) TV rights deal for exclusive national broadcasts north of the border. The agreement is worth more than double the current rights deal between Rogers and the NHL, which cost $5.2 billion over 12 years and is set to expire next season. If you want know why the salary cap is rising dramatically beginning next season, here’s Exhibit A.
8 – ON THE LIMP: Panthers fans are wringing their hands with the team’s three game slide, and you can’t blame them. However it coincides with a rash of injuries which include captain Aleksander Barkov missing Wednesday’s game at Toronto with an upper body injury, MVP Matthew Tkachuk being on the Long Term Injured List, and veteran defenceman Aaron Ekblad serving a 20-game suspension. The good news is Tkachuk resumed skating this week and everyone is expected back for the playoffs. Ekblad’s suspension will expire by Game 3 of Round 1. Panic if you wish, but coach Paul Maurice seems cool as a cucumber these days.
9 – STANLEY CUP FAVORITES: Maybe that’s because PoMo has seen the latest betting odds from Fanduel Sportsbook! The Panthers remain the favorites to win the Stanley Cup in 2025 at +550 followed by Dallas (+600), Colorado (+850), Edmonton (+950), Vegas/Carolina (+1000).
10 – POWER RANKINGS: Everyone seems to love our weekly Top 5/Bottom 5 feature so here’s this week’s installment. (Spoiler Alert: It’s a lot different from the betting odds!) 1) Winnipeg, 2) Washington, 3) Vegas, 4) Dallas, 5) Florida. At the bottom are 28) Seattle, 29) Nashville, 30) Philadelphia, 31) San Jose, 32) Chicago.
See you at the rink!(Rod Pedersen covers the NHL for the South Florida Tribune. He also hosts the award-winning Cats N Bolts Podcast and the daily Rod Pedersen Show on Game+TV, YouTube Live & Podcast)
