+3
The Panthers defeated division foe Winnipeg on Friday night 2-1, as Sean Bergenheim got the game-winner in the second period.
Injuries:
Ed Jovanovski had surgery on his hand as is not expected back before the middle of March.
Scottie Upshall had surgery for a sports hernia yesterday and is expected back near the end of March.
Jacob Markstrom had a knee surgery and is not expected to play again until sometime next month.
Dmitry Kulikov is out until next month, recuperating a knee surgery.
Jack Skille is resting his shoulder and may play tomorrow against the Lightning.
Kris Versteeg is day-to-day with the Flu.
Jets:
Evander Kane sustained a concussion on January 20th and is not expected back soon.
Tim Stapleton is out with a lower body injury.
Starting Lineups:
Panthers:
Forwards:
Fleischmann - Weiss - Versteeg
Bergenheim - Goc - Samuelsson
Santorelli - Matthias - Kopecky
Bradley - Madden - Barch
Defensemen:
Campbell - Gudbranson
Weaver - Garrison
Ellerby - Strachan
Goalie:
Scott Clemmensen (7-2-5) will probably get the start tonight with Brian Foster maybe getting tomorrow's start in Tampa Bay.
Jets:
Forwards:
Ladd - Little - Wheeler
Fehr - Antropov - Wellwood
Glass - Slater - Thorburn
Burmistrov - Gagnon - Miettinen
Defensemen:
Enstrom - Byfuglien
Hainsey - Bogosian
Stuart - Oduya
Goalie:
Ondrej Pavelec started last night, so it's likely the Panthers face backup Chris Mason tonight.
For the second consecutive game, the Panthers are facing a team on the second night of back-to-back games with the first game an overtime matchup with the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Bolts took care of the Caps on Tuesday in overtime, 4-3 before Florida defeated them in regulation, 4-2. Last night the Jets won an overtime matchup with the Bolts, 2-1. Ironically, tonight the Jets are softening the Panthers up for a game tomorrow night in Tampa Bay.
Common Thread:
Panthers defenseman Mike Weaver played 57 games over three seasons for the team when they were still based out of Atlanta. He tallied six assists with a minus-six rating and 30 penalty minutes.
Jets left winger Tanner Glass played 44 games for Florida over two seasons, scoring one goal and one assist with a minus-five rating and 46 penalty minutes.
Jets left winger Kenndal McArdle played 33 games over three seasons for the Panthers, scoring one goal and two assists with a minus-eight rating and 47 penalty minutes.
Team Milestones:
Games: Shawn Matthias will pass Branislav Mezei tonight with his 175th Panther game, moving him into 46th.
Goals: With Kris Versteeg's next goal, he will have 20 with Florida, good enough for 49th all-time, tying Bob Kudelski and Jason Garrison. Speaking of Garrison, 21 goals will move him into a tie with Brett McLean in 48th. Shawn Matthias next goal will be number 25, tying Mike Van Ryn in 45th. Mike Santorelli's 27th will tie him with Gary Roberts in 42nd.
Team Leaders:
Goals:
Kris Versteeg - 19
Tomas Fleischmann - 16
Stephen Weiss, Jason Garrison - 13
Assists:
Brian Campbell - 33
Stephen Weiss - 25
Kris Versteeg - 24
Points:
Kris Versteeg - 43
Stephen Weiss - 38
Tomas Fleischmann - 37
+/-
Stephen Weiss - plus-11
Kris Versteeg - plus-10
Jason Garrison - plus-6
Florida will be hosting the Winnipeg Jets tonight at the Bank Atlantic Center in Sunrise. This is the fourth meeting this season of six between the divisional rivals, and the second of three played in Florida. The Panthers are 12-5-7 at home, while Winnipeg owns a 8-14-4 road record. For Florida, this is the final game of a three game homestand. Prior to the All-Star Game, they dropped a 3-2 overtime matchup to the Philadelphia Flyers. They then beat the Washington Capitals, 4-2 on Wednesday and go on the road for a short divisional roadtrip against the Capitals and the Tampa Bay Lightning. The Jets are playing the fifth game of a six game roadtrip. They lost to the Carolina Hurricanes, 2-1 and the New York Rangers, 3-0 before the All-Star break. They then beat the Philadelphia Flyers, 2-1 in a shootout on Tuesday and the Tampa Bay Lightning, also 2-1, in overtime last night.
The teams last met on January 21st in Manitoba, with Florida skating off with a 4-3 shootout victory. Kris Versteeg continued his mastery of the Jets, by scoring two in regulation and later assisting on Mike Santorelli's goal. In three games against the Jets this season Versteeg has five goals, two assists, and a plus-seven rating. Versteeg and Santorelli also both later scored in the shootout, with Mikael Samuelsson eventually sinking the game winner in the seventh round. Scott Clemmensen got the victory by saving 41 of 44 Jets shots. Winnipeg was led by two goals from Nik Antropov and one from Alexander Burmistrov. Ondrej Pavelic allowed three goals on 23 shots in taking the loss. Said Clemmensen after claiming the victory,
"We just needed a win. It didn't matter what the shot count was or what happened out there. We just needed a win. Regardless of how we got it, or when or against whom, the circumstances of a third game in four nights, we just needed a win. It was a gutsy win for us."
Panthers @ Jets 01/21/12 (via NHLVideo)
"You score from outside the blue line, you know what … sometimes you don't ask how. You're putting shots on the net. That's the kind of game we were looking for out of him. ... The two goals were nice, but I thought he had a really solid game. He looked refreshed, he was moving his feet. Good game from Mikael Samuelsson."
Capitals @ Panthers 02/01/12 (via NHLVideo)
The Jets topped the Tampa Bay Lightning last night, 2-1 in overtime. Blake Wheeler scored his 10th goal of the season to put the Jets up, 1-0 near the end of the second. Kyle Wellwood added his 10th of the season in overtime. Ondrej Pavelec stopped 28 of 29 shots for a well earned victory. The Lightning were paced by Victor Hedman, who scored his third goal of the season. Mathieu Garon helped the Bolts earn a point, by stopping 21 of 22 shots in regulation. After the game, Wellwood talked about his goal, as reported by NHL.COM,
"(Dustin) Byfuglien made a nice play getting the puck to Wheeler and (Vincent) Lecavalier went for the puck and missed," Wellwood said. "Me and Wheels (Blake Wheeler) had a lot of time and he made a great pass."
Winnipeg Jets @ Tampa Bay Lightning Highlights 2/2/12 (via WinnipegJets11)
Season Series: 2-0-1
All-Time Series: 28-29-14
Game Time: 7:30 EST
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Standings:
Florida Panthers: 23-15-11, 57 points, first Southeast Division, third Eastern Conference, 15th NHL, on pace for 95 points.
Winnipeg Jets: 24-22-6, 54 points, third Southeast Division, 10th Eastern Conference, 19th NHL, on pace for 85 points.
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Jets Vs. Panthers Recap: Florida Holds On For 2-1 Win Over Winnipeg
The Florida Panthers maintained their lead in the Southeast Division on Friday night, reaching 59 points for the season with a 2-1 win over division foe Winnipeg. The Jets were playing their second game in as many nights, as they caught the Panthers on the second leg of the Florida swing after winning in overtime against Tampa Bay.
Kris Versteeg opened the scoring in the first period with his 20th goal of a season, a power play strike that beat Jets' goalie Chris Mason. On an Andrew Ladd feed, Bryan Little evened it for Winnipeg midway through the second period but the tie was short-lived. Sean Bergenheim put Florida back in front just three minutes later, with a blast for his eighth of the season. The Panthers would kill off a late penalty, and Scott Clemmensen would stop 20 of 21 shots for the win.
The Panthers now travel across the state to face the Lightning on Saturday night.
For more news, analysis, and discussion on the Panthers, visit SB Nation's Cats blog, Litter Box Cats. For the opponent's perspective, visit Artic Ice Hockey, SB Nation's Winnipeg Jets blog. For all your NHL news and analysis, be sure to visit SB Nation's NHL news hub.
Feb 03 10:21p by Brendan Porath