The Florida Panthers are in a good spot as they embark on an extended road trip in the coming weeks.
Florida has won five of the past six, scoring points in each and playing a familiar brand of aggressive, physical hockey while also scoring a slew of goals.
During their six-game series, in which Florida went 5-0-1, the Cats outscored their opponents 31-15.
While Sam Reinhart (three goals, seven points) and Sasha Barkov (four goals, nine points) have done well to inject some offense into Florida’s game through the six games, it’s been Matthew Tkachuk who has turned things completely upside down. has taken it to another level.
Tkachuk is currently on a roll in some form, with points in each of the six games on Florida’s streak, but that’s just the tip of the iceberg.
He has recorded 15 points through the six games, with 13 of those coming in the past four.
He has five goals and six assists in Florida’s past three games.
So yes, Tkachuk is feeling it now, and on Monday he was named the NHL’s First Star of the Week for his efforts.
Seattle hopes a recent streak of three wins in four games is the start of a longer run of consistency.
They are currently 14-14-1, with their 3-0-1 streak coming on the heels of a 1-4-0 run. Before that 4-0-1, after which a 1-6-1 run followed.
Are you noticing a trend?
The Kraken open a four-game homestand fresh off a four-game road trip on the East Coast, one that they capped with a 7-5 win at Madison Square Garden against the New York Rangers.
It was actually the fourth time this season that Seattle has scored seven or more goals, which ties them with Tampa Bay for the most in the league.
The win over New York also marked the Kraken’s fourth multi-goal comeback, something only Seattle and Vegas have accomplished this season.
Here are the Panthers’ projected lines and for Tuesday’s tilt in Seattle:
Carter Verhaeghe – Sasha Barkov – Sam Reinhart
Jesper Boqvist – Sam Bennett – Matthew Tkachuk
Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Evan Rodrigues
AJ Greer – Tomas Nosek – Mackie Samoskevich
Gus Forsling – Aaron Ekblad
Niko Mikkola-Dmitry Kulikov
Uvis Balinskis – Nate Schmidt
Scratches: Jonah Gadjovich, Adam Boqvist
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