CBS4’s Steve Goldstein: Panthers road trip to tell the story

SUNRISE – With a lot of ground to make up to be a playoff contender, the Florida Panthers embark on a difficult four game road trip. It starts a tough January road heavy schedule that will go a long way toward determining this team’s fate.

The Panthers play in Detroit on Friday and then three very tough western games against Dallas, Colorado, and Las Vegas. Nice places to visit, hard places to play!

Out Of The Break
The Panthers hoped the NHL holiday break would be a jump start to the season. They have been okay, splitting four games, but at this point, win one, lose one, isn’t good enough. A strong road trip could be the jolt of confidence the Panthers need.

Tkachuk All Star
Matthew Tkachuk will likely be an all-star on his home ice. The Panthers and South Florida host the festivities in a few weeks. Tkachuk is deserving of the honor in his first season with the Panthers. He had his first hat trick with the team last game against Arizona and leads the team in scoring. Tkachuk is on pace for a second consecutive 40 goal, 100 point season. The good news for the Panthers, the 24-year-old is signed for seven more years after this season.

Staal Surging
Who would have thought before December that Eric Staal would be having this kind of offensive impact? Yet here is the veteran center, Stanley Cup, Olympic gold, and World Champion behind only Tkachuk in scoring since December first. Staal scored two goals last game against Arizona, his first 2 goal game since 2019.

Task At Hand
The Panthers need to win – a lot. Two out of every three games to likely reach the playoffs. It adds up to about 30 wins in the remaining 43 games, a tall task but by no means impossible for this team. It is finally, mostly, healthy and they’ll have to get more nights as they did against Arizona. Spencer Knight allowed three goals but then stopped the final 15 shots to preserve the win. Aleksander Barkov was solid in all zones and Tkachuk had a hat trick. The best players must be at their best on a nightly basis for this team to make a run.