FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – That’s exactly what lies ahead for the Florida Panthers.
It takes a lot of time while moving.
After Monday’s practice at the Baptist Health Iceplex, the Panthers will pack up and take to the air, playing 10 of their remaining 13 games on the road in January.
A six-game series against the Toronto Maple Leafs begins on Tuesday.
“It’s a lot of fun going on the road with the guys,” forward Carter Verge said.
The Panthers, who are 22-16-3 and one point out of the second wild-card spot, have an 8-7-0 record on the road, with most of their losses coming early in the season.
They are 6-1-0 in their last seven road games.
All six games on this trip will be against Eastern Conference opponents.
“We’ve worked really hard here, I mean everyone else, to develop a road game that everyone understands,” head coach Paul Maurice said. “We’re always talking about what we’re going to do that day. We don’t think of this road trip as a long, painful block. If we can play every other day on the road and there aren’t a lot of anomalies like the one o’clock game, it’s pretty routine. That’s the playoff mindset, that’s the playoff format. We’re working on recovery.”
Brad Marchand was Florida’s top performer on the road, racking up 17 points (9G, 8A) in 15 games. Sam Reinhart, also a double-digit scorer, had 15 points, while Sam Bennett, Anton Lundell and Verhaige each had 10 points.
Sergei Bobrovsky has started 10 games on the road and is 7-3-0 with a .903 save percentage.
Matthew Tkachuk, who is nearing his return from offseason surgery, will also be with the team.
His teammates, who have been practicing in non-contact jerseys since Dec. 28, are happy to have him back.
“I think he has a lot of time on his hands, so there might be some shenanigans,” Verhaeghe said with a smile. “It’s good to have him back on tour and playing with the guys.”
bennett the beast
In addition to clothes and a toothbrush, Bennett packs another important item for the trip.
Scored in 9 consecutive games.
The gray-haired forward, who enjoyed the longest period of scoring success in his career, tallied 10 points (4G, 6A) during the streak, helping the Panthers to a 5-3-1 record.
“I feel pretty good about my game,” Bennett said. Bennett surprisingly remained on Canada’s squad for the upcoming Olympics. “Our whole line has been pretty productive. Defensively I think we can improve a little bit, but overall I feel pretty good about my game.”
Bennett, who scored the first goal in Sunday’s 2-1 win over the Colorado Avalanche, showed off both his power and skill with some great individual work and a drive to the net in the first period.
Dating back to Nov. 17, Bennett is tied for 14th on the NHL scoring list with 26 points.
During the same period, he ranks second on the Panthers in hits (50) and contested wins (167).
“He was great,” said Verhaeghe, one of Bennett’s regular linemates. “He’s making plays out there. He’s confident with the puck. He’s playing with speed. He’s finding a way to get to the net. You saw that last game. It was great to play with him.”
Gajovic and Schwind practice
Jonah Gajovic returned to practice Monday wearing a yellow no-contact jersey.
The fourth-line forward, who just returned from surgery after sustaining an upper-body injury suffered in a game against the Las Vegas Golden Knights on Oct. 25, had three assists, 30 hits and a plus-2 plus-minus rating in 10 games before being sidelined.
In last year’s cup game, he recorded 3 points (2G, 1A) and 63 hits in 16 playoff games.
As of now, Gajovic’s return is not expected until after the Olympics.
“It’s good to be able to work while healing,” Maurice said. “Some injuries have to wait. At the moment we feel he can come back. A bit like Matthew (Tkachuk), we think he will be at peak fitness once he returns to play. There are varying degrees of gold sweaters out there. He is still close to full non-contact. Matthew is close to being back.”
Cole Schwindt is also working his way back from surgery and has hung up his no-contact jersey.
Although he broke his arm in a collision with Bobrovsky on November 17, the 24-year-old forward returned to practice on January 1, before the Winter Classic.
Schwindt, who claimed waivers on Oct. 3, has two goals in 10 games this season.
Morris said Schwindt plans to travel and may return during the expedition.
“It’s great,” Verhage said of the Panthers’ health status. “They’re a big part of our team. It’s great to see how hard they’ve worked in the gym to get to the position they’re in and get so close to coming back. We need them back and we’re looking forward to it.”
Ericsson on track to win gold medal
Linus Erickson plays for gold.
After scoring the first goal in Sweden’s 4-3 shootout win over Finland in the semifinals on Sunday, the Panthers’ top prospect will face the Czech Republic in the championship game of the 2026 IIHF World Junior Championship in St. Paul, Minnesota on Monday.
Puck drop is set for 8:30 PM ET and the game will be available to watch on NHL Network.
Eriksson, who was selected in the second round (58th overall) by the Panthers in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft, had a goal and one assist and a plus-4 plus-minus rating in six games.
A key player, he has seen at least 17 minutes of ice time in each of the last three games.
Sweden last won gold at the 2012 World Juniors.
