The Florida Panthers are currently on a seven-game winning streak, but forward Sam Bennett isn’t focused on that.
“We don’t really look at the streaks, just try and treat each game the same,” Bennett said. “We’re good at getting up for games that are tough to get up for and playing the same style of hockey. We’ve done a great job during this stretch.”
Bennett and the Panthers will try to keep their strong play going on Tuesday night when they play the New Jersey Devils in Sunrise, Florida. The two teams will meet again on Thursday in Florida.
Bennett scored a goal in Florida’s 4-3 shootout win against the Philadelphia Flyers on Saturday, bringing his season total to 15 points (nine goals, six assists) in 15 games. He is second on the team in goals (11) and points (23), behind only Sam Reinhart.
Reinhart had an assist on Dmitry Kulikov’s goal in the second period of Saturday’s game, extending his point streak to seven games (six goals, five assists). Reinhart had a strong performance against the Devils in the 2023-24 season, scoring four goals to help the Panthers win two out of three games against them.
Evan Rodrigues added two assists before scoring the game-winning goal in the fifth round of the shootout against the Flyers.
Captain Aleksander Barkov has been productive since returning from a lower-body injury on October 28, with two goals and nine assists.
Sergei Bobrovsky has won five straight starts after being pulled in a game against the Minnesota Wild on October 22, where he allowed five goals in two periods. The two-time Vezina Trophy winner has a strong 20-7-1 record in 29 career games against the Devils.
The Devils lost 1-0 to the San Jose Sharks on Sunday, unable to get past former Devils goalie Mackenzie Blackwood, who recorded 44 saves for the shutout. New Jersey had won three in a row and five of their last six games before this loss.
“They’ve got a fast, skilled team, and they have been playing well of late,” said Devils backup goalie Jake Allen, who made 26 saves.
“Coming off (Saturday’s 4-3 overtime win versus the New York Islanders), we wanted to keep this stretch going here. Now we’ll take time to regroup. It’s going to be a tough test this week, a tough challenge.”
Jesper Bratt, who leads the Devils with 14 assists and 19 points, had a chance to score late in the second period on Sunday but was denied on a partial breakaway. He had three assists and five points in three games against Florida last season.
Jack Hughes had eight shots on goal in the loss to the Sharks, following back-to-back three-point games. The 2019 first overall draft pick is one point away from reaching 300 career points.
Devils goalie Jacob Markstrom has won four of his last five starts, with a 2.00 goals-against average and a .919 save percentage. In 11 games (10 starts) against Florida, he has a 5-5-1 record, with a 3.08 GAA and a .909 save percentage.
The Devils have killed 19 straight penalties as they head into a three-game stretch in Florida. They will finish the trip with a game against the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday.
