KEY POINTS

  • Blackhawks, Panthers seek to end month strong
  • Panthers look to regain top three spot in Atlantic Division
  • Panthers are tagged as faves

It has not been a friendly month for the Florida Panthers, who have lost 10 of their 15 games so far in February after they ran on fumes heading into the All-Star break late last month sitting on a six-game winning surge. But they still have a chance to cap the month with a bang when they host the Chicago Blackhawks on a rare 29th of February, Saturday inside the BB&T Center. The Panthers will play the second of a five-game homestand that started out flat with a 3-5 loss against the Maple Leafs on Thursday.

Chicago Blackhawks

Like the Panthers, the Blackhawks found the month of February as a tough period with multiple failed attempts to gain ground for a playoff bid. It’s like a wasted opportunity for Chicago which remains at the bottom of the Central Division and is eight points removed from a wild card spot in the Western Conference. But the Blackhawks will bring in positive energy to Florida on Saturday night after gaining some measure of confidence from their 5-2 victory over Tampa Bay last Thursday.

Florida Panthers

The loss against Toronto dragged Florida to fourth place in the Atlantic Division as the Panthers blew their chance to even up their record and move up the third spot with the Maple Leafs, who now lead them by four points. Captain Aleksander Barkov, Jonathan Huberdeau and Evgenii Dadonov were all missing links who burdened Florida in its latest setback as they account for a combined -6 rating. Noel Acciari tried to fill the gap as he snapped his personal scoring slump by tallying his 20th goal of the season - a breakthrough for a skater who had registered just 18 goals in the first 180 games of his career.

Odds and Trends

The NHL Betting Lines expects the Panthers to bounce back as they are offered at -165 as favorites in the two-way main money line market, whilst the Blackhawks are underdogs at +145.

The Blackhawks are 5-0 in their last 5 Saturday games and 13-3 in their last 16 vs. Atlantic.

The Panthers are 4-1 in their last 5 vs. Central and 8-2 in their last 10 vs. a team with a losing record.

Prediction

Blackhawks win, 4-3

Chicago Blackhawks
The Chicago Blackhawks are trying to win their fourth Stanley Cup championship since 2010. Getty