Panthers at Blues
THE STORY: The St. Louis Blues host the Florida Panthers on Thursday in a game featuring two “new” coaches and upstart teams who have each won three of their last four. The Panthers have an NHL-high seven road wins, while the Blues have won six of their eight home games. First-year Panthers coach Kevin Dineen will match wits with Ken Hitchcock, whose arrival behind the Blues’ bench after the firing of Davis Payne on Nov. 6 coincides with their recent success. St. Louis will be without right wing Chris Stewart, who was suspended three games following his hit from behind on Detroit defenseman Niklas Kronwall during the Blues’ 2-1 victory on Tuesday. Florida won at Dallas 6-0 on Tuesday for its fourth straight road victory and has outscored opponents 19-5 during that span.
TV: 8 p.m. ET, FS Midwest (St. Louis), FS Florida
ABOUT THE PANTHERS (9-5-3): Florida is without right winger Scottie Upshall, who will miss 6-to-8 weeks with a hip injury. Evgeny Dadonov has stepped in with two goals in two games since being called up from San Antonio of the American Hockey League. The Panthers have been boosted by the play of offensive-minded Brian Campbell (17 points), who spearheads a defensive unit which leads the NHL with 52 points, including 11 goals.
ABOUT THE BLUES (9-7-1): Hitchcock, who guided Dallas to the Stanley Cup in 1999, has St. Louis playing a faster pace at both ends of the ice. Hitchcock has also stressed improvement in the transition game and it is working: The Blues have outscored opponents 6-1 in 5-on-5 situations in their last four games. Also, St. Louis is 3 for 14 on the power play since Hitchcock’s arrival – it was 3 for 40 under Payne. Brian Elliott (7-1-0, 1.43, .947) has played the last two games – both wins, including a 3-0 shutout over Tampa Bay on Saturday.
OVERTIME:
1. Florida’s power play, which was tied for sixth at 20.3 percent entering Wednesday, is 0 for its last 14 and 2 for 18 in its last four games. The Panthers were last at 13.1 percent in 2010-11.
2. The under is 5-0 in the last five meetings in St. Louis.