Hurricanes at Panthers
The Carolina Hurricanes head east on their road trip hoping to snap a two-game losing skid when they visit the Florida Panthers on Wednesday. The Hurricanes have one win in their last six games and are 1-2-0 on their a five-game trip. The Panthers began a three-game homestand with a loss to the Minnesota Wild on Monday - their third setback in four home contests.
Carolina has played well against Florida, winning five of the last six meetings between the former Southeast Division foes. The Panthers are having a lot of trouble scoring, but the Hurricanes aren’t faring much better: Jussi Jokinen leads Florida with 12 points, while Riley Nash has a team-high 15 for Carolina. The two anemic offenses could result in a low-scoring duel between goaltenders Cam Ward and Roberto Luongo.
TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, Fox Sports Carolina, Fox Sports Florida
ABOUT THE HURRICANES (6-11-3): Defenseman Brett Bellemore was placed on injured reserve after suffering a lower-body injury Saturday and Michal Jordan was recalled from the American Hockey League to take his place. Chris Terry was sent to the AHL for a conditioning stint after going 10 games without recording a point. Andrej Nestrasil scored his first career goal in his debut with Carolina after being claimed off waivers from Detroit.
ABOUT THE PANTHERS (7-6-6): Tomas Fleischmann is reportedly on the trading block after recording a goal and an assist in 17 games. Defenseman Colby Robak was back in the lineup Monday after being a healthy scratch for two games. Derek MacKenzie missed Tuesday’s practice with the flu and is considered questionable for Wednesday.
OVERTIME
1. Carolina is 0-1-1 against Atlantic Division opponents.
2. The Panthers are 4-for-32 with the man advantage at home.
3. Hurricanes F Alexander Semin has yet to score this season but has 27 goals and 45 points in 41 career games against Florida.