The Florida Panthers visit the San Jose Sharks at SAP Center at San Jose on Thursday, October 1, 2026, with puck drop set for 10:00 PM EDT.
Matchup: Florida Panthers (1-0-0, 2 points in 2026-27) at San Jose Sharks (0-0-0, 0 points in 2026-27)
Date: Thursday, October 1, 2026
Puck drop: 10:00 PM EDT (7:00 PM PDT local)
Venue: SAP Center at San Jose
How to watch: SJS: TVAS, NBCSCA · FLA: SCRIPPS
Purchase tickets via Ticketmaster
Florida Panthers News & Notes
Florida opened the season in Carolina, where the banner being raised belonged to the Hurricanes, and left with an overtime win. Gustav Forsling scored the winner in a defense-heavy game that echoed the teams’ 2023 playoff series. The Panthers carried the shot advantage throughout, leading 6-3 in the first period and 20-15 overall, while Carolina held an 18-25 edge in hits after 20 minutes. Boko Imama fought Nicolas Deslauriers late in the first. Aleksander Barkov looked like himself in his first regular-season game in more than a year.
The second period turned into a parade to the box, with Forsling, Dmitry Kulikov, Brady Tkachuk, Garnet Hathaway and Imama all penalized for Florida and both sides drawing 5-on-3 chances. The Panthers went 2-0-2 through four preseason games, including a 5-3 win over Tampa Bay on Sept. 24 in which Imama scored first. Jacob Markstrom and Akira Schmid, both signed through two more seasons, each posted a .923 save percentage against Carolina. Brady Tkachuk scored in both exhibition games against the Hurricanes.
San Jose Sharks News & Notes
San Jose opens its season Thursday, October 1, at home against the Florida Panthers, beginning an 84-game schedule for the first time. The Sharks finished 39-35-8 with 86 points last season, fifth in the Pacific Division and four points behind the second Western Conference wild card, after improving by 19 wins and 34 points. The offseason brought Jacob Trouba on a four-year, $33 million deal, Darnell Nurse from Edmonton, Michael Kesselring from Buffalo, and Mason Marchment on a five-year, $33.75 million contract. [1]
Macklin Celebrini was named captain on September 25, with former captain Joe Thornton presenting the C. At 20, he becomes the youngest captain in franchise history and the 11th full-time captain. The Sharks closed the preseason by placing Eric Comrie and Jimmy Huntington on waivers for assignment to the AHL Barracuda, days after doing the same with Ethan Cardwell, Tye Felhaber and Libor Hajek. Elliotte Friedman reported San Jose and Winnipeg discussed a Connor Hellebuyck trade, with the goaltender suspended indefinitely.
Florida Panthers Projected Lines
Line 1: Brady Tkachuk – Aleksander Barkov – Sam Reinhart
Line 2: Carter Verhaeghe – Sam Bennett – Matthew Tkachuk
Line 3: Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Sandis Vilmanis
Line 4: Garnet Hathaway – Lars Eller – Bokondji Imama
Pair 1: Gustav Forsling – Aaron Ekblad
Pair 2: Niko Mikkola – Seth Jones
Pair 3: Dmitry Kulikov – Radko Gudas
Goaltenders: Akira Schmid – Jacob Markstrom
Florida Panthers Special Teams
Power play, First unit: Brady Tkachuk – Aleksander Barkov – Sam Reinhart – Seth Jones – Matthew Tkachuk
Power play, Second unit: Sam Bennett – Anton Lundell – Carter Verhaeghe – Aaron Ekblad – Gustav Forsling
Penalty kill, First unit: Aleksander Barkov – Sam Reinhart – Gustav Forsling – Aaron Ekblad
Penalty kill, Second unit: Anton Lundell – Eetu Luostarinen – Niko Mikkola – Radko Gudas
San Jose Sharks Projected Lines
Line 1: Mason Marchment – Macklin Celebrini – Will Smith
Line 2: Igor Chernyshov – Michael Misa – Tyler Toffoli
Line 3: Ivar Stenberg – Alexander Wennberg – Collin Graf
Line 4: Barclay Goodrow – Zack Ostapchuk – Kiefer Sherwood
Pair 1: Darnell Nurse – Michael Kesselring
Pair 2: Nolan Allan – Jacob Trouba
Pair 3: Dmitry Orlov – Luca Cagnoni
Goaltenders: Yaroslav Askarov – Alex Nedeljkovic
San Jose Sharks Special Teams
Power play, First unit: Igor Chernyshov – Alexander Wennberg – Will Smith – Macklin Celebrini – Luca Cagnoni
Power play, Second unit: Mason Marchment – Michael Misa – Tyler Toffoli – Dmitry Orlov – Ivar Stenberg
Penalty kill, First unit: Alexander Wennberg – Collin Graf – Darnell Nurse – Jacob Trouba
Penalty kill, Second unit: Barclay Goodrow – Kiefer Sherwood – Nolan Allan – Dmitry Orlov
Players To Watch
Gustav Forsling — Florida Panthers
Forsling was the only Panther to find the back of the net last time out, scoring on two shots while logging 22:40, the heaviest workload on the roster. With Marchand out, Florida needs offence from the back end, and Forsling is already taking the minutes and shots to supply it. A sneaky points-prop option.
Macklin Celebrini — San Jose Sharks
Celebrini did the most with the least last game, turning a single shot into a goal and an assist across 19:03. That two-point night makes him San Jose’s clear focal point tonight, and if the shot volume climbs toward Marchment’s or Nurse’s, his fantasy ceiling rises with it. Worth an anytime-scorer look.
Injury Report
Florida Panthers
Brad Marchand (LW) — Injured Reserve, Lower Body, expected back Sunday, October 25
MacKenzie Entwistle (RW) — Injured Reserve, Undisclosed, expected back Saturday, October 10
Jonah Gadjovich (LW) — Injured Reserve, Upper Body, expected back Saturday, October 17
San Jose Sharks
Adam Gaudette (RW) — Injured Reserve, Upper Body, expected back Saturday, October 10
Alex Barre-Boulet (C) — Injured Reserve, Undisclosed, expected back Monday, October 5
Quentin Musty (LW) — Injured Reserve, Upper Body, expected back Tuesday, December 1
Cam Lund (C) — Injured Reserve, Upper Body, expected back Monday, October 19
Kyle Keyser (G) — Injured Reserve, Upper Body, expected back Tuesday, December 1
Patrick Giles (RW) — Injured Reserve, Upper Body, expected back Saturday, October 3
Next Up
Florida Panthers: visit the Anaheim Ducks on Sunday, October 4.
San Jose Sharks: host the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday, October 3.