Their losses to an improved Ottawa team and a struggling Pittsburgh team on the last road trip were lopsided affairs.<\/p>\n
Atlantic Division leader Boston will be the toughest opponent in the upcoming three-game journey, but Washington and Columbus cannot be ignored.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Washington and Boston are on successive afternoons which is a break of sorts because it allows them to arrive in Boston at a reasonable hour and get a full night\u2019s rest.<\/p>\n
One guy who appreciates the matinees is Niko Mikkola<\/a>. <\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s prime time in Finland so everybody \u2013 friends and family \u2013 can watch it a little bit easier,\u2019\u2019 he said before Friday\u2019s flight. \u201cI really like those games.\u201d<\/p>\n The upcoming schedule is so tight that it leaves little time between games for rest or practice. <\/p>\n Paul Maurice put the Panthers to work on Friday morning, perhaps because their next practice is not \u201cuntil the 19th of November\u201d he said.<\/p>\n That is a whopping thirteen days between practices.<\/p>\n Lineup<\/a> adjustments will have to be rehearsed at the morning pregame skates. <\/p>\n For today, Maurice will probably not make any lineup changes after the Chicago win. <\/p>\n \u201cNot planned as of now,\u2019\u2019 he said. \u201cI\u2019ve got a couple of game-timers. We\u2019ll see.\u201d<\/p>\n Boston is now 12-4-1 and is atop the Atlantic Division. David Pastrnak<\/a> has eight goals and 22 points in 17 games. He has always performed well against Florida.<\/p>\n Alex Ovechkin<\/a> may no longer be the player we knew but the Caps have Dylan Strome and newly acquired Jordan Kyrou<\/a> and Alex Tuch all enjoying good starts this season.<\/p>\n Columbus is getting surprisingly good production from veterans Kent Johnson and Charlie Coyle. Their backbone is the perennial high scoring defender Zach Werenski, last year\u2019s Norris Trophy winner as the league\u2019s top defenseman.<\/p>\n Washington is in the top half of the NHL in offensive production while Columbus is near the bottom. <\/p>\n Of the top dozen offensive teams in the NHL, Florida has only played one to date: Carolina. <\/p>\n Florida, with a relatively weak schedule to now, is mid-pack, averaging 3.25 goals for per game.<\/p>\n Defensively, Jacob Markstrom and Akira Schmid played well, keeping the team goals against average under 3.00 and in the NHL\u2019s top 10.<\/p>\n A point earned early in the season is just as valuable as a point earned later. The Panthers will have to stockpile as many points as they can now because while travel might ease up the opposition will be tougher as the season progresses.<\/p>\n ON DECK: GAME No. 17<\/p>\n FLORIDA PANTHERS at WASHINGTON CAPITALS<\/p>\n \t\t![\"avatar\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/11\/1794055333_283_IMG_4879.jpeg\")
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