Florida Panthers (46-15-6, first in the Atlantic) vs. New Jersey Devils (24-38-5, eighth in the Metropolitan)
Newark, New Jersey; Saturday, 12:30 p.m. EDT
BOTTOM LINE: Jonathan Huberdeau leads Florida into a matchup with New Jersey. He ranks third in the NHL with 94 points, scoring 23 goals and totaling 71 assists.
The Devils are 15-22-3 against Eastern Conference opponents. New Jersey is the top team in the Eastern Conference with 5.1 assists per game, led by Jesper Bratt averaging 0.7.
The Panthers are 28-7-3 in Eastern Conference play. Florida averages 9.6 penalty minutes per game, the ninth-most in the NHL. Radko Gudas leads the team serving 90 total minutes.
In their last matchup on Nov. 18, Florida won 4-1. Huberdeau recorded a team-high 2 points for the Panthers.
TOP PERFORMERS: Bratt has 65 total points for the Devils, 22 goals and 43 assists. Jack Hughes has 12 points over the last 10 games for New Jersey.
Huberdeau leads the Panthers with 94 points, scoring 23 goals and collecting 71 assists. Sam Reinhart has five goals over the last 10 games for Florida.
LAST 10 GAMES: Devils: 3-7-0, averaging 2.6 goals, 4.2 assists, 2.7 penalties and 7.1 penalty minutes while giving up four goals per game with an .880 save percentage.
Panthers: 7-2-1, averaging 3.7 goals, 6.2 assists, 4.4 penalties and 10.5 penalty minutes while allowing 2.5 goals per game with a .913 save percentage.
INJURIES: Devils: Pavel Zacha: day to day (upper-body), Andreas Johnsson: day to day (illness).
Panthers: Jonas Johansson: out (covid-19), Anton Lundell: day to day (lower body), Markus Nutivaara: out (undisclosed), Patric Hornqvist: day to day (undisclosed).
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