On the other end, Lukáš Dostál has been a huge contributor to his team’s success and on Monday was named the NHL’s First Star of the Week. According to head coach Joel Quenneville, Dostál will be in the net against the Panthers.
“He’s a battler,” Quenneville said of his netminder. “You can see he’s growing every single night in the net and handling the puck well and making some nice moves and plays with the puck as well. We’ve given up some dangerous chances that he’s made some big, timely saves in the last few games.”
Florida and Anaheim will conclude their season series and face off for the second time in a week as the Ducks won in a 3-2 shootout victory last Tuesday in Sunrise, Fla.
After playing a team twice in such a short period of time, Quenneville discussed what he can take from the first game and apply to tonight.
“It’s going to be a tight game,” he said. “It’s a hard game. Got to be respectful for these guys, it’s the first game on a trip and I know they’re going to be ready. We’re fortunate they’re missing some pieces, but they play such a strong team-game they seem to keep themselves in every hockey game.”
While Brad Marchand will face Anaheim after missing last week’s game, the Panthers will be without Jonah Gadjovich, who suffered an upper body injury on Oct. 25 and did not travel with the team on this west coast road trip.