SUNRISE — No one has to tell the Florida Panthers that the Atlantic Division is the toughest in the NHL.
Florida’s 5-3 loss to the Detroit Red Wings on Monday was the latest lesson that there are no easy marks in a division where all eight teams have a winning percentage above .500.
Panthers lines tonight: projected lineup and starting goalie →
By comparison, only three of eight in the Pacific are above the .500 mark.
“We’re going to get everybody’s best,’’ Paul Maurice said Monday. “All the teams in the Atlantic are good teams. When you get their best you have to match it. I think that was a really strong game by Detroit. I wasn’t in love with ours.”
Atlantic Division teams, certainly, are not the pushovers they had been.
The Panthers practically owned the Wings in this decade.
From 2019-20 through last season, they were 23-5-1 against Detroit.
During that time period, Sergei Bobrovsky was 16-3-1 in games against the Red Wings.
So far this season, the Panthers are 0-3 against Atlantic foes so far.
Weaker teams in the Atlantic Division have improved over the years.
The Sabres made the playoffs last season after a 14-year drought; Ottawa has been a playoff team the past two seasons but that was preceded by seven straight non-playoff years.
Likewise, the Montreal Canadiens made the postseason the past two years after missing for three seasons.
They won two rounds before being eliminated by the eventual Cup winning Hurricanes in the conference finals.
The improved Bruins will be Florida’s next Atlantic Division opponent Sunday in Boston.
The Bruins sit atop the Atlantic Division right now with 23 points.
Tampa Bay remains a force despite being eliminated by Montreal in a seven-game set last season.
The hard-luck Toronto Maple Leafs missed the playoffs last year after nine straight appearances but the additions of Kirill Marchenko and No. 1 draft pick Gavin McKenna to go along with Auston Matthewsand William Nylander will make them a tough opponent for years to come.
Oh yeah, they have Bobrovsky now as well.
There is no shortage of old and young star power in the division.
Detroit might be missing Dylan Larkin, but veterans Alex DeBrincatand newly acquired Viktor Arvidsson are taking up the slack.
Ottawa without Brady Tkachuk gave Florida a lesson recently. Tim Stǔtzle and Drake Batherson are emerging superstars with Shane Pinto not far behind.
Buffalo has big Tage Thompson, one of the league’s top snipers. Their strong defense features Owen Power and Rasmus Dahlin.
Montreal’s speedy Nick Suzuki and Cole Caufield are tough to defend against. Lane Hutson, a former Calder Memorial Trophy winner as top rookie, is a solid two-way threat on defense.
Boston still has David Pastrnak, who over his career, is at a near point a game pace against Florida.
Tampa Bay might have been weakened in recent years by the loss of Steven Stamkos, but they still have Hart Trophy winner Nikita Kucherov, at least for now, and all-world goalie Andrei Vasilevskiy.
“We know it’s going to be tough,’’ Sam Bennett said. “We know we need to be better against divisional teams and that’s obviously going to be a focus for us. We’ll be aware of that for sure.”
The immediate task at hand is Chicago tonight. The Panthers squeaked out a victory at their earlier meeting in the Windy City.
The Hawks missed the playoffs the last six seasons and are near the bottom of the NHL right now, but they have Connor Bedard and a resurgent Patrick Kane up front as well as our old pal Spencer Knight in goal.
The Blackhawks lost six of the last seven, but like just about every NHL team, they are not pushovers.
ON DECK: GAME No. 16
CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS at FLORIDA PANTHERS
When: Wednesday, 7:30 p.m. — Hometown Remix Game No. 2
Where: Amerant Bank Arena, Sunrise
National TV: TNT/truTV
National Streaming: HBO Max
Radio: WQAM; WBZT 1230-AM (Palm Beach); WCTH 100.3-FM (Florida Keys); SiriusXM. Panthers Radio Streaming: SiriusXM, NHL/Panthers App
Last Season: Panthers won 2-0
This Season (Panthers Lead 1-0) — At Florida: Wednesday. At Chicago: Panthers 3, Blackhawks 2 (Oct. 25)
All-time Regular Season Series: Blackhawks lead 30-23-4, 3 ties
Up Next for the Panthers: Saturday at Washington Capitals, 12:30 p.m.
Alan Greenberg has been a freelance hockey journalist for over 40 years. He has written for almost every major … More about Alan Greenberg, FHN Sr. Writer