The Florida Panthers will look to build off a strong win on Saturday in Ottawa as their season-long road trip continues against one of the hottest teams in the league.

Florida is trying to make up ground in the playoff race, and one of the teams they are currently chasing are the surprising Buffalo Sabres.

After losing three straight games in early December, Buffalo has been on a tear.

They won 10 straight games through the end of the calendar year and are still riding an impressing 13-1-0 stretch.

On Dec. 8, Buffalo was last in the conference and four points south of the next-worst team (which at the time was a tie between Ottawa and Florida).

Since then, the Sabres have shot up the standings.

Entering play Monday, Buffalo holds the top Wild Card spot with 52 points through 43 games.

As for Florida, the Panthers are still anxiously waiting to bring a couple elite offensive players back into their lineup.

Injured forwards Matthew Tkachuk and Brad Marchand are both on the brink of returning. Marchand has missed two straight games with an undisclosed injury and is considered day-to-day while Tkachuk has been working his way back from offseason adductor and sports hernia surgery.

The Panthers will be off for a few days after Monday’s game in Buffalo, so it might make sense to hold both out one more game and give them a nice long stretch to heal and prepare, but we’ll see how things shake out when the Cats hit the ice.

Here are the Panthers projected lines and pairings for Monday’s matchup in Buffalo:

Eetu Luostarinen – Anton Lundell – Sam Reinhart

Carter Verhaeghe – Sam Bennett – Brad Marchand

Mackie Samoskevich – Evan Rodrigues – A.J. Greer

Jesper Boqvist – Luke Kunin – Jack Studnicka

Gus Forsling – Aaron Ekblad

Niko Mikkola – Uvis Balinskis

Donovan Sebrango – Jeff Petry

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Photo caption: Oct 18, 2025; Buffalo, New York, USA; Florida Panthers right wing Mackie Samoskevich (11) looks to take a shot on goal as Buffalo Sabres defenseman Rasmus Dahlin (26) defends during the first period at KeyBank Center. (Timothy T. Ludwig-Imagn Images)

Sharks must improve their defense to become true NHL Stanley Cup contender originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

• Editor’s note: Sheng Peng is a regular contributor to NBC Sports California’s Sharks coverage. You can read more of his coverage on San Jose Hockey Now, listen to him on the San Jose Hockey Now Podcast, and follow him on Twitter at @Sheng_Peng.

It doesn’t take an NHL general manager to figure out that the Sharks need to improve their defense to get to the next level.

That’s no disrespect, truly, to their current blueliners, who have done admirable work to help San Jose to a surprising 23-19-3 record.

But if the Sharks are going to be a Cup contender, like their counterparts on Sunday night, the Las Vegas Golden Knights, they’re going to need some internal and external growth on the blueline in the coming years.

This isn’t an overreaction to a 7-2 loss on Sunday to Vegas.

Here’s what a league source, not with the San Jose Sharks or Knights, texted San Jose Hockey Now during the game.

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DENVER — Trent Miner stopped all 29 shots he faced to earn his first NHL victory, becoming the 17th goaltender in league history to record a shutout in his inaugural win, as the Colorado Avalanche blanked the Columbus Blue Jackets 4–0 at Ball Arena on Saturday.

The victory extended Colorado’s home point streak to 21 games. The outing marked Miner’s fifth NHL appearance and his third game of the season.

Under head coach Jared Bednar, Colorado has been nearly unbeatable at Ball Arena, improving to 19-0-2 on home ice this season while extending its home winning streak to 17 games — the second-longest in Avalanche/Quebec Nordiques franchise history and just one shy of matching the record set during the 2021–22 campaign.

What a journey it’s been for Trent Miner on the way to his first NHL win. pic.twitter.com/wwwQRtKfc4

— Colorado Avalanche (@Avalanche) January 11, 2026

"It's impressive what the guys have been doing, especially at home, no question," Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said. "It's the same as what goes into winning on a nightly basis, but then it just becomes consistency in order to win that much in a row and not take nights off or have bad nights. Like some games are better than others, but I feel like our guys are always there to compete, and their heart and minds are in the right place."

Miner Earns His Stripes

Selected 202nd overall in the 2019 NHL Draft, Miner can feel like a long-tenured member of the Avalanche organization because, in many ways, he is. It wasn’t until last season — his fourth as a professional — that he was finally entrusted with an extended opportunity as the starting goaltender for the Colorado Eagles. Miner made the most of it, posting a 22-10-9 record with a .918 save percentage and firmly putting himself on the Avalanche’s radar.

While it may have appeared at times that Bednar was slow to lean on Miner due to his limited number of starts, that situation speaks more to the Avalanche’s depth in goal than a lack of confidence. With a strong, established goaltending group in place, opportunities can be difficult to come by for a lesser-known and less-experienced netminder trying to find his footing at the NHL level.

Miner made the most of his opportunity, but at the end of the night, the only thing that truly mattered for him is that they got the win.

“In all honesty, I’m just glad we were able to get the win,” he said. “For sure, it’s exciting to get my first win, but I think for us to get a win at home is just as exciting.”

Everyone appreciates a humble player, but this is likely a day Miner will never forget.

From the start, Pittsburgh's game against the Boston Bruins on Sunday felt like one of those games where the Penguins just weren't going to generate much of anything. 

And that's exactly how everything unfolded. 

The Penguins were shut out by Boston, 1-0, courtesy of a 27-save effort by Bruins goaltender Joonas Korpisalo. Viktor Arvidsson scored the game's lone goal in the first period, and the Bs shut the door the rest of the way, putting on a defensive clinic to stymie every offensive opportunity - even if few and far between - that the Penguins generated. 

However, it was a tight-checking game all around, and the Penguins put forth quite the effort defensively, too. They blocked 17 shots in comparison to Boston's 18, goaltender Stuart Skinner turned in another strong effort with 17 saves on 18 Boston shots, and they killed all six power plays that the Bruins had throughout the game. 

Unfortunately, Pittsburgh just could not put the puck in the back of the net, and Korpisalo shut the door on every high-danger opportunity that the Bruins actually allowed.

Here are some thoughts and takeaways from this game:

- Quite honestly, the Penguins did not play a bad hockey game. Yes, they couldn't generate much offensively - and I'll get to that in a minute - but, for the most part, they did a fantastic job of limiting opportunites for the Bruins. 

They simply couldn't score, which hadn't been a problem for them during their six-game win streak. Bounces weren't going their way. Calls weren't going their way. And even if they did generate some good opportunities, there weren't really too many longer periods of sustained pressure because the Bruins didn't give them any space to work with. 

This is one of those games where you have to give credit to the opponent. They played about as well a defensive game as you could ask for, and they got the goaltending when they needed it.

- Speaking of not scoring, I'm not exactly sure what the idea behind the Penguins' lineup was Sunday. 

Yes, they suffered their first loss in seven games against the Calgary Flames on Saturday, but they could have won that game, too, had a few more bounces gone their way - even if they didn't particularly play very well. It was also their first game without Bryan Rust, who is out day-to-day with a lower-body injury, and his absence in the lineup is very, very noticeable. 

However, some things were still working for them. The second line of Ben Kindel, Evgeni Malkin, and Egor Chinakhov - with Kindel centering - seemed to develop a bit of chemistry and were definitely the best line in that game. The first line of Sidney Crosby, Tommy Novak, and Rickard Rakell had some chances, too, even if the third line was quiet and the fourth line had an off-night. 

'I'm Lucky To Be Able To Play With Him': Penguins' Rookie Relishes Opportunity To Center All-Time GreatPittsburgh Penguins' rookie Ben Kindel is experiencing a rare opportunity to center an all-time great NHL player in Evgeni Malkin - and he hopes to make the most of it.

I understand tinkering a little bit in order to maximize what players provide in certain roles, especially with a top-line forward missing. Heading into this one, I wouldn't have been opposed to bumping Anthony Mantha or Justin Brazeau up to the top line and putting Tommy Novak in the third-line center position, which would have bumped either Kevin Hayes or the newly recalled Rafael Harvey-Pinard to the wing. 

They did move Mantha to Crosby's line in place of Novak. What I did not understand was the decision to bump Kindel back down to the third line, have Novak play wing on that line, and place Hayes in the second-line center position instead of, simply, putting Malkin back in that spot. 

I didn't love the idea of bumping Kindel back down to begin with, as I thought he played a pretty strong game on Saturday. But, if that was going to happen, there's no reason not to have either Malkin or Novak center the second line - and, probably, Malkin.

This is not a knock on Hayes. He isn't the reason the Penguins have lost the last two hockey games. But he's not a viable substitute as a top-six center given the other options the Penguins have at their disposal, and - at the end of the day - swapping in Hayes for Rust is obviously not going to produce similar results, given the fact that Rust is second on the team in scoring. 

Even without Rust in the top-six picture, that second line seemed to be building toward something with Kindel on it. And Novak has performed as a center this season. I think Dan Muse has largely done an excellent job this season, but I believe he may have overthought this one. I don't think he put out a lineup Sunday that was maximized to give the Penguins the highest shot at success, especially in generating offense. 

Hayes is fine in a bottom-six role. But, even if he was going to bump up to the second line, Malkin was probably better off centering it. 

Takeaways: Penguins Snap Six-Game Win Streak With 2-1 Loss To FlamesThe Pittsburgh Penguins were handed their first loss of 2026 by the Calgary Flames Saturday and hope to bounce back against the Boston Bruins on Sunday

- After a rocky start to his Penguins' tenure, Skinner has really settled in during his last four appearances. 

The 27-year-old netminder has had consecutive save percentages of .964, .917, .966, and .944 in those last four games. He has made big saves when the Penguins have needed him to, and he looks very comfortable in net right now. 

Arturs Silovs has been better of late as well, but I do think Skinner has separated himself, even if just a tiny little bit. The biggest knock on him throughout the years has been his consistency, and he is known for going through hot and cold stretches. He has an .899 save percentage in seven appearances with the Penguins, and the first few starts were pretty rough. 

I'd continue the rotation for now. Skinner tends to perform a bit better with a lighter workload. And, honestly, this could be a perfect situation for both Skinner and Silovs. We'll see how it continues to play out.

- Parker Wotherspoon blocked a shot with his knee near the end of the second period, and he collapsed to the ice in a ton of pain. He did come back out for the third period, but it initially looked very concerning. 

Quite frankly, the Penguins cannot afford to lose Wotherspoon, who has been their best defensive defenseman this season and a revelation beside Erik Karlsson. Hopefully, he's good to go. If there is a short list of players whose injuries would be detrimental to this team, he's on it.

Parker Wotherspoon blocked a shot and was down for a short while talking to head athletic trainer Kevin Elliott. He appears to be staying on the bench for now.

— Pens Inside Scoop (@PensInsideScoop) January 11, 2026

- The power play has looked very uninspiring for several games now, and it went 0-for-2 on Sunday. In fact, it is just three for its last 16 and zero for its last six. 

Even when the Penguins have been converting on it, it's usually later on in the man advantage after a few clears. I haven't liked the lack of player movement and puck movement as well as the general tendency to defer shots, which are all typical signs of the Penguins' power play going through a cold spell. 

They're still third in the league at 28.6 percent. And, when they have hit small dry pockets, they've found ways to rebound this season. I expect the same in this case, but they need to be quicker with their decision-making and create more chaos to get opposing penalty kills out of structure. 

Oh, and the shot-pass? It works to perfection sometimes. But that doesn't mean they should be trying it almost every time they throw a puck in the vicinity of the net. They need to just shoot more. 

- Next up for the Penguins will be a tough matchup on Tuesday against the red-hot Tampa Bay Lightning, who have won nine straight games. 

The Penguins won by the skin of their teeth when they played Tampa on Dec. 4 - all because of a goal that was called back on what was ruled a hand pass - which immediately preceded their eight-game losing streak. They did not play particularly well in that game, and they have had a bit of trouble with the Bolts recently, as they are 2-3-1 in their last five games against them. 

Starting Tuesday, the Penguins play six games in 10 days. Things tend to pile on one way or another when a schedule is that condensed. 

They haven't played poorly in the last two losses, even if they came away with no points and didn't have their A-game. That needs to change on Tuesday, as they are now a point out of a wild card spot. 

Kucherov’s hot streak pushes Lightning to road win against FlyersOn Saturday, the Lightning picked up their ninth straight win with a 7–2 victory over the <a href="https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/philadelphia-flyers">Flyers,</a> marking their longest win streak, since winning 11 in a row during the 2019–20 season. The run comes after a difficult stretch in which the Bolts went 2–6–1.

Bookmark THN - Pittsburgh Penguins on your Google News tab  to follow the latest Penguins news, roster moves, player features, and more!  

The Buffalo Sabres continued their red-hot pace in a 5-3 victory over the Anaheim Ducks on Saturday, but are beginning to show signs late in games that could lead to defeat. For the third game in a row, the Sabres have entered the third period with a considerable lead, but have allowed the opposition to climb back to within one goal. 

Against Vancouver on Tuesday, the Sabres led 4-0 midway through the third period, but the Canucks scored three goals in the waning minutes of regulation and clawed back to within a goal before losing 4-3. In New York on Thursday, Buffalo led 3-1 entering the third, but Vincent Trocheck narrowed the lead to 3-2 and the Rangers had a four-minute power play with a chance to tie, but Mattias Samuelsson’s short-handed goal ended New York’s momentum. 

On Saturday, the Sabres once again led 4-0 and once again sat back and allowed Anaheim to narrow the gap to 4-3 before Josh Norris scored into an empty net. 

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 "That's on us. That wasn't good enough. We let our goalie down. That is not up to par for our club. Our club can't accept that," Sabres head coach Lindy Ruff said  "We're a better club than that. We played well to that point, and what we did in that last five minutes isn't isn't good enough.....I think it's just a little bit of a mental let down, but not near good enough."

The Sabres face a critical point in their bid to stay in a playoff position before the Olympic break, as their opposition in the next three home games are direct competitors for an Eastern Conference spot. Buffalo plays three games in four nights starting with a matchup against the reigning two-time Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers on Monday, followed by Philadelphia and Montreal back-to-back nights Wednesday and Thursday, before finishing the homestand against the Minnesota Wild on Saturday afternoon.  

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