SUNRISE, Fla.– Your water-cooler Q into Thursday night’s NHL slate? Along with respective conference leaders Tampa Bay and Nashville, which team is the hottest in their respective last 10 games?
That would be the Florida Panthers at 8-1-1. Given the last rights to make the Eastern Conference playoffs before the All-Star break, the ‘Cats have used a few of their nine lives to climb back into the wildcard mix with three games in hand and four points behind both current wildcards — New Jersey and Columbus.
Thursday’s encounter marked the first of four meetings against the Bruins in the final weeks of the season — and a remote, but possible, first-round matchup.