San Jose @ Florida preview

Last Meeting ( Dec 1, 2017 ) San Jose 2, Florida 1

The Florida Panthers have gotten much healthier in the last week and look to make one last run at being a playoff contender as they go for a third straight victory Monday night against the visiting San Jose Sharks. The Panthers got Nick Bjugstad back a little over a week ago and fellow forward Vincent Trocheck has recorded three points in two games since returning from a two-month absence with an ankle injury.

“Confidence, I think, is the No. 1 thing coming from these two games,” Trocheck said of wins over Toronto (Friday) and Nashville (Saturday). “With the team that we have, I think we definitely have the personnel here to win a lot of hockey games. … It’s just a matter of us getting our confidence back and playing the way that we know how we can play.” The Panthers, who will have 11 days off through the All-Star break after the contest, will face a San Jose team that has given up six goals each in a pair of losses since winning seven consecutive victories. The Sharks finished with a 39-26 edge in shots Saturday despite losing 6-3 at Tampa Bay as Evander Kane scored twice to give him three goals and three assists in the past three contests. “I didn’t think the score was super indicative of how the game went,” Kane told reporters after Saturday’s setback. “I thought we carried the play to be honest for most of the game. But every mistake we made or when we took penalties, they capitalized on those opportunities.”

TV: 7 p.m. ET, TVA, Sportsnet, NBCS California (San Jose), FS Florida

ABOUT THE SHARKS (28-15-7): Two-time Norris Trophy defenseman Erik Karlsson (40 assists) was a late scratch from Saturday’s game with an undisclosed injury. “He’s been dealing with something for a little while here and he felt that he was going to be able to play through and just couldn’t,” San Jose coach Peter DeBoer told reporters. “We’ll see how he feels (Sunday and Monday). … We’re not going to risk anything with him.” Brent Burns leads the team in scoring (52 points) despite being kept off the scoresheet in three straight games, and fellow defenseman Marc-Edouard Vlasic (wrist) is close to returning after missing nine contests.

ABOUT THE PANTHERS (19-20-8): Trocheck had a goal an assist in the 4-2 victory over Nashville on Saturday and told reporters: “I’ve only played 20 games this year, so I have fresh legs. I would give it up to that.” While Trocheck has been added to the mix, the team’s top two point producers have cooled off as left wing Jonathan Huberdeau (48 points) managed just one in four games and captain Aleksander Barkov (44 points) was kept off the scoresheet in the same span. Mike Hoffman scored five of his team-leading 23 goals in nine January games and fellow forward Frank Vatrano boasts four of his career-high 15 tallies in the past six contests.

OVERTIME

1. San Jose C Logan Couture, who is tied for second on the team with Karlsson at 43 points, has just one in the past seven games.

2. Florida D Aaron Ekblad had a goal and an assist at Nashville and boasts seven points in his past 10 contests, following a nine-game drought.

3. Sharks captain F Joe Pavelski leads the team with 26 goals, but managed just one in his past seven contests.

PREDICTION: Sharks 4, Panthers 3