Florida @ Vegas preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 2, 2019 ) Vegas 1, Florida 3

The Vegas Golden Knights received just the response for which they were hoping after making a blockbuster deal to acquire Mark Stone at Monday's trade deadline. After posting only their second victory in the past eight games, the Golden Knights look to post back-to-back wins for only the second time in seven weeks when they host the Florida Panthers on Thursday night.

While Stone was held without a point, Vegas had a collective spring in its step by outshooting the Dallas Stars by a 2-to-1 margin (48 to 24) in Tuesday's 4-1 victory to remain six points ahead of Arizona for third place in the Pacific. “We got a big addition (in Stone), but the entire room has to play better as a group," cautioned defenseman Shea Theodore. "Last year was special, but nothing is going to bring that back. ... We have to be better and create some new history.” Florida is making a belated push for a playoff spot but is nine points back of Pittsburgh for the second wild card after suffering a 4-3 shootout loss at Arizona on Tuesday. "I can't say enough about the guys just battling and competing and finding ways at this time of year, finding ways to get the points. That's important," Panthers coach Bob Boughner said after his team improved to 5-1-1 in the last seven games.

TV: 10 p.m. ET, FS Florida, AT&T Sportsnet-Rocky Mountain (Las Vegas)

ABOUT THE PANTHERS (28-25-9): Backup netminder James Reimer was knocked out of Tuesday's game early in the second period due to a lower-body injury, forcing 39-year-old Roberto Luongo into the net for the second time in as many nights. Center Aleksander Barkov, the reigning NHL Second Star of the Week, continued his blistering scoring pace by netting a third-period goal Tuesday to give him seven tallies and six assists during a six-game point streak. Barkov, who scored one goal and set up another in a 3-1 victory over Vegas on Feb. 2, needs two more tallies to match his career high of 28 set in 2015-16.

ABOUT THE GOLDEN KNIGHTS (33-26-5): Stone managed to make his presence felt in his Vegas debut, registering a game-high six shots on goal to go with three takeaways, two blocks and a pair of hits. He also was paired on a line with a one-time bitter rival in Max Pacioretty, the former Montreal Canadiens standout who scored twice to reach 20 goals on the season. “It was awesome,” said Stone, who scored a career-high 28 goals with Ottawa. "Never in my wildest dreams did I think I would be in a celebration (with Pacioretty), but it has been awesome. Can’t beat this crowd. It’s the best place to play in the league."

OVERTIME

1. Stone has only two goals and 10 points in 16 games versus Florida.

2. Panthers F Jonathan Huberdeau has four goals and nine points in his past six games.

3. Pacioretty has 45 multiple-goal games, the third-most in the league since the 2010-11 season.

PREDICTION: Golden Knights 4, Panthers 2