Florida Panthers vs Utah Hockey Club: Game preview, predictions and odds

The Florida Panthers are on the road to play the Utah Hockey Club on Wednesday, Jan. 8, at 10 p.m. EST.

Florida (24-15-2) is coming off a 3-1 loss to Colorado. Utah (17-15-7) is coming off a 3-2 OT loss to the Dallas Stars.

Panthers vs Hockey Club: Head-to-head & key stats

This is the first time Florida and Utah play
The Panthers are averaging 3.2 goals per game
The Hockey Club are 5-7-4 at home
Florida is allowing 3.09 goals per game
Utah is averaging 2.89 goals per game
The Panthers are 12-7-1 on the road
The Hockey Club is allowing 2.97 goals per game

Florida Panthers vs Utah Hockey Club: Preview

Florida is coming off a 3-1 loss to Utah as the Panthers are 2-2 in its last four. The Panthers are led by Sam Reinhart who has 46 points, Matthew Tkachuk has 36 points, Aleksander Barkov has 35 points and Carter Verhaeghe has 29 points.

The Panthers will start Sergei Bobrovsky who's 17-9-1 with a 2.76 GAA and a .901 SV%. On the road this season, Bobrovsky is 8-4 with a 2.66 GAA and a .903 SV%.

Utah, meanwhile, is 1-3 in its last four as the Hockey Club have struggled. Utah is starting Karel Vejmelka who's 9-10-3 with a 2.45 GAA and a .914 SV%. In his career against Florida, he's 1-4 with a 3.91 GAA and a .904 SV%.

The Hockey Club is led by Clayton Keller who has 39 points, Logan Cooley has 34 points, Dylan Guenther has 34 points and Nick Schmaltz has 29 points.

Panthers vs Hockey Club: Odds & Prediction

Florida is a -135 favorite, while Utah is a +114 underdog. The over/under is set at 5.5 goals.

The Panthers are in the midst of a West Coast road trip which is always tough for Eastern Conference teams. However, this is a good spot for Florida to get the win.

Vejmelka has struggled against Florida in his career, as the Panthers have one of the best offenses in the NHL. Bobrovsky, meanwhile, has played well this season as he will limit Utah's offense enough to edge out the win.

Prediction: Florida 4, Utah 2.

Panthers vs Hockey Club: Betting Tips

Tip 1: Florida ML (-135)

Tip 2: Over 5.5 goals (-130)

Tip 3: Clayton Keller 3+ shots on goal (-120)

Tip 4: Matthew Tkachuk 1+ points (-190)

About the author

Cole is an NHL, NFL and College Sports reporter at Sportskeeda with over 7 years of experience writing for publications like CBC, USA Today, SMG, BJPENN, Sherdog and SB Nation.

An NHL fan his whole life, Cole played rep hockey in Canada from age 5 until 17 and grew up rooting for Martin St. Louis and the Tampa Bay Lightning. His all-time favorite players are Vincent Lecavalier and Steven Stamkos, while Jon Cooper is his favorite coach of all time.

Cole attended Sheridan College and received his journalism degree in 2019. After decades of watching and reporting, he considers his knowledge of sports as his primary strength. He ensures that the same story has been reported by at least two reputed reporters before creating it.

Cole enjoys playing golf and spending time with friends and family when not reporting breaking stories. His favorite sports moment is from the 2010 Olympics, when Sidney Crosby scored the golden goal in overtime to beat Team USA for the gold medal.

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Edited by Rajdeep Barman

Florida Panthers vs Utah Hockey Club: Game preview, predictions and odds | January 8, 2025

Panthers vs Hockey Club: Head-to-head & key stats

Florida Panthers vs Utah Hockey Club: Preview

Panthers vs Hockey Club: Odds & Prediction

Panthers vs Hockey Club: Betting Tips