Panthers lineup tonight: Florida’s projected lineup for game against the Utah Hockey Club | Jan. 8, 2025

The Florida Panthers will face the Utah Hockey Club at Delta Center on Wednesday. They will look to bounce back from a 3-1 loss to the Colorado Avalanche on Monday, which dropped the team to 2-3 over their last five. The defending Stanley Cup champs are sitting at No. 2 in the Atlantic Division standings with 50 points, six points behind the Toronto Maple Leafs.

The Utah Hockey Club will be heading into tonight's game after a 3-2 loss to the Dallas Stars on Saturday, which dropped the team to just 1-4 in their last five. Currently, the team is No. 6 in the Central Division standings, however, with a win, they could overtake the St. Louis Blues at No. 5.

When the Panthers take the ice against Utah, they will be without defencemen Aaron Ekblad, who exited Friday's game against the Penguins with an undisclosed injury, and Niko Mikkola, who has missed five straight games.

Florida Panthers projected lines

Forwards:

1. Evan Rodrigues (LW) - Aleksander Barkov (C) - Sam Reinhart (RW)
2. Eetu Luostarinen (LW) - Sam Bennett (C) - Matthew Tkachuk (RW)
3. Carter Verhaeghe (LW) - Anton Lundell (C) - Jesper Boqvist (RW)
4. AJ Greer (LW) - Tomas Nosek (C) - Mackie Samoskevich (RW)

Defense:

1. Gustav Forsling - Dmitry Kulikov
2. Tobias Bjornfot - Uvis Balinskis
3. Nate Schmidt - Adam Boqvist

Goalies:

• Sergei Bobrovsky
• Spencer Knight

Powerplay:

1. Sam Reinhart, Aleksander Barkov, Carter Verhaeghe, Adam Boqvist, Matthew Tkachuk
2. Sam Bennett, Anton Lundell, Evan Rodrigues, Mackie Samoskevich, Nate Schmidt

Penalty Kill:

1. Aleksander Barkov, Sam Reinhart, Gustav Forsling, Dmitry Kulikov
2. Anton Lundell, Eetu Luostarinen, Uvis Balinskis, Nate Schmidt

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Looking at the odds for tonight's game between the Panthers and the Utah Hockey Club and upcoming games on Florida's schedule

Heading into Wednesday's game between the Panthers and the Utah Hockey Club, Florida is sitting as a slight betting favorite. While the defending Stanley Cup champs have been the better team this season, their recent struggles have bettors split when it comes to how this one plays out.

On FanDuel, Florida is a -140 favorite while on the flip side, Utah is a +116 underdog. Meanwhile, on DraftKings, Florida is a -130 favorite while Utah is a +110 underdog.

If these lines hold up between now and puck drop, it would take a $140 bet on the Panthers to win $100 on FanDuel while a $100 bet on Utah as the underdogs could win $116.

Following tonight's game against Utah, the Panthers will head back home for a divisional showdown with the Boston Bruins on Saturday. The team will then kick off a back-to-back on Monday when they collide with the Philadelphia Flyers, before heading to New Jersey for a showdown with the Devils the following night.