Panthers GameDay v Capitals: How to Watch, Lines, Goalies, Odds

FORT LAUDERDALE — Florida Panthers fans will notice a familiar face on the ice tonight when the Washington Capitals visit Sunrise: Justin Sourdif.

The former Florida prospect will face the Panthers for the first time since he was traded to the Capitals during the offseason.

Sourdif, 23, was a third-round pick in 2020 by the Panthers and played in four NHL games with Florida. He spent almost all of last season playing for Charlotte, scoring 16 goals with 34 points in 43 games.

He also had four goals and 10 points in 16 playoff games for the Checkers before being traded.

“It’s pretty cool, I started my career in Florida and to be back in Sunrise tonight is pretty cool and to play those guys will be fun,” Sourdif said after the Capitals’ morning skate at the IcePlex.

With the Panthers’ bottom-six being pretty deep, Sourdif was basically blocked from NHL playing time in Florida.

The Capitals were extremely interested in acquiring him — and Sourdif has played in 16 games thus far this season.

“I was super-excited to get to Washington, get the chance to play with this great group of guys,” Sourdif said. “It has been awesome so far, I have really enjoyed my time in DC, and I am getting really comfortable with everyone and the systems and whatnot. Having a fresh start was nice and I am looked forward to continue that.”

Sourdif is not the only player on the Capitals with ties to the Panthers.

Washington defenseman Jakob Chychrun and forward Brandon Duhaime are both South Florida natives and played for the Jr. Panthers.

Alex Ovechkin is also no stranger to the Panthers; his 45 goals and 74 points are the most ever scored against Florida.

NOTEBOOK: CAPITALS at PANTHERS

• Brad Marchand is two points shy of 1,000 for his career; he comes into tonight riding a five-game goal streak and is Florida’s leader in goals (11) and points (17). He has had a multi-point game in two of his past three.
• Starting Goalies: Daniil Tarasov gets another start for the Panthers after sustaining a hard-luck loss in San Jose last Saturday. Logan Thompson goes for the Capitals.
• How to Watch/Stream: The Panthers are back on local television tonight. The game can also be streamed on ESPN+ and Panthers+.
• NHL Betting Odds: The Panthers are slight favorites (-125) on the money line at the local book. To win with the Panthers, a $125 bet pays $100.

ON DECK: GAME No. 17

WASHINGTON CAPITALS at FLORIDA PANTHERS

• When: Thursday, 7 p.m.
• Where: Amerant Bank Arena, Sunrise
• Local TV: Scripps Sports — WSFL 39 (Miami/FTL); WHDT 9 (WPB); LAFF 36.3 (SWFla)
• Streaming: Panthers+, ESPN+
• Radio: WQAM; WBZT 1230-AM (Palm Beach); WCTH 100.3-FM (Florida Keys); SiriusXM
• Panthers Radio Streaming: SiriusXM 932, NHL App
• Local Betting Odds — Panthers Favored: MoneyLine (-140); Puck Line -1.5 (+180); O/U 5.5 (-110/-110)
• This Season — At Washington: Jan. 17. At Florida: Thursday; Dec. 29. 
• Last Season: Capitals won 3-0
• All-time Regular Season Series: Washington leads 69-48-13, 9 ties
• Up Next for the Panthers: Saturday vs. Tampa Bay Lightning, 5 p.m.

PROJECTED FLORIDA PANTHERS (8-7-1) LINES

23 Carter Verhaeghe // 17 Evan Rodrigues // 13 Sam Reinhart

27 Eetu Luostarinen // 15 Anton Lundell // 63 Brad Marchand

70 Jesper Boqvist // 9 Sam Bennett // 11 Mackie Samoskevich

10 A.J. Greer // 79 Cole Schwindt // 71 Luke Kunin

42 Gus Forsling // 5 Aaron Ekblad

77 Niko Mikkola // 3 Seth Jones

6 Donovan Sebrango // 2 Jeff Petry

40 Daniil Tarasov

72 Sergei Bobrovsky

Scratched: Uvis Balinskis, Noah Gregor

Injured: Sasha Barkov (knee), Matthew Tkachuk (lower body), Tomas Nosek (knee), Dmitry Kulikov (shoulder), Jonah Gadjovich (upper body)

PROJECTED WASHINGTON CAPITALS (8-7-1) LINES

8 Alex Ovechkin //  17 Dylan Strome // 72 Anthony Beauvillier

21 Aliaksei Protas // 24 Connor McMichael // 43 Tom Wilson

53 Ethen Frank // 29 Hendrix Lapierre // 9 Ryan Leonard

22 Brandon Duhaime // 26 Nic Dowd // 34 Justin Sourdif

42 Martin Fehervary // 74 John Carlson

6 Jakob Chychrun // 3 Matt Roy

38 Rasmus Sandin // 47 Declan Chisholm

48 Logan Thompson

79 Charlie Lindgren

Scratched: Sonny Milano, Dylan McIlrath, Trevor van Riemsdyk

Injured: Pierre-Luc Dubois (lower body)