TLDR: Florida comes to the United Center without its captain, its top left wing or its starting goalie, and Chicago has spent the last week forgetting how to score in its own building. One of these slumps ends Sunday afternoon.
A Florida Panthers team missing Barkov, Marchand and starting goalie Markstrom visits a 3-7-0 Chicago club that has scored 1 goal in its last 2 home games. Florida's goaltending (Schmid or the recently recalled Cooper Black) and Chicago's struggling offense outside Connor Bedard will decide it. Florida comes in on 2 days of rest; Chicago is on a quick turnaround after Friday's loss to Montreal.
+Bedard scored early vs Montreal, still the threat
+Beat Pittsburgh and Winnipeg on home ice this month
+Get a short-handed Florida with goalie questions
−1 goal across Dallas and Montreal home losses
−Sunday matinee right after Friday night game
−Byram still out on the blue line
The Panthers looked like themselves for a stretch: 7 goals in Columbus, 8 on Seattle, 3 straight wins. Then the injuries caught up. Florida was outscored 9-1 across a back-to-back in Ottawa and Pittsburgh and got shut out 4-0 by a Penguins team that had just lost 4 straight. With Aleksander Barkov out 6-8 weeks with a lower-body injury and Brad Marchand gone about 6 weeks with one of his own, Florida is trying to win without the 2 forwards who set its tone.
The bigger question for Sunday is who plays goal. Jacob Markstrom took a shot off the shoulder in practice, and Paul Maurice put him at 10-14 days, with an IR stint that guarantees at least 7. Akira Schmid was lined up for the Ottawa game, and Florida recalled Cooper Black, a 25-year-old undrafted free agent out of Dartmouth who went 25-13-4 with AHL Charlotte last season, as the other option. Maurice hasn't said who starts at the United Center, and with Gustav Forsling day-to-day on the blue line, Florida's defense in front of whoever plays isn't settled either.
Chicago's problem is the other end of the ice. The Blackhawks are 3-7-0 and have scored 1 goal in their last 2 home games combined: shut out 4-0 by Dallas, then beaten 4-1 by Montreal on Friday night. Connor Bedard scored 4:23 into that one for his 2nd goal of the season, and nobody else scored again. Jake Evans scored twice for Montreal, including a shorthanded wrister past Spencer Knight, and the Canadiens scored the final 3 goals.
The rest of the schedule matters here too. Florida last played on the 22nd and gets 2 full days off before puck drop at 2:00 PM CT. Chicago played Friday night and turns around for a Sunday matinee with Bowen Byram still out on defense. The Hawks have shown they can win in this building, beating Pittsburgh 5-3 and Winnipeg 4-3 back to back, but both of those were high-scoring games, and their recent losses have been the opposite.
Florida has the deeper roster even short-handed, but it has to beat Knight with a top 6 that's been rebuilt on the fly. Chicago needs more than Bedard against a goalie who might be making 1 of his first NHL starts. The team that scores first is probably the one that wakes up.
Panthers vs. Blackhawks: Polymarket Odds & Prediction (Oct. 25) — Banged-Up Panthers Visit Blackhawks Team That Can't Score at Home · Barstool Bush
