Panthers aim to keep point streak alive vs. Oilers

The Florida Panthers are climbing their way up the Atlantic Division standings despite playing with a shortened bench.

After a slow start, Florida has rebounded with strong play against one of the league's toughest October schedules. The Panthers have notched points in seven straight contests, posting a 3-0-4 record as they currently trek their way through western Canada.

In the second of their four-game road trip through the West, the Eastern Conference team faces the host Edmonton Oilers on Sunday.

They have made the push with a new contributor, a team member playing out of position and a laundry list of injuries.

With the team needing center help -- the team's top two pivots, Aleksander Barkov and Vincent Trocheck, have missed time -- the Panthers inked veteran Brian Boyle to a one-year deal last Sunday.

Boyle, 34, had been in constant communication with the South Florida team since free agency began in July, and the 13-year NHL veteran played the day after joining the team in its 4-2 home win over Pittsburgh.

Trocheck (lower body) is listed as day-to-day, and Aaron Ekblad (illness) and Michael Matheson (lower body) have also missed time on the Panthers' blue line. Matheson did not travel with Florida and could be out for two weeks.

Also, Mark Pysyk, a bottom-pairing defenseman, was switched to right wing on third line for a pair of games, and he scored to put the Panthers up 5-4 on Thursday in a game the host Calgary Flames eventually won, 6-5, in a shootout.

Barkov rebounded with a four-assist night, and linemates Jonathan Huberdeau (goal, assist) and Evgenii Dadonov (goal) helped the Panthers rally from a 4-2 deficit and pick up a point to open the trip.

"At any point of the game, even if we're losing by two or three goals, we can battle back," said Barkov, a shootout sharpshooter off to a slow 0-for-3 start so far. "One point is good, but we left one out there."

Edmonton woke up Saturday owning the second-best record in the Western Conference -- 8-2-1 -- and not surprisingly, the Oilers have been riding their best players to victories in crunch time.

That was evident in the club's last win on Thursday, a 4-3 overtime thriller as Edmonton rallied from a two-goal deficit in the third period to beat the Washington Capitals.

Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl combined for three goals and two assists over the third period and overtime, and the clincher by the German-born Draisaitl was nothing short of a beauty.

A 50-goal scorer in a 105-point season last year, Draisaitl led McDavid on a two-on-one break, slipping the puck to the speedy superstar and quickly receiving it in return.

Draisaitl then popped in his eighth goal -- he's added 11 assists for 19 points in 11 games -- to finish off Edmonton's win.

"We just said, 'Let's stick with it in the third period,' and we got some momentum, we got rolling," said Oilers first-year coach Dave Tippett. "We got that first one and we were back in the game.

"Our big guys kind of took over, and we ended up with the win."

The club will be without right winger Josh Archibald (fractured foot) for 2-to-4 weeks.

--Field Level Media