Programming note – Sharks-Panthers coverage starts today at 4:00 p.m. with Sharks Pregame Live on CSN California
WHERE THEY STAND
Sharks: 7-6-0, 14 points, 3rd Pacific Division
Panthers: 6-6-1, 13 points, 6th Atlantic Division
PREGAME NEWS AND NOTES
***The Sharks won their first game of a season-long six-game road trip on Tuesday in Washington, 3-0. Martin Jones made 24 saves for his first shutout of the season as San Jose snapped a three-game losing streak. They are 3-4-0 on the road this season.
The Panthers, who beat Tampa Bay on Monday, 3-1, have alternated wins and losses in their last six games. They are 5-2-0 in their home building.
Sports
***Florida’s James Reimer is expected to start in goal tonight, per reports. The Sharks acquired Reimer last season on Feb. 27, and in eight starts down the stretch he was 6-2-0 with a 1.62 goals-against average and .938 save percentage. He signed a five-year, $17 million contract with the Panthers in the offseason.
***Tonight’s game features three of the five active all-time scoring leaders in Jaromir Jagr (first, 1873 points), Joe Thornton (second, 1352 points) and Patrick Marleau (fifth, 1040 points).
KEEP AN EYE ON...
Sharks: Kevin Labanc. The skilled 20-year-old forward made his NHL debut on Tuesday in Washington, registering an early shot on goal and playing 13:23 on the second line. With several Sharks forwards simply not generating much offense, Labanc has a great opportunity to stick around for a while if he can produce.
Panthers: Jason Demers. The former Sharks defenseman signed a five-year, $22.5 million contract with Florida in the offseason, and is paired with Keith Yandle in the top four. The 28-year-old is still looking for his first goal, but has five assists in his first 13 games with the Panthers while averaging 19:34 of ice time.
PROBABLE LINES
Sharks
Joe Pavelski – Joe Thornton – Joel Ward
Kevin Labanc – Logan Couture – Joonas Donskoi
Patrick Marleau – Tomas Hertl – Mikkel Boedker
Melker Karlsson – Chris Tierney – Tommy Wingels
Marc-Edouard Vlasic – Justin Braun
Paul Martin – Brent Burns
Brenden Dillon – David Schlemko
Martin Jones (starter)
Aaron Dell
Panthers
Jonathan Marchessault – Aleksander Barkov – Jaromir Jagr
Colton Sceviour – Vincent Trocheck – Reilly Smith
Jared McCann – Denis Malgin – Kyle Rau
Derek MacKenzie – Greg McKegg – Shane Harper
Keith Yandle – Jason Demers
Michael Matheson – Aaron Ekblad
Mark Pysyk – Alex Petrovic
James Reimer (starter)
Roberto Luongo
INJURIES
Sharks: None.
Panthers: Jaromir Jagr (groin) is day-to-day. Nick Bjugstad (broken hand), Jonathan Huberdeau (Achilles) and Jussi Jokinen (knee) are out.
QUOTEABLE
“Coming on the road, you want to start well. The last couple games it was hard to create stuff, and bounces haven’t been going our way. We worked 60 minutes, played smart, and it’s a big win.” – Brent Burns, after the Sharks’ win in Washington
