Five Florida Panthers questions heading into the 2021 season

The Florida Panthers open their 2021 season Sunday against the Chicago Blackhawks at the BB&T Center.

Here are five questions surrounding the team heading into its second season under coach Joel Quenneville.

How will the NHL’s schedule format for this year impact the Panthers’ playoff hopes?

The NHL for this season has divided teams geographically into four divisions. This includes a seven-team “North” division that includes all seven of the NHL’s Canadian teams, necessitated by the fact that the United States-Canada border remains closed.

The Panthers are in the eight-team “Central” division, which also includes the defending Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning, Carolina Hurricanes, Chicago Blackhawks, Columbus Blue Jackets, Dallas Stars, Detroit Red Wings and Nashville Predators.

Teams will only play against those in their division during the regular season, meaning the Panthers will play eight games against each team in their division. With the exception of two three-game sets against the Lightning, the schedule is all two-game series at the same venue.

The top four teams from each division make the Stanley Cup playoffs.

“It’s gonna be a little bit different, but it can also be a good thing,” Panthers center Alex Wennberg said. “We’re probably going to know the teams we’re playing a little bit better and the scouting report’s going to easier because you’re playing the same team as you did the night before. ... There’s nothing really you can do about it. It’s just how the schedule is right now.”

Will goaltending improve?

Sergei Bobrovsky, heading into Year 2 of his seven-year, $70 million deal, is coming off his worst season in which he started more than 30 games (.900 save perentage, 3.23 goals against average, 23-19-6 record). His status is also uncertain for the start of the season after being deemed “unift to play” for the first week and a half of training camp and starting the season with a “non-roster” designation.

In his absence, however long that is, Chris Driedger and Sam Montembeault will have to step up. Montembeault impressed during training camp, and Driedger was solid in spurts last season (7-2-1 record, .938 save percentage, 2.05 goals against average in 11 starts).

Will the team’s new-look power play unit live up to lofty standards?

The Panthers have ranked among the top 10 in the NHL on power play productivity each of the last two years.

But two key weapons from their extra-man attack — Mike Hoffman and Evgenii Dadonov (47 combined power-play goals in the last two years) — are no longer with the team.

Another likely new wrinkle: Aaron Ekblad taking the lone defenseman spot instead of Keith Yandle.

The Panthers’ top power-play unit for the past week in training camp has consisted of Aleksander Barkov, Jonathan Huberdeau, Anthony Duclair, Patric Hornqvist and Ekblad.

How much should be expected from the Panthers’ rookies?

Two rookie forwards will be on the Panthers’ opening night roster in right wing Owen Tippett and center Eetu Luostarinen. The duo has primarily worked together with veteran left wing Frank Vatrano as the Panthers’ third forward line during training camp.

“Two young guys who are great players,” Vatrano said of his linemates. “They play with speed and have a lot of skill. For me, I’m just trying to create energy and be there to help them. Obviously, there’s going to be some questions [with them] not having much [NHL] experience. I’m just there to help them and to create my energy and speed and get open at the same time.”

Tippett, the Panthers’ 2017 first-round pick, has immense potential and likely would have been a call-up late last season if not for missing time due to a wrist injury while with the Panthers’ American Hockey League Affiliate. He will also likely get time on Florida’s second power-play unit.

Luostarinen, a second-round pick by the Carolina Panthers in 2017, joined the Panthers organization at the trade deadline last season as part of the Vincent Trocheck trade. Luostarinen, 22, has been a surprise in camp, and it looks as if Quenneville will giving him his share of ice time early in the season.

How will the defensive pairings shake out?

The Panthers are carrying seven defensemen on their roster right now: Ekblad, Gustav Forsling, Radko Gudas, Riley Stillman, Anton Stralman, MacKenzie Weegar and Yandle. An eighth in Noah Juulsen will join that group after being claimed off waivers Monday.

Teams only have six active defensemen for game day, so what will Florida’s pairings look like?

Two seem obvious. Weegar and Ekblad were the Panthers’ top defensive pairing from last year. Stillman and Stralman were the second pairing. Gudas should be a lock for one of those spots, leaving the last spot to likely come between Yandle and Forsling.