Early look The full preview opens on Saturday 2 January, three days before puck drop, with the expected goalies, the latest team news and game-day prices. Until then this page shows the matchup as it stands.
Early look · NHL 2026-27

Florida Panthers at Calgary Flames: game preview

Puck drop5 Jan · 8:00 PM ET
VenueScotiabank Saddledome
All-time meetings48 completed
BasisLast 5 meetings + 2025-26
The thesis

Seven points apart last season

Florida finished last season 25th in the league on 84 points. Calgary finished 29th on 77.

Game-day prices arrive with the afternoon snapshot, about 4:30 PM ET on the day of the game.

Head-to-head

Meeting number 49

Across 48 completed games, Calgary lead the head-to-head 31-13-4.

All-time record31-13-4Calgary's record in the series
Meetings played48This is number 49
2025-26 series—
Last 53-2Calgary
DateResultShotsPower playWinner
20 Mar 2026FLA 1 – CGY 4——CGY
28 Nov 2025CGY 5 – FLA 3——CGY
1 Mar 2025CGY 0 – FLA 3——FLA
14 Dec 2024FLA 0 – CGY 3——CGY
9 Mar 2024CGY 1 – FLA 5——FLA
Head-to-head finder

The table on each 2025-26 meeting night

DateFloridaCalgary
28 Nov 202512-11-1 · 25 pts23rd9-14-3 · 21 pts31st
20 Mar 202634-32-3 · 71 pts24th28-34-7 · 63 pts31st

League rank after that night's games; a longer bar is a higher place. On 28 Nov 2025, Florida were 23rd in the league and Calgary 31st. By 20 Mar 2026 it was 24th and 31st.


Where the shots come from · last 5 meetings

Florida out-attempted Calgary 147 to 117

Every attempt from the last meetings, both teams shooting right.

Florida Panthers

147 att · 66 on goal · 4 G · 6.1%
Crease18 att · 0 G
Slot48 att · 3 G
Wing55 att · 1 G
Point22 att · 0 G
Neutral zone4 att · 0 G

Calgary Flames

117 att · 70 on goal · 9 G · 12.9%
Crease7 att · 0 G
Slot42 att · 5 G
Wing43 att · 2 G
Point20 att · 1 G
Neutral zone5 att · 1 G
GoalOn goalMissedBlocked

Expected goals

Florida have created the better chances, last 10 games

Shot quality both ways: expected goals weigh every unblocked attempt by its chance of scoring. Finishing above zero means more goals than the chances.

FloridaCalgary
3.01xG for per game2.54
2.34xG against per game3.38
56.3%xG share42.9%
−4.0FinishingGoals minus expected goals−4.6
+1.4GoaltendingExpected goals against minus goals allowed−5.9

This season: 4 games for Florida, 3 for Calgary. Small sample: early-season xG moves a lot from night to night.

Every team’s xG →


Special teams

Power play and penalty kill, season and series

This season's rates first, then 2025-26 and the last meetings between the two. Power-play chances are counted from the penalty log with coincidental minors cancelled; faceoffs are each club's wins over draws taken.

All bars share one scale · 0–100%SeasonLast meetings

Florida

Small sample
Power play · 2026-274.3%
Power play · 2025-2619.5% · 19th
Power play · last 5 meetings—
Penalty kill · 2026-2778.9%
Penalty kill · 2025-2681.0% · 9th
Faceoffs · 2026-2750.2% · 115/229
Drawn · 2026-2723 (5.75/gm)
Drawn · last meetings0 (0.00/gm)
Shorthanded · 2026-2719 (4.75/gm)
PP goals · last meetings0

Calgary

Small sample
Power play · 2026-2740.0%
Power play · 2025-2616.2% · 31st
Power play · last 5 meetings—
Penalty kill · 2026-2790.0%
Penalty kill · 2025-2680.4% · 12th
Faceoffs · 2026-2750.3% · 90/179
Drawn · 2026-275 (1.67/gm)
Drawn · last meetings0 (0.00/gm)
Shorthanded · 2026-2710 (3.33/gm)
PP goals · last meetings0

Skaters

Skaters to watch

Each club's top three forwards and defencemen by points this season, with 2025-26 one tap away.

PlayerGPGAPP/GP
19Matthew Tkachuk42130.75
20Lars Eller40330.75
9Sam Bennett40330.75
86Joel Farabee30220.67
22Ryan Strome31010.33
16Morgan Frost31010.33
Points leaders
PlayerGPGAPP/GP
3Seth Jones41010.25
42Gustav Forsling31010.33
19Zayne Parekh30110.33
44Joel Hanley10000.00
55Jake Middleton30000.00
Defencemen stats

Goaltending

Who has stopped this matchup

Save percentage in the last meetings by goalie. Starters are confirmed on game day.

Expected startersAn estimate until the teams confirmEvery game tonight →

Expected starter after their game on 2 Jan: a back-to-back depends on who plays that night.

Expected starter after their game on 3 Jan: a back-to-back depends on who plays that night.

Florida crease

FLA · 2026-27 Starter estimate from 2 Jan

Jacob Markstrom.9273 GP · 2-0-1 · GSAx +3.2
Akira Schmid.8751 GP · 0-0-1 · GSAx −1.0

No appearances against Calgary in the last meetings.

Calgary crease

CGY · 2026-27 Starter estimate from 2 Jan

Dustin Wolf.7972 GP · 0-2-0 · GSAx −5.5
Devin Cooley.8801 GP · 0-1-0 · GSAx −0.1

No appearances against Florida in the last meetings.


Totals

Scoring rates point to about 5.9 goals

No total is posted yet: it arrives with the game-day prices. Until then, the scoring rates and the recent meetings set the range.

Goals in the last 5 meetings

20 Mar 20265 · FLA 1–4 CGY
28 Nov 20258 · CGY 5–3 FLA
1 Mar 20253 · CGY 0–3 FLA
14 Dec 20243 · FLA 0–3 CGY
9 Mar 20246 · CGY 1–5 FLA

Bar length is total goals, coloured by the winner.

Scoring rates

Team26-27 GF26-27 GA25-26 GF25-26 GA
Florida2.002.003.063.37
Calgary1.005.332.593.16

Goals for and against per game. The estimate averages each team’s scoring with the other’s goals allowed, and leans on 2025-26 until a team has played 20 games.

Scoring rates suggest5.9Goals in this game
Last 5 meetings5.0Goals per game
Line—No total posted yet
Books at the line—With the game-day prices

Team news

6 on the injury lists

Florida · injuries

Aaron EkbladPersonalOutReturn10 Oct
Aleksander BarkovLower BodyIRReturn27 Nov
Brad MarchandLegDay-to-dayReturn10 Oct
Jonah GadjovichUpper BodyIRReturn17 Oct
MacKenzie EntwistleUndisclosedIRReturn10 Oct

Calgary · injuries

Jonathan HuberdeauHipIRReturn10 Oct
3 Oct · FLA

Placed C Aleksander Barkov on long-term injured reserve. Called up D Alexander Petrovic from Charlotte (AHL).

3 Oct · FLA

Placed C Aleksander Barkov on long-term injured reserve.

27 Sep · FLA

Placed RW/C Cole Schwindt, RD Alexander Petrovic, LD Donovan Sebrango, LW Kai Schwindt, LW Cole Reinhardt, RW Sam Lafferty and C/LW John Beecher on waivers. Agreed to terms with RW Nathan Bastian on a 1-year, two-way contract.

5 Oct · CGY

Placed D Brayden Pachal and C Connor Zary on waivers.

26 Sep · CGY

Waived F Alex Nylander.

25 Sep · CGY

Assigned Fs Andrew Basha, Will Dineen and Tyson Gross, Ds Hunter Brzustewicz and Axel Hurtig and G Arsenii Sergeev to Calgary (AHL). Waived for the purpose of assignment to Calgary Fs Dryden Hunt, Ben Jones, Rory Kerins, Sam Morton and William Stromgren and Ds Michael Benning, Andreas Englund and Jake Livingstone.

Injury report
#40Simas IgnataviciusRound 2 · GeneveRW
#48Ryder CaliRound 2 · North BayC
#98Jonas KempsRound 4 · ChicagoD
#168Vilho VanhataloRound 6 · Tappara Jr.RW
Full draft
#6Carson CarelsRound 1 · Prince GeorgeD
#30Jack HextallRound 1 · YoungstownC
#36Chase HarringtonRound 2 · SpokaneLW
#42Tobias TrejbalRound 2 · YoungstownG
Full draft

Updated after every final