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Panthers face the second most travel of any NHL team as part of a rough 2011-12 schedule

Kevin Dineen

Florida Panthers head coach Kevin Dineen talks to players during the first period of the first of two preseason NHL hockey games against the Nashville Predators, Monday, Sept. 19, 2011 in Sunrise, Fla. (AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee)

AP

With the 2011-12 season rapidly approaching, the gang at PHT decided to take a look at all 30 NHL teams’ schedules. Each team’s highs and lows will be studied in detail to give you an idea of what the future might hold for each squad.

Note: Mileage figures via On the Forecheck’s “Super Schedule.”

Florida Panthers schedule analysis

Total mileage: 52,751 (second most in NHL, most in Southeast Division)

Back-to-back games: 14

Toughest stretches

If you’re among the growing group of people who think the Islanders will take a big jump next season, then the Panthers could be in for some trouble right off the bat. They play two games on the road (Islanders then Penguins) followed by a home-and-home with Tampa Bay. That second Lightning game is followed by a road contest against Washington then two home games (Buffalo and the Isles) followed by three straight road contests.

For a team that’s still getting to know each other, that’s a tough first month. Things get better for the majority of November until it bleeds into a challenging December. They play three road games in a row (including going from Carolina to Los Angeles), stop home for a tough match against the Capitals and then play three more away contests against 2011 playoff teams.

Luckily, the rest of the Panthers’ schedule is gentle - relatively speaking, at least - with just normal four-in-five away runs and similar smaller patches that could cause problems. The last shaky streak is a four-game road trip from late March to early April, but there aren’t a ton of runs that jump out at you (although their overall travel schedule is brutal, especially for an Eastern Conference team).

Easiest periods

November presents the first opportunity in the form of a four-game homestand, although three of those four teams made the playoffs last year and that other team is the enigmatic Devils. December includes another four-gamer with the Devils in the mix, but this time around the only playoff team is the Coyotes, who many believe are a likely cellar dweller in the West.

To nail down their best run, you probably need to look a little longer-term, from mid-February to mid-March.

Feb. 15: home vs. Ottawa
Feb. 17: home vs. Washington
Feb. 19: home vs. Anaheim
Feb 23. home vs. Minnesota
Feb 25. at Carolina
Feb. 26: home vs. Montreal
Feb. 28: at Toronto
March 1: at Winnipeg
March 3: home vs. Nashville
March 4: home vs. Ottawa
March 8: at Philadelphia
March 9: at Pittsburgh
March 11: home vs. Carolina
March 13: home vs. Toronto
March 15: home vs. Boston
March 17: home vs. Buffalo

That lengthy stretch includes two four-game homestands and 11 of 16 games in Florida. Their two sets of back-to-backs are reasonable travel-wise, although they probably won’t send a “Thank You” note to schedule makers after the Flyers and Penguins likely demolish them two days in a row. Still, this is the lengthy stretch in which schedulers give the Panthers the best available apology for a tough bunch of breaks.

Overall outlook

Who would have thought that the Winnipeg Jets wouldn’t even be the most-traveled team in the Southeast? Only the Kings’ rocky road is less friendly than the Panthers’ outlier of a schedule. Florida traveled a solid amount last season (43,144, good for 11th most in the NHL) but this is a significant bump for the Panthers.

Then again, maybe this group of strangers might bond over card games, PSP competition or whatever else they might do during long plane trips. It probably doesn’t bode well for the already shaky health of veteran defenseman Ed Jovanovski, though.