Cody Ceci and Will Smith scored for the Sharks (14-32-6), who have lost six straight and nine of ten. Alexandar Georgiev allowed four goals on 15 shots before being pulled early in the second period for Yaroslav Askarov, who stopped 14 of 17 shots in relief.

A crucial piece on the blue line, Ekblad, despite missing time due to his injury, still leads Florida’s defensemen in both assists (18) and points (20). He also ranks third in hits (59) and blocked shots (56), while averaging a team-leading 23:32 of ice time per contest.

After missing each of the last seven games, top-pair defenseman Aaron Ekblad will return to the blue line for the Florida Panthers when they face-off against the San Jose Sharks at SAP Center on Saturday.

Ekblad has been battling an undisclosed injury and missed each of Florida's past five games. He's been seen on the ice in recent days and appears to be nearing a return. "He skated this morning and was better, so we're pretty excited about that," said Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice.

The Florida Panthers are set to bolster their blue line with the return of defenseman Aaron Ekblad, who has missed the past seven games due to an upper-body injury.

One of each in return

Good to go against Sharks

Ekblad was on the top pairing during the practice session, which is a good sign that he's close to a return. If he can't play Saturday, the Panthers are in action again Sunday versus the Golden Knights.

Mission accomplished, as they not only earned a win Sunday night, but they opened a three-game homestand with a strong showing against the defending Stanley Cup champion Florida P

The Golden Knights’ past 10 games haven’t been their best. Luck hasn’t been on their side. The bounces haven’t gone their way. Yet they remained confident they could overcome their slide. A 4-1 win over the Florida Panthers at T-Mobile Arena on Sunday night might be a good first step in the right direction.

The Vegas Golden Knights (31-15-4) desperately needed a low-event, get-right game. Tonight, they got just that against the Florida Panthers (29-19-3). From a pure entertainment perspective, the first two periods of the game were,