The Florida Panthers have stumbled to back-to-back losses after going 5-1-1 in their previous seven contests. The Panthers look to get back on track when they open a season-high six-game road trip against the Buffalo Sabres on Friday. Sean Bergenheim collected two goals and an assist in the first three games of the season series and Roberto Luongo recorded his 67th career shutout in a 1-0 victory over Buffalo on Oct. 17.

The Montreal Canadiens are rested and red-hot as they prepare to make the fourth stop on a five-game road trip against the skidding New Jersey Devils on Friday night. Montreal has won four in a row and seven of eight to close within two points of first-place Tampa Bay - with two games in hand - in the Atlantic Division. The Canadiens have permitted a total of 10 goals over the past eight games, including one apiece during the current winning streak.

The Tampa Bay Lightning look to extend their winning streak to five games when they visit the Pittsburgh Penguins on Friday in the third matchup between the two division leaders in 19 days. The Lightning had lost 10 straight to Pittsburgh until a 4-3 home victory Dec. 23 that started their resurgence after suffering through a 2-5-1 stretch. The Penguins snapped a four-game winless streak with a 2-1 victory over Carolina on Wednesday as goalie Marc-Andre Fleury won his 20th game.

The light at the end of the tunnel is in sight for the Philadelphia Flyers, who continue their eight-game road trip against the Carolina Hurricanes on Friday. Philadelphia got off to a great start on its trek, winning the first three contests to reach the .500 mark. The Flyers have yet to get into the win column since the Christmas break, however, losing in regulation at Nashville and Arizona before falling to Colorado in overtime on Wednesday.

After barely escaping what would have been a brutal third straight defeat, the Toronto Maple Leafs resume their road trip against the Minnesota Wild on Friday night. The Maple Leafs blew a two-goal lead for the third game in a row, but persevered to edge Boston in a shootout. "We needed it. That's for sure," Toronto coach Randy Carlyle said. "The one thing we tried to preach to our group was there has to be a stop sign to what we were doing."

The Edmonton Oilers attempt to halt their 11-game slide on the road when they visit the Colorado Avalanche on Friday. Edmonton has not won away from home since defeating the New York Rangers on Nov. 9, falling to 0-6-5 since with a 4-3 overtime loss at Calgary on Wednesday. The Oilers squandered a 2-0 lead for the second straight game and had their 4-3 edge erased quickly before yielding the winning goal 1:08 into the extra session.

After residing in the cellar of the Metropolitan last season, the New York Islanders look to secure sole possession of the division's penthouse when they continue their season-high seven-game road trip against the Calgary Flames on Friday. New York kicked off the lengthy trek by winning its second straight and improved to 6-1-1 in its last eight contests with a 5-2 victory over Winnipeg on Wednesday.

The Anaheim Ducks look to avoid their first losing streak in over a month as they continue their eight-game homestand against the St. Louis Blues on Friday. Anaheim began the lengthy stay at Honda Center with an overtime victory over Vancouver before suffering a 3-0 loss to San Jose on Wednesday. It was the fourth defeat in seven contests for the Ducks, but they haven't dropped consecutive decisions since falling to Chicago and the Sharks on Nov. 28 and 29, respectively.