Our Florida Panthers vs Anaheim Ducks preview covers the odds, puck line, total, start time, TV channel and where to watch on Sunday, October 4, 2026. The Florida Panthers (1-0-1 this season; 40-38-4 in 2025-26) visit the Anaheim Ducks (1-0-0 this season; 43-33-6 in 2025-26) at Honda Center in Anaheim, Calif. Puck drop is 8:00 PM ET (5:00 PM PT). TV: KCOP-13 / Prime Video / Scripps Sports (U.S. regional) / TVA Sports (Canada).
Home-opener storyline: The Ducks open their home schedule at Honda Center two nights after a 4-3 win at Vegas, a rematch of last spring’s second-round series. Florida plays the third game of a four-game road trip, and captain Aleksander Barkov is listed as day to day after he left Thursday’s 4-3 overtime loss at San Jose in the second period with an apparent left knee injury (The Canadian Press, ESPN). Both of the Panthers’ games have gone to overtime. DraftKings lists Florida at -135 and Anaheim at +114 on the moneyline, with the total at 6.5.
Florida Panthers vs Anaheim Ducks Odds, Puck Line & Game Info
| Matchup | Florida Panthers @ Anaheim Ducks |
|---|---|
| 2026-27 Records | Florida Panthers 1-0-1 | Anaheim Ducks 1-0-0 |
| 2025-26 Records | Florida Panthers 40-38-4 | Anaheim Ducks 43-33-6 |
| Head Coaches | FLA: Paul Maurice (5th season) | ANA: Joel Quenneville (2nd season) |
| Puck Line | FLA -1.5 (+180) | ANA +1.5 (-218) |
| Moneyline | Florida Panthers: -135 | Anaheim Ducks: +114 |
| Total | O/U 6.5 (o-118 / u-102) |
| Venue | Honda Center (Anaheim, Calif.) |
| Date / Time | Sunday, October 4, 2026 — 8:00 PM ET |
| TV / How to Watch | KCOP-13 / Prime Video / Scripps Sports (U.S. regional) / TVA Sports (Canada) |
| Probable Starting Goalies | FLA: TBD (Jacob Markstrom / Akira Schmid) | ANA: TBD (Lukas Dostal / Ville Husso) |
Odds via DraftKings (through ESPN), cross-checked on Action Network, as of Saturday, Oct. 3, 2026, ~6:23 PM ET. Other books listed the same total at research time. Lines move, so check your sportsbook before puck drop. Starting goalies had not been confirmed at research time.
Florida Panthers Preview: Last Season, Offseason & Goalies
2025-26 recap: Florida went 40-38-4 (84 points), finished seventh in the Atlantic and missed the playoffs after winning the Stanley Cup in 2024 and 2025. Injuries to Barkov, Matthew Tkachuk, Brad Marchand, Carter Verhaeghe, Sam Bennett, Seth Jones and others derailed the season (NHL.com). Sam Reinhart led the team with 61 points in 64 games, and Bennett had 58.
Offseason moves: Florida acquired Brady Tkachuk (59 points in 60 games) from Ottawa to join his brother Matthew. Goalie Sergei Bobrovsky signed with Toronto, and the Panthers acquired Jacob Markstrom from New Jersey and Akira Schmid from Vegas. They acquired the negotiating rights to defenseman Radko Gudas from Anaheim for the rights to forward A.J. Greer and signed Gudas, signed forward Lars Eller, acquired Garnet Hathaway from Philadelphia and traded Mackie Samoskevich to Seattle.
Key players & coach: Barkov, Reinhart, both Tkachuks, Verhaeghe, Bennett and Anton Lundell lead the forwards, and Gustav Forsling, Aaron Ekblad, Niko Mikkola and Jones anchor the defense. Paul Maurice is in his fifth season as coach.
Barkov and Forsling: Barkov, who missed all of last season after tearing the ACL and MCL in his right knee in training camp, left Thursday’s game after 9:15 of ice time when his left knee appeared to buckle along the boards. Maurice said the injury is "not related to his injury last year at all," and Barkov was scheduled for an MRI on Friday (The Canadian Press via TSN). Forsling, who scored the overtime winner in the opener, did not play Thursday and is day to day with an upper-body injury (ESPN).
Goalies: Markstrom stopped all 15 shots in the opener, and Schmid made 28 saves on 32 shots Thursday. Markstrom went 23-19-1 with a 3.07 GAA and .883 save percentage for New Jersey last season, and Schmid went 16-10-6 with a 2.59 GAA and .893 save percentage for Vegas. Florida had not confirmed a starter at research time.
Season so far: Forsling scored at 4:55 of overtime in a 1-0 win at Carolina on Sept. 29. At San Jose on Oct. 1, Florida trailed 3-0 before Eetu Luostarinen scored twice, once on the power play, and Matthew Tkachuk tied it at 5:18 of the third. Luca Cagnoni won it for the Sharks at 3:14 of overtime (NHL.com).
Injuries: Marchand (lower body) is on injured reserve, and NHL.com reported Wednesday that he might return before the end of October. Forward Jonah Gadjovich (upper body) and forward MacKenzie Entwistle are also on injured reserve (ESPN).
Anaheim Ducks Preview: Home Opener After a Win in Vegas
2025-26 recap: Anaheim went 43-33-6 (92 points), finished third in the Pacific Division and made the playoffs for the first time since 2018. The Ducks beat Edmonton in six games in the first round before losing to Vegas in six in the second round. They ranked 13th in scoring (3.23 goals per game) but 29th in goals against (3.51) (NHL.com). Cutter Gauthier led the team with 41 goals and 69 points, Leo Carlsson had 67 points and Calder Trophy finalist Beckett Sennecke had 60.
Offseason moves: Anaheim matched Philadelphia’s five-year, $90 million offer sheet for Carlsson, signed defenseman Pavel Mintyukov to a five-year contract and signed Gauthier to a six-year, $81 million extension (Ducks.com, ESPN). Mason McTavish was traded to St. Louis, John Carlson signed with Tampa Bay, Jacob Trouba signed with San Jose and Olen Zellweger was traded to Buffalo. The Ducks acquired the rights to Greer, who scored a career-high 17 goals last season, from Florida for the rights to Gudas, and signed defenseman Nick Jensen and forward Jeff Malott.
Key players & coach: Gauthier, Carlsson, Sennecke, Mikael Granlund, Alex Killorn and Frank Vatrano lead the forwards, and Jackson LaCombe and Mintyukov anchor a rebuilt defense with Jensen, Tristan Luneau and Tyson Hinds. Joel Quenneville is in his second season as coach.
Goalies: Lukas Dostal made 27 saves on 30 shots in Friday’s win. He went 30-20-4 with a 3.10 GAA and .888 save percentage in 56 games last season, and Ville Husso went 10-8-2 with a 3.25 GAA. Anaheim had not confirmed a starter at research time.
Season opener recap: Anaheim built a 4-0 lead at T-Mobile Arena on Oct. 2. Sennecke scored on a breakaway with eight seconds left in the first period, and Killorn, Malott and Carlsson scored in the second. Vegas scored three times in the third and outshot Anaheim 30-20, but the Ducks held on. Carlsson had a goal and an assist, and Greer and Gauthier each had an assist (NHL.com).
Injuries: Forward Troy Terry (hip surgery) is on long-term injured reserve with a return timeline of mid-November at the earliest (The Sporting Tribune via ESPN). Defensemen Drew Helleson and Ian Moore (lower body) are also on injured reserve (ESPN).
Key Matchup Notes: Panthers vs Ducks
- Schedule spot: It is Anaheim’s home opener and second game. Florida has had two days off since Thursday’s game in San Jose, and its four-game road trip ends Tuesday in Los Angeles.
- Last season: Anaheim won both meetings, 3-2 in a shootout in Florida on Oct. 28, 2025, and 7-3 at home on Nov. 4 (NHL.com).
- Overtime games: Florida is 1-0-1, with a 1-0 overtime win and a 4-3 overtime loss.
- In goal: Dostal posted an .888 save percentage last season and Markstrom an .883. Markstrom has a shutout this season, and Schmid allowed four goals on 32 shots Thursday.
- Trade ties: Gudas and Greer, whose rights were traded for each other in June, face their former teams. Greer had an assist in Anaheim’s opener.
- Odds snapshot: Florida -135 / Anaheim +114 on the moneyline, Panthers -1.5 (+180) on the puck line, total 6.5 (DraftKings).
How to Watch Florida Panthers vs Anaheim Ducks
Date: Sunday, October 4, 2026
Puck drop: 8:00 PM ET (5:00 PM PT)
Venue: Honda Center, Anaheim, Calif.
TV: In the U.S., KCOP-13 (FOX Los Angeles+) and Prime Video carry the game in the Ducks’ market, and Scripps Sports carries it in the Panthers’ market (NHL.com, Ducks.com, ESPN). TVA Sports has the French-language national broadcast in Canada (NHL.com). No U.S. national TV broadcast is listed at research time.
Check the puck line, moneyline and total above against your sportsbook before the October 4, 2026 puck drop, and look for confirmed starting goalies closer to game time.