Akira Schmid Steadies the Panthers Net While Jacob Markstrom Is Day-to-Day

Akira Schmid made 24 saves in his first start for the Florida Panthers on Tuesday, a 7-3 win in Columbus that ended a two-game skid, while Jacob Markstrom sat out as day-to-day. Markstrom was pulled after the first period of Monday's loss in Buffalo when he tightened up, and coach Paul Maurice ruled him out for Tuesday before the game. Florida recalled rookie Cooper Black from the AHL's Charlotte Checkers to serve as the backup.

Maurice framed Markstrom's issue as routine rather than a specific injury, and one report suggested he could be back in the crease as early as Thursday at home against Vancouver. Nothing official has been announced about Thursday's starter, which makes Florida's net the most important goalie question on the board this week.

How Florida got here

The Panthers rebuilt their goaltending this summer. In late June they acquired Markstrom, whom Florida originally drafted, from New Jersey in a five-player deal that sent Evan Rodrigues, Jesper Boqvist and Ben Steeves to the Devils and brought back Angus Crookshank. They also traded a 2028 third-round pick to Vegas for Schmid, who posted a .893 save percentage and a 2.59 goals-against average in 34 appearances for the Golden Knights last season. Sergei Bobrovsky and Daniil Tarasov both left in free agency.

That makes this tandem new, and the first week has been bumpy for the team in front of it. Florida came into Tuesday having lost four of five (1-2-2) and is now 3-2-2. The skaters are banged up too: Brad Marchand is expected to miss about six weeks with a lower-body injury, Aleksander Barkov remains sidelined, and defenseman Radko Gudas is day-to-day after a lower-body collision on Monday, with Uvis Balinskis replacing him Tuesday.

The last two games in net

Schmid's Tuesday was not a high-difficulty night. Florida's offense did most of the work: Brady Tkachuk, acquired from Ottawa on June 23, scored a natural hat trick in the second period, his first three goals of the season. Matthew Tkachuk had five assists, including a franchise-record four in one period, and set up all three of his brother's goals. Sam Reinhart and Carter Verhaeghe each scored twice, Seth Jones added four assists, and the Panthers went 4-for-6 on the power play. Columbus chased Cam Talbot after six goals on 23 shots and finished with Jet Greaves.

Still, a goalie who gives up three on 27 in a blowout and keeps his team in the game early has done his job. Schmid allowed the first goal to Kent Johnson, then held while the Tkachuks took over.

Fantasy fallout

Schmid is the obvious short-term add. Backup goalies on good teams are among the most valuable spot starts in fantasy, and Florida has now shown it can still score at a high rate even without Marchand and Barkov. If Markstrom misses Thursday, Schmid gets a home start against Vancouver. If Markstrom returns, Schmid drops back to a part-time role, but the backup on a team this good on offense is still worth more than most goalies on waivers, and a veteran starter coming off tightness is unlikely to be pushed into a heavy early workload.

Markstrom managers should not panic. The team has described this as tightness rather than an injury, and he was not placed on injured reserve. The practical risk is a short stretch where Florida eases him back, which would cost a start or two rather than weeks.

Cooper Black is not a fantasy consideration. He is in Florida as an emergency backup and would be sent back to Charlotte once Markstrom is cleared.

For skaters, the Columbus game was a reminder that Florida's power play is the engine while the forward group is short. Matthew Tkachuk has 10 points during a six-game point streak, and Brady Tkachuk finally broke through after a slow start with his new team. Both should be in every lineup, goalie uncertainty or not.

The Verdexed angle

The betting market on Thursday's game will move on the goalie announcement, and it should. Markstrom is the established starter; Schmid is a capable backup whose numbers in Vegas were below league average. The edge, if there is one, sits in the timing. Lines posted before the starter is confirmed tend to price in the regular starter, so if Schmid gets the nod, the Florida side could drift. Conversely, if Markstrom is confirmed, a price that drifted on uncertainty may come back.

The simplest approach is to wait for the morning skate and Daily Faceoff's confirmed starter before betting this game at all. Florida's offense, with the power play clicking and both Tkachuks producing, is a bigger factor in the result than which goalie starts, which makes the Panthers' team total and the Tkachuk point props more stable bets than the moneyline until the crease is settled.

For fantasy managers in daily leagues, Schmid at home against Vancouver is a viable streaming start if confirmed, and a cheap one. In season-long formats, Schmid is a reasonable add for managers who are short a goalie, especially with the Rangers, Montreal and other teams already juggling injured starters this month. Verdexed's game-by-game NHL probabilities live at /nhl/predictions.

What's next

Florida hosts Vancouver at 7 p.m. ET on Thursday, October 15, at Amerant Bank Arena. Watch for an update on Markstrom and Gudas at Wednesday's practice or Thursday's morning skate. If Markstrom is cleared, expect Black to return to Charlotte; if he is held out again, Schmid will make his second straight start and the injury question becomes a real one.

Beyond this week, the bigger story in Florida is the lineup in front of the goalies. Marchand's six-week absence and Barkov's continued recovery keep the forward group thin, and the Panthers will need the Tkachuks and Reinhart to carry the offense until both are back.