The Florida Panthers are riding hot streaks from two of their most talented forwards, but the stellar play of their elder statesman has been the most impressive element of their late-season rise.

Roberto Luongo has been rock-solid in goal both before and after returning from injury less than two weeks ago, and while the 38-year-old has been limited to only 22 games, he's playing at a level he hasn't reached since he authored one of his best campaigns more than a decade ago.

Sure, there have been other factors that help explain why the Panthers are on a six-game win streak and have been one of the league's best teams over the last five or six weeks.

Aleksander Barkov has five goals in the last four games and seven in his last nine, and Evgenii Dadonov has scored a handful of goals in the last five contests and nine in the last 11.

But Luongo, who turns 39 in just over four weeks' time, has been channeling his prime both before and after getting hurt, and his level of play at his advanced age has been the biggest - and perhaps most unlikely - reason the Panthers are now pushing for a playoff spot.

The veteran netminder started strong with a .928 save percentage in his first 15 games, and since coming back on Feb. 22, he's put up a .935 mark in seven games and has allowed just over two goals per contest while earning wins in five of Florida's six consecutive victories.

His performance so far in 2017-18 brings back memories of the 2003-04 season, when he posted a career-best .931 save percentage in 73 contests for the Panthers and finished third in Vezina Trophy voting for the first of three times in his career.

Yes, the sample size is much smaller this time around, but Luongo's efforts have helped Florida climb within a single point of the second wild-card spot in the Eastern Conference with three games in hand on the Columbus Blue Jackets.

Luongo has been plagued by injuries in the latter part of his career, but he's proving now that he's still capable of high-level play when healthy. It's no fluke that the Panthers' recent roll has coincided with one of his own.

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Steve Mason rejoined the Winnipeg Jets on Monday following a two-day conditioning stint in the American Hockey League.

The veteran netminder was assigned to the Manitoba Moose on Saturday, with the intention of getting him back into game action after he missed nearly two months with a concussion.

Mason appeared in Sunday's contest between the Moose and Iowa Wild, and came out on the winning end of a 5-4 affair in which he made 18 saves. It marked his first AHL contest since the 2008-09 campaign.

With Mason sidelined, the Jets turned to farmhand Michael Hutchinson, who posted a .933 save percentage and 2.00 goals-against average across two games.

Mason hasn't suited up for the Jets since a 7-4 win over the Buffalo Sabres on Jan. 9.

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The hits keep coming for the Montreal Canadiens, as the team announced Monday that captain Max Pacioretty will miss four-to-six weeks with a knee injury.

Pacioretty sustained the injury Friday against the New York Islanders. He left midway through the second period and did not return.

Given the time frame, Pacioretty could be sidelined for the remainder of the season. The Canadiens sit 10 points back of a playoff spot, with their final regular-season game scheduled for Apr. 7.

Through 64 appearances in 2017-18, Pacioretty has recorded 17 goals and 20 assists. His 37 points rank third on the team.

Pacioretty's injury is just the latest blow for the Canadiens, who already lost blue-liner Shea Weber for the remainder of the season following foot surgery, while star netminder Carey Price is sidelined indefinitely with a concussion.

On Monday, Montreal also announced that rookie defensemen Victor Mete will miss six weeks after fracturing his finger versus the Islanders.

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St. Louis Blues defenseman Jay Bouwmeester will miss the remainder of the season after sustaining a hip injury, the team announced Monday, while adding that he'll be sidelined for four-to-six months.

It's been an injury-riddled campaign for Bouwmeester, who also sat out the first 21 games with a broken ankle. He then missed a nine-game stretch in December with an undisclosed injury.

In 35 games this season, Bouwmeester netted two goals and five assists. He ranks fourth among St. Louis' blue-liners with 20:08 of ice time per game.

The Blues also announced Monday that forward Scottie Upshall will be re-evaluated in four weeks after he suffered an MCL sprain.

St. Louis sits two points back of the second wild-card spot in the Western Conference.

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For the last two months, Taylor Hall's been a one-man wrecking crew for the New Jersey Devils.

Dating back to early January, the 26-year-old has enjoyed the best stretch of his professional career, earning at least one point in 25 consecutive appearances. Only seven other players have accomplished that in the past 30 years.

After recording a goal and an assist in Sunday's 3-2 loss to the Vegas Golden Knights, Hall sits 11th in league scoring with 72 points in 61 games - a 96-point pace over a full NHL schedule.

His surge has single-handedly kept the Devils in the Eastern Conference playoff race, and could make the Hart Trophy conversation a lot more interesting should he maintain such a torrid clip. With that said, Hall's incredible run - no matter where it may end - deserves its fair-share of recognition, and below, we'll dive into the numbers behind one of the most prolific individual streaks over the last three decades.

36: The number of points Hall's accrued over the streak, divided perfectly with 18 goals and 18 assists.

25: Primary points. (Goals or first assists).

1: The amount of players Hall trails in league scoring since the streak started Jan. 2. Pittsburgh's Evgeni Malkin leads the pack with 43.

20:03: Hall's average ice-time in the last 25 contests, which ranks 20th among all NHL forwards.

3: Game-winning goals, including two in overtime.

100: Shots on goal, tied with Alex Ovechkin for second-most over that span.

(Photo Courtesy: Getty Images)

13: Power play points.

53.08: Hall's 5-on-5 Corsi-for percentage.

10: Multi-point performances.

31: The gap between Hall and the Devils No. 2 scorer, Nico Hischier.

12: The Devils even-strength goal differential with Hall on the ice over the past 25 games.

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After a stellar rookie season in which he scored an impressive 36 goals in 73 games, many around the NHL expected Winnipeg Jets super sniper Patrik Laine to light it up this campaign.

Four goals in his first 11 games had fans and coaches in Winnipeg nervously awaiting a breakout from their franchise cornerstone piece, but thankfully for Jets supporters, Laine has recaptured his All-Star-level form over the last couple months.

The Jets have won six of their last eight, and a major reason for that has been Laine and his rekindled scoring touch. Here's a look at his numbers from his current eight-game point streak:

Head coach Paul Maurice has moved Laine up and down his lineup and tried him with multiple different linemates, most recently pairing him with Nikolaj Ehlers and newly-acquired centerman Paul Stastny to positive results - the line combined for all three of Winnipeg's goals Sunday against the Carolina Hurricanes.

Regardless of who he's playing alongside, Laine's success is closely linked with that of the Jets. And with him hitting his stride at the most crucial point of the NHL schedule, you can expect a lot more Ws for Maurice's men.

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With his assist on Sami Vatanen's second-period goal Sunday against the Vegas Golden Knights, New Jersey Devils superstar Taylor Hall extended his personal point streak to a sensational 25 games.

It also moved Hall into some elite company:

Hall's stellar Sunday didn't end there though, as the Hart Trophy candidate notched his 30th goal of the season later in the period.

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Don't look now, but the Florida Panthers are holding down an Eastern Conference playoff spot.

Despite losing seven of nine games heading into the All-Star break, Florida finds itself in serious contention for one of the two Eastern Conference wild-card spots, winning six in a row and 13 of 16 since the break.

While the Panthers are firing on all cylinders up and down the lineup, a lot of their recent success can be attributed to the resurgence of a finally-healthy No.1 starter in Roberto Luongo, who has been simply sensational over his last five starts. Bobby Lu posted a 5-0 record to go with a save percentage of .934 in those contests, all against teams currently holding a playoff spot in the East.

As of Sunday afternoon, the Panthers sit one point up on the Carolina Hurricanes and Columbus Blue Jackets with two games in hand on each club.

Both Columbus and Carolina are in action Sunday evening.

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