Roberto Luongo and the Panthers invade Rogers Arena

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VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – The Canucks and Panthers will battle tonight at Rogers Arena. The game marks the return of former Canucks goalie Roberto Luongo. He is playing his first game back in Vancouver since he was traded ahead of last year’s NHL trade deadline.

Luongo expects it to be an emotional night and he says he will always have a soft spot for Vancouver.

“I will always come back here, whether it is in the offseason or when my career is over. There is a lot of people I know here that I became friends with. My wife loves the city and we definitely plan on taking some vacations here, so this was a great place to play.”

Ryan Miller will be at the opposite end of the rink, guarding the Canucks net, and he admits he wouldn’t have envisioned this scenario two years ago.

“With the twist and turns of life it is funny I ended up here. I think he planned on being here a long time. That is life though, things move and change. You just try and have fun, experience the moment and enjoy yourself. I am happy to be here now and I’m sure he is happy where he is at.”

The Panthers are off to a decent start this year considering they are one of the younger teams in the league. With a 17-11-9 record, Florida is three points out of a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

Radim Vrbata will return to the lineup after missing the last game because of the flu. He is expected to lineup on the second line with Nick Bonino and Chris Higgins.

The puck drops at 7 p.m.. You can watch it on Sportsnet Pacific. Listen for game updates every 10 minutes on the fives.

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