Every Thursday, TSS will be discussing 5 different topics that are currently on our mind regarding the state of the Florida Panthers.
1. The Trade Deadline
Busy at the trade deadline, the Florida Panthers made a big statement about being a playoff contender with three significant trades. Bergenheim, unhappy with his time on the ice, requested a trade and I’m all for it. I support moving players along if they ask for it. A team this young doesn’t need someone unhappy in the locker room. Fleischmann played 52 games with Florida this season, was a +12 with 107 shots on goals and 21 points with the team. Trading him while he’s hot might not be the most effective move but it makes a spot for Pirri. In addition to the 3rd-round pick, Dany Heatley was acquired in the Fleischmann trade. Heatley has just 8 shots on goal in 6 games this season and will report to the AHL for now. Bringing in Jagr was a huge message to the rest of the league that this team wants to be (and can be) the real deal. Jagr has recorded 1 goal and 1 assist in his two games as a Panther so far. There’s a lot of light at the end of the tunnel for this team, and the future is looking pretty bright.
2. Power Play/Penalty Kill
The penalty kill continues to be better than the power play, which isn’t new or surprising. In my opinion, Kulikov belongs back on both special teams, playing on PP1 as well as the PK, like he was before the lines were shuffled. Personally, I’d love to see a combination of Kulikov and Ekblad together on the power play. Ekblad is great offensively, that goes without saying, and Kulikov is fantastic at keeping the puck in the zone and making passes that connect, although that is often overlooked. Luongo has on both special teams as well, despite playing behind lines getting to know each other. However, he does need to work on the short-handed and breakaway goals that seem to be plaguing this team recently. He’s been burned on those one-on-ones more than once this season
3. Why not try Ekblad/Kulikov?
While we’re discussing Ekblad & Kulikov, why not put arguably the best two defensemen on the team together until Mitchell’s return? The defensive pairings have been shuffled around quite a bit since Mitchell was placed on injured reserve and Kulikov was suspended. This is one of the few pairings we haven’t seen yet. It’s up for debate who makes who better in the Ekblad and Campbell pairing but I have a feeling Ekblad’s making Campbell look good. Gudbranson + Kulikov are working well enough together and it’s likely because Kulikov jump-starts the plays of the player he’s partnered with. I’d like to see what they could accomplish on the same line. They could be an all-around dangerously good pairing – on the power play, penalty kill, and during 5-on-5 play.
4. Sasha Barkov
Barkov does incredible work every single shift. Since the beginning of 2015, he has 8 goals and 8 assists while driving play in his last 27 games played. He scored the only goal versus Ottawa last week and picked up an assist on one of the two goals versus the Blackhawks last week. He plays against the best players in the league and is used in a defensive role primarily. I know that it’s easy to forget that Sasha Barkov is only playing his second season in the NHL but to say he’s not doing anything productive is a joke. Barkov is easily one of the strongest, most productive players on the team and has an incredibly high ceiling.
5. “Bad losses”
Bad games are bound to happen. Last week, the Panthers played the Senators and Penguins back-to-back and got in to Pittsburgh in the early hours of the morning on game day. The losses against the Blackhawks were difficult to process as well. Chicago is obviously one of the best teams in the league and is a tough team to face for any organizations. To say the recent losses were embarrassing or to say “Of course, we always fall apart this time of the season” is a little unfair. Last season, this team finished with just 66 points. As of March 5th, they’re at 69 points with 18 games left. That’s just 2 points out of the final playoff spot. Don’t ignore the positives. Yeah, every game counts, but this is a team that’s made remarkable progress this season.
Devon can be reached for contact on Twitter.
