Florida Panthers
The Florida Panthers broke through last season in a big way. The team hadn’t been known for it’s success for some time, but finished last season with the fourth best record in the league. They had two more points than the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Key Offseason Acquisitions:
Sam Reinhart C (Trade with Buffalo)
Joe Thornton LW (Signed from Toronto Maple Leafs)
Biggest Offseason Losses:
Alex Wennberg C (Signed with Seattle)
Chris Driedger G (Seattle Expansion Draft)
Roster Breakdown:
The Florida Panthers didn’t make many moves this offseason. They didn’t have to. Bringing in Sam Reinhart is a major boost though that will make their great team even better.
Florida was also able to turn last season’s trade deadline rental acquisitions Sam Bennett and Brandon Montour into full-time Panthers by signing them to new contracts. It’ll be great to see what they can do for the team over a full season.
Chris Driedger may have been Florida’s best goalie last season, but losing him is not a huge blow to the team since Sergei Bobrovsky also had a decent season and youngster, Spencer Knight was excellent in his four game stint during regular season and two playoff games.
I wouldn’t be surprised in Bobrovsky and Knight shared the crease as a tandem this season. Bobrovsky is 32 years old and is signed to a $10 million AAV contract until he’s 36. There are already signs that that contract isn’t going to age well. Spencer Knight is only 20 years old and has been great in his small sample size. Knight is Florida’s goalie of the future, and I can see Bobrovsky getting bought out in a couple years.
Aleksander Barkov and Jonathan Huberdeau are two of the most under-rated players in the league. They’ve been playing in the shadows of a small market under-achieving Panthers team until last season. Returning to the Atlantic Division as a great team and playing against big market teams again like the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens and Boston Bruins will put them in the spotlight they deserve.
Losing Aaron Ekblad to injury last season was also a huge blow. Having him healthy for a full season would help the team immensely.
At 42 years-old, “Jumbo” Joe Thornton is the oldest player signed to an NHL contract. It’s sad that he couldn’t finally raise the cup with the Toronto Maple Leafs last season, but I’m glad he’ll get another opportunity in Florida.
Did the Florida Panthers get better this offseason? Yes, they did.