Chase Priskie, wearing ‘big boy pants’ and playing ‘hard hockey,’ left impression on Panthers
Chase Priskie’s NHL debut on Nov. 4 was more about finding his bearings than cementing himself as a regular on the roster. It was a dream come true, a Pembroke Pines native playing hockey at the highest level for the hometown Florida Panthers.
A month and a half later, when the Panthers called upon Priskie again in a time of need, he had bigger goals in mind.
“This time,” Priskie said, “I wanted to make my mark.”
He certainly did that for the shorthanded Panthers.
Priskie was one of four players called up from the Charlotte Checkers for Florida’s eventual 4-1 loss to the Los Angeles Kings at FLA Live Arena, one of the reinforcements to bring the roster as close to full strength as possible after the Panthers had seven players sidelined to due the NHL’s COVID-19 protocols in addition to the rash of injuries they were already dealing with.
With the Panthers missing their top defenseman in Aaron Ekblad, both members of their No. 2 defensive pairing in Radko Gudas and Gustav Forsling, and half of their No. 3 pairing in Brandon Montour, Priskie took full advantage of his opportunity.
He logged the second-most ice time among Panthers skaters (25:29), recording a shot on goal, three hits, a takeaway and a blocked shot in that span while getting playing time on both the power play and penalty kill.
And this came after playing back-to-back games Tuesday and Wednesday for the Checkers before being told he would be playing for the Panthers on Thursday.
“When I got the call,” Priskie said, “I knew it was time to get my big boy pants on and play hard hockey.”
He did just that in the eyes of interim coach Andrew Brunette, who said Priskie played “exceptional” against the Kings.
“He used his feet, managed the game very well,” Brunette said. “He played great. Another guy I am so happy for. I am sure it feels good, at home, to play that kind of game here in front of friends and family. Great story. He earned every minute he got.”
When he’ll get his next opportunity is to be determined. The NHL shut down the Panthers one day after the Kings game due to the team’s COVID outbreak. The rest of the league’s season is now officially paused as well, with no games happening until Monday at the earliest.
Priskie and the other three call ups — fellow defenseman Matt Kiersted as well as forwards Cole Schwindt and Grigori Denisenko — returned to Charlotte to continue playing for the AHL team in the meantime.
And Priskie is still playing high level hockey, continuing to show signs of his potential as an offensive-minded defenseman. He followed up his game with the Panthers by scoring the game-winning goal on Sunday for the Checkers against the Bridgeport Islanders to cap a five-game week.
“I know I can be an everyday player at this level,” Priskie said. “It’s just about having the confidence, playing with confidence, having a little swagger. I kind of felt that [Thursday]. I had some quality minutes and this was another step in the process of being an NHL player.”
That confidence, Priskie said, stems from his performance during training camp. He felt like he was making an impression on his teammates and the coaching staff. He and Kiersted were the final cuts among defensemen just before the start of the season but were both added back to the roster temporarily when Marcus Nutivaara suffered an injury just before Opening Night.
The time on the roster then, just like now, was short-lived.
“Even though you may earn the respect of a lot of guys in the room, going on the ice and showing you belong on the team earns the respect in a different way,” Priskie said. “Training camp was huge for my confidence and getting called up at the start of the year kind of reinforced that confidence.”
He showed it again on Thursday.
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