Panthers’ revamped defenseman group ‘on the same page’ with season opener on horizon
Even with more than a dozen years in the NHL under his belt, Oliver Ekman-Larsson entered Florida Panthers training camp this year not fully knowing what to expect.
The basics never change: The 32-year-old defenseman and former sixth overall pick is trying to prove his worth and show that he can be a steady contributor
That said, Ekman-Larsson was joining a new team for just the second time in his career, and there was — and still is — a lot of unknown about his position group with the season starting Thursday.
With both Aaron Ekblad and Brandon Montour sidelined until at least mid-December after offseason shoulder surgeries and two other defensive mainstays from Florida’s Stanley Cup Final run in Radko Gudas and Marc Staal gone, the Panthers blue line is going to look drastically different to start the year.
That’s where Ekman-Larsson comes into the picture.
He’s one of five new defensemen on the Panthers’ opening night roster, a handful of players joining Gustav Forsling and Josh Mahura as the returners from Florida’s run to the Stanley Cup Final.
The rest of the new defensemen: Dmitry Kulikov, Mike Reilly, Niko Mikkola and Uvis Balinskis.
A lot will be expected of a group that has had about a month to build chemistry, but for their part, the Panthers’ new defenseman corps didn’t take long to figure things out.
“Everybody’s so used to new guys coming in,” said Ekman-Larsson, who signed a one-year, $2.25 million deal with the Panthers this offseason. “I think that’s the easy part, to get together and be on the same page. Forsy and Mahura have been trying to help us new guys out. Obviously it’s a lot of new stuff system-wise for a new guy coming in. It’s a lot of new stuff that you need to pick up and learn, but overall feeling great.”
While Balinskis has yet to make his NHL debut, the other four newcomers to this Panthers defenseman group have a steady track record.
The quartet of Ekman-Larsson, Kulikov, Reilly and Mikkola combined has 38 seasons of NHL experience, 197 goals and 577 assists, 3,484 hits and 2,484 blocked shots.
“All of the veteran players, in a 10-day block got very comfortable with what they’re doing,” Panthers coach Paul Maurice said. “They picked it up. The new guys were still processing a lot and playing at the same time. The handful of guys that are left here have earned the right to be here.”
Ekman-Larsson, a two-time All-Star (2015 and 2018) provides the bulk of the offensive numbers from the group, with 135 goals and 304 assists over 902 career games in his 13-year NHL career. This included a run of six consecutive seasons with the Arizona Coyotes in which he logged at least 30 points a season before his production slipped the past three years, with just 75 total points in 179 games, missing a third of the 2022-23 season with Vancouver due to injury.
Ekman-Larsson will have the chance to establish himself as a key contributor immediately. He’s slated to begin the season on Florida’s top pairing with Forsling, a fellow Swede who has begun to establish himself as an under-the-radar top defenseman, and will also get steady time on the power play.
“He has great vision and the ability to get the puck through,” Maurice said. “What he’s done in his career, it’s why he’s a special player. ... The skill level’s there, for sure.”
As for the rest of the new defensemen...
▪ Kulikov: The 32-year-old Russian enters his 15th NHL season and has 214 career points (45 goals, 169 assists) to his name. He was the Panthers’ first-round pick in 2009 and spent the first seven years of his NHL career in Florida before stints with the Buffalo Sabres, Winnipeg Jets, New Jersey Devils, Edmonton OIlers, Anaheim Ducks and Pittsburgh Penguins.
▪ Reilly: The 30-year-old is playing for his fifth team in nine NHL seasons, with previous stops in Minnesota, Montreal, Ottawa and Boston. He has played in 339 career games with 12 goals and 86 assists.
▪ Mikkola: The youngest of the veterans, Mikkola enters his fifth NHL season with 170 games, five goals and 18 assists to his name. The 27-year-old spent the bulk of his career with the St. Louis Blues before being traded to the New York Rangers in February to finish the 2022-23 season.
▪ Balinskis: The 27-year-old Latvian hasn’t played in America yet but he has a track record for being an offensive-minded defenseman. He scored 20 goals and tallied 38 assists over 92 games the last two years in the Czech Extraliga, the top ice hockey league in the Czech Republic.
.JPG)