Top Panthers prospects have taken full advantage of NHL opportunities
If there’s a glass-half-full look to anything that has come out of this lost Florida Panthers season beyond the extended offseason they will be getting after three consecutive runs to the Stanley Cup Final, it’s the extended look the Panthers were able to get at some of their top prospects — and the experience those prospects are taking back to the American Hockey League as they pursue their own playoff chase.
Seven players made their NHL debuts this season with the Panthers: forwards Sandis Vilmanis, Jack Devine and Wilmer Skoog plus defensemen Mike Benning, Mikulas Hovorka, Marek Alscher and Ludvig Jansson. Beyond that, a slew of other key contributors for the Charlotte Checkers, the Panthers’ American Hockey League affiliate, have been regulars for Florida throughout the season as injuries ravaged the NHL roster all year.
Even with that, Charlotte is 43-22-5 on the season and will be the No. 3 seed in the Atlantic Division when the Calder Cup playoffs begin and the Checkers attempt to reach the finals for a second consecutive year.
“They’re ready to go, and they’re still winning hockey games,” Panthers coach Paul Maurice said of the Checkers after morning skate Monday ahead of Florida’s game against the New York Rangers. “So if we’ve got 14 [of their players] up here, so does [Charlotte] Geordie [Kinnear]. They come up with the right mindset, the right style of hockey. They play hard, they play fast, they compete, they don’t drift on change of possession, they don’t float — all the technical things that coaches want instilled. There’s no cheat in them. Those guys have done a great job. So when you think of our year, we’re going to end up averaging six and a half to seven men out per night a year. That means we’ve taken them, and we call up their top-end [players]. We’ve taken their best players almost all year, and they still had a great year. So credit to them for surviving the American Hockey League and making the playoffs, and also for preparing these young men to come in and be pretty good for us.”
The fact that so many Charlotte players are on the Panthers right now provided a sense of familiarity for the call-ups.
And the hope is the experience of playing in the NHL — whether it was just one game in Hovorka’s case or close to 20 like Benning or Vilmanis — will have a trickle-down effect on those prospects as they gear up for their playoff run once Florida’s season ends Wednesday.
“We played together for a while now,” said Benning, who made his NHL debut March 12, is in line to play his 17th game with the Panthers on Monday and has played on defense pairs with Gustav Forsling and Niko Mikkola during his month with the Panthers. “We’re familiar with each other’s games. It’s easier to read off one another. And credit to the staff down in Charlotte. They’ve done an incredible job preparing us to come up here and have some success. I think it’s gonna translate going back. I don’t think we’re gonna lose it. I think we’re just gonna be more hungry down there.”
Added Skoog, who made his NHL debut Saturday: “It builds a lot of confidence for individuals. And if we all can bring good confidence to the group, if everyone brings their own individual confidence, I feel like the group will have really good confidence as well.”
Panthers lineup notables
Maurice said forwards Matthew Tkachuk, Sam Bennett and Carter Verhaeghe all remain out for Monday’s game against the Rangers. Tkachuk and Bennett possibly could return for the regular-season finale on Wednesday against the Detroit Red Wings.
Also a possibility to return: Anton Lundell, who has been sidelined since March 19 with rib injuries. Lundell was a full participant at morning skate on Monday. Maurice said Lundell would only play in the finale if he’s 100%.
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