The Florida Panthers won’t be three-peating after they were eliminated from playoff contention on Saturday. Injuries hampered the Panthers from the get-go, but they are a threat to bounce back next year.
After winning back-to-back Stanley Cups and forming a modern-day dynasty, many thought it would be more likely for the Florida Panthers to win another Stanley Cup before they miss the playoffs.
However, following an ugly 9-4 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday, the Panthers were officially eliminated from playoff contention, becoming the third team in the Eastern Conference to wear that title.
But here we are: there will be a new Stanley Cup champion, as the Panthers’ six-year playoff streak and three-year final streak have come to an end. Florida finds itself in unfamiliar territory, second-last in the East, above only the New York Rangers.
While this was a disappointing campaign for the defending Cup champions, they have every reason to believe it was a one-off season and that they should be back in the mix next year.
What Went Wrong For The Panthers?
There is a pretty obvious reason why the Panthers’ season went further south than the Sunshine State. During training camp, Florida captain Aleksander Barkov went down with a serious knee injury.
It turned out to be an MCL and ACL injury that saw him require surgery in his right knee. As a result of that operation, Barkov was forced to miss the entire regular season before he could even make a pre-season appearance.
To add to that massive loss for the Panthers, they also started the year without star left winger Matthew Tkachuk. Tkachuk, who underwent surgery to treat a sports hernia and a torn adductor, made his season debut with Florida on Jan 19.
By that point, the Panthers were seventh in the Atlantic Division and out of the playoff picture by four points.
Injuries continued to plague the Panthers throughout the season. Aside from Barkov, Sam Reinhart, Brad Marchand, Evan Rodrigues, Anton Lundell, Aaron Ekblad, Niko Mikkola, and Dmitry Kulikov are all currently unavailable due to various issues.
And with all that, goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky has been putting together the worst campaign of his 16-year NHL career. In 51 games, Bobrovsky has posted a 3.05 goals-against average and a .878 save percentage, the worst percentage among goalies to play at least 45 contests this season.
Add all those issues together, and this is the result the Panthers get this year.
What Comes Next For The Panthers?
As mentioned, Florida finds itself in a position that they haven’t experienced in several years. On top of missing the playoffs for the first time in six seasons, the team is in the mix for the NHL draft lottery.
The Panthers are currently the seventh-worst team in the NHL. If they can keep up that pace, they would have a chance at winning the lottery, as any franchise can only move up a maximum of 10 spots.
Along with the winning culture that the Panthers have instilled over the years, they could bring in some talented youth at the draft, especially since they’re on track to claim a top-10 draft pick - if the pick lands outside of that, it goes to the Chicago Blackhawks as part of the Seth Jones trade.
In fact, Windsor Spitfires star Ethan Belchetz is projected to go around the 10th pick in the upcoming draft, and he would be a perfect selection for the Panthers.
Belchetz is listed at 6-foot-5 and 228 pounds by NHL Central Scouting, and his size, toughness and physicality would certainly fit Florida’s identity. Belchetz could be a great fit for the Panthers, and that won’t be lost on GM Bill Zito.
If they don’t go for Belchetz, or the stars don’t align for the Panthers to make that work, there’s still plenty of talent coming up the pipeline that would make a great asset for Florida at any rate.
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