Maurice explains how players like Mackie Samoskevich aren't fighting for fourth line jobs
Florida Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice gave a look into the decision-making process that the coaching staff will go through when handing out the team’s final roster spots.
The Panthers only have a handful of openings, and that number could shrink depending on whether they choose to carry a full 23-man roster.
For players like Mackie Samoskevich and Grigori Denisenko, their path to an NHL job, at least at the start of the season, may be a bit more difficult.
That’s simply because they’re both considered high-end forwards, not the kind of guys you’d expect to see playing less than ten minutes a game on the fourth line.
“For me, a very young skill player has to be able to play on your top line, or he shouldn't play (at the NHL level),” Maurice said. “Because we need him at a certain minute level to get the experience that he's going to need to play there permanently.”
Florida’s top nine forward spots are all but locked up, and while there are always exceptions and moves that can be made, it won’t be easy for the youngsters to crack the lineup.
Samoskevich has looked good during camp and certainly shown some NHL-level skills.
Denisenko, meanwhile, has not stood out and has struggled to show the puck skills and overall strength that he became known for as a younger prospect.
As for the idea that Samoskevich and Denisenko are competing for the same forward spots as players like Brett Ritchie, William Lockwood or Zac Dalpe, Maurice put that notion to bed.
“Those guys are not in competition at all,” Maurice explained. “The younger players who don’t need to pass through waivers, those players have to play meaningful minutes on your NHL team, or they need to be playing in the minors. So we don't necessarily pick one guy over another in those remaining spots, we pick situations.”