Going after a Stanley Cup year after year can have a profound impact on a team’s prospect pool

Over the past several years, the Florida Panthers have curated one of the top roster in the NHL.

It’s led the team to the best seasons in franchise history, capped off by last month’s victory in the Stanley Cup Final.

While the Cats are in good shape at the top level, some of their lower ranks aren’t quite as impressive.

That will happen when you dedicate future assets to the goal of winning ‘now’.

The challenge for Panthers General Manager Bill Zito and his staff will be to maintain the NHL success while still keeping the team’s cupboards stocked with young, inexpensive, homegrown talent that can fill out the roster around the team’s veteran players.

Earlier this week, The Hockey News’ Tony Ferrari took a deep dive into the Panthers prospect pool in a story and video for THN.

A quick preview from the top of the story reads a little something like this:

Tony Ferrari goes through the Panthers' system and identifies strengths and weaknesses while analyzing their notable prospects. He also goes into each draft selection and more. 

A player who no longer holds rookie eligibility in the NHL is no longer considered a prospect for this exercise, except in very specific cases.

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The big names - Spencer Knight, Mackie Samoskevich, Jack Devine – are obviously mentioned, but Ferrari goes much further and looks beyond just the men who are on the cusp of playing in the NHL.

Florida’s prospects who have yet to go pro are also analyzed, including recent draft selections Gracyn Sawchyn and Linus Eriksson.

You can check out Ferrari’s full story by clicking here, and check out his video summary below:

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