It may still be the middle of the summer, but the Florida Panthers roster is pretty much set for the upcoming season. There will still need to be a move or two made in order for the team to be cap compliant, but that should sort itself out in due time. For now, let’s take a look at one specific area of the Panthers roster and discuss how it may be deployed when the season begins. Barring any unexpected trades, Florida’s will enter the season with seven defensemen on their roster. They are Aaron Ekblad, Seth Jones, Gustav Forsling, Niko Mikkola, Dmitry Kulikov, Uvis Balinskis and Jeff Petry. Thinking ahead to Opening Night, assuming everyone on the blueline is healthy, let’s look at how Panthers Head Coach Paul Maurice may pair them up and utilize them on special teams. It makes sense that Maurice would keep his top four from the Stanley Cup Playoffs intact, considering how effective they proved to be and the chemistry that exists between them. That would keep Forsling and Ekblad together on the top pairing with Jones and Mikkola gobbling up similar minutes right behind them. Regarding that aforementioned chemistry, it was fun to see the growing on-ice relationship between Jones and Mikkola start to blossom as the postseason went deeper. It was no coincidence that Jones and Mikkola finished the playoffs a combined plus-15 while contributing seven goals and 15 points as the comfort level between them grew, particularly in Jones as he became more and more acclimated to Florida’s defensive systems. The biggest question surrounding Florida’s defensive unit will be regarding how Maurice plays to utilize his third pairing. Newcomer Jeff Petry will get a good look once training camp arrives, and his ability to fit in as well as the Panthers recent defensive signings have (Oliver Ekman-Larsson and Nate Schmidt come to mind) will go a long way toward solidifying the right side of that third pairing. That would leave Dmitry Kulikov and Uvis Balinskis for the left side spot. It seems logical that the veteran Kulikov has the inside track to at least starting the season with in the top six. Since signing with Florida, Balinskis has kept his head down and worked his way up to being considered a reliable NHL defenseman. The problem is the Panthers are so deep, and the signing of the right-shooting Petry seemingly only makes it more difficult for Balinskis to crack the lineup. Both Kulikov and Balinskis are lefties. In terms of special teams, the returning five from Florida’s Stanley Cup top six from a summer ago all played key roles on the penalty kill. Expect to see Ekblad, Forsling, Jones, Mikkola and Kulikov all play their share of shorthanded minutes, and don’t be surprised to see Petry get a look while down a man as well. He’s picked up plenty of experience playing on the PK during his 15-year career. Shifting to the power play, Florida did something during their playoff run we hadn’t seen much of in recent years, and that’s use two defenseman on their top power play. Ekblad and Jones seemed to gain confidence while fluidly moving the puck on the man advantage, so it wouldn’t be a shock to see them get another look when the season arrives. Maurice has not utilized Forsling much on the power play over the past few seasons, but perhaps this will be his year to get that extra time on the second unit and see a nice little bump in his point production. Training Camp is still about two months away. We’ll see how things shake out once the defending champs hit the ice in September. 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(James Guillory-Imagn Images)
