Panthers goalie Anthony Stolarz speaks after Florida's 4-1 win in Philadelphia on March 24 The month of April is absolutely loaded for sports fans and one of the most underrated on the sports calender. You have the Masters April 13th, both NHL and NBA playoffs beginning late in the month and the NFL Draft April 25th. However, it all begins this weekend. Not only is it both the Mens and Womens Final Fours in basketball, but the Super Bowl of Wrestling takes place both Saturday and Sunday in Wrestlemania. [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rp8CSN8n7Mw[/embed] The WWE has seen its popularity sore in the past few years and has more eyeballs than usual, including this writer. there are certainly some Panthers players that could make the career transition into the squared circle once their hockey careers come to an end. Lets take a look: 1) Matthew Tkachuk [gallery ids="1655"] Tkachuk just has the playing style and look of a “heel” wrestler. He gets in players faces and a lot of time does so with a grin on his face, seemingly taking pleasure in aggitating them. He also possesses the talking ability to cut a good promo and could be seen as a "rat" heel ala the late Eddie Guerrero. [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HgErSRgMUGA[/embed] 2) Nick Cousins [gallery ids="1742"] Wouldn’t you love to see a heel duo of Tkachuk and Cousins? Cousins has taken a lot of heat this year for his some of his on-ice antics. However in the WWE this same type of behaviour is what the bad guys are embraced. Dominik Mysterio is one of the biggest stars in wrestling right now and that is almost entirely due the fans love for booing him out of the building. Why couldn’t Cousins be the same. [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v0zo1mGVAcI[/embed] 3) Ryan Lomberg [gallery ids="1746"] Lomberg already has the long-haired look that is often seen in wrestling. He also has a great nickname in “Lomborgheni”. Could definitely see that being the name of a WWE finisher. Although not the biggest guy in stature, he is a tough customer on the ice and wrestlers are not all the giants they were back in the Big Show/Undertaker days. Full disclosure this pick may have also been partially influenced by the Panthers in house crew playing the John Cena theme song during a Lomberg fight earlier in the season. 4) Anthony Stolarz [gallery ids="1743"] Storlarz is simply a monster. He is listed at 6’6, 243 pounds making him and heaviest Panthers player. That is the exact frame that translates to the squared circle. The only player the same height as him on the roster currently is third string goalie Marcus Hellberg. A tag team of two hockey goalies sounds like an idea to me. They could be a more polite version of Kane/Undertaker. 5) Sam Bennett [gallery ids="1744"] Bennett once had his draft stock questioned for his inability to do a single pull-up, but his reputation is the complete opposite nowadays. The former 4th overall draft pick had 91 points in his last full season in juniors and was expected to be a skill player in the NHL. Instead, he has a found a home with the Panthers as an absolute wrecking ball on the ice and hits everything in site. Bennett put on about 15 pounds of muscle since his draft year and now sports much more of a tough guy look. Could see Sam putting his body on the line just like he does on the ice ala a Jeff Hardy. [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hslsYqu94_w[/embed] Honorable mention: Former Panther Radko Gudas. He would be easily number one on this list if still one the team for obvious reasons. [gallery ids="1745"] LATEST STORIES FROM THE HOCKEY NEWS - FLORIDA Aaron Ekblad likely to miss rest of regular season [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/latest-news/aaron-ekblad-likely-to-miss-rest-of-regular-season] Tkachuk brothers meet as Panthers look to getting back to winning ways Thursday [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/game-day/tkachuk-brothers-meet-as-panthers-look-to-getting-back-to-winning-ways-thursday] Panthers set to battle feisty Senators in matchup of teams that do not like each other [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/game-day/panthers-set-to-battle-feisty-senators-in-matchup-of-teams-that-do-not-like-each-other] Florida Panthers recall Uvis Balinskis from AHL Charlotte, Aaron Ekblad status unknown [https://thehockeynews.com/nhl/florida-panthers/latest-news/florida-panthers-recall-uvis-balinskis-from-ahl-charlotte-aaron-ekblad-status-unknown]
