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What Should The Florida Panthers Do With Shawn Matthias?
Now that we know the draft status for the Florida Panthers (second overall) in the upcoming draft this summer, the Panthers can begin planning their future. Some of it immediate, and some of it long term. As Dale Tallon continues to follow his blue print of building a consistent playoff contender, there are some questions regarding certain players on this Panthers roster that must be answered. One of the most glaring decisions has to deal with the status of restricted free agent Shawn Matthias.
Matthias was originally drafted in the second round, 47th overall in 2006 by the Detroit Red Wings as he was playing for the Belleville Bulls in the OHL. Take a look at his pre draft scouting report from RedWingscentral.com to get an idea of what the consensus was at that time. The characteristics that likely attracted the Detroit brass was his size, skating ability, and his tenacious forchecking. He was also described as a hard worker. All attributes that would make most any player being looked at as a potential middle six forward. The negatives in the report however were that he didn’t always play to his size, and that he may not have the softest hands around. Still, Matthias was viewed as a solid prospect in the Red Wings organization, and solid enough to be taken in the second round. Detroit has a history of finding “diamonds in the rough” and they obviously felt that Matthias had the potential to be another gem.
Matthias spent three seasons with Bellville, and each one was better than his last, and when the Florida Panthers were in the process of trading forward Todd Bertuzzi, then general manager Jacques Martin wanted Matthias as part of the deal, which also included two conditional draft picks. It was believed that eventually Matthias could be a second line center with Florida as long as his development continued. After being acquired Matthias spend time between his Belleville team, the Roschester Americans and the Florida Panthers before finally sticking to the roster for a full season in 2011-2011. Much of his ice time prior to this past season was spent on the bottom two lines, and killing penalties as his rugged style of play warranted him those opportunities while he continued to develop his game, which needed some consistency.
Panther Parkway Radio: Draft Lottery, Jeff Marek Talks Panthers, Playoff Predictions And More!
This week we talk about the Draft Lottery, sit down with Sportsnet’s Jeff Marek to talk Panther’s hockey and give our playoff predictions!
5/3/2013 Panther Parkway Radio
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Florida Panthers’ 2013 Player Grades: Defense
Erik Gudbranson.
Photo Source: Michael Miller/ Wikipedia Commons
With the disappointing 2012-2013 season on its’ way to being understandably forgotten by both fans and players alike, we must take one final moment to begrudgingly relive the events of this year as I hand out my end of the season player grades. Although the Panthers were only able to muster a pedestrian 15-27-6 record – good enough for last in the entire NHL – there were still a few players that can look back on this season with pride.
While many players will be receiving grades that would merit summer school, there are a few skaters with bodies of work good enough to be hung up on the refrigerator. Considering the amount of call-ups and short lived NHL appearances by skaters due to frequent Panther injuries this season, I have decided to grade only players who competed in at least 20 games this season.
For this report card I will be taking a look at the Panthers’ ill-fated defensive unit. After seeing some improvement last season, the Panthers’ defense took a big step backward as they finished the season last in NHL in goals allowed per game (3.54). Frequent mental lapses and an inability to clear dangerous pucks were just two of the numerous problems that defined the team’s defensive struggles this season. Considering just how bad the Panthers’ defense looked almost every game, you will be hard pressed to find too many good grades below.
Panthers Will Pick 2nd In 2013 NHL Entry Draft
Just days after the end of their extremely disappointing 2012-2013 season, the Florida Panthers took their first big step towards next season as they were awarded the 2nd overall pick in the newly revamped NHL Draft Lottery.
Considering the Panthers had a 25% chance of winning the first overall pick, it is sad to see the team miss out on the excitement that comes with having the first overall selection, but it does not mean they won’t still have a chance to select a potential future star player. Now that the draft order is in place, the Panthers will have just under two months to decide what to do with their highly coveted selection.
With Portland Winterhawks’ defenseman Seth Jones almost guaranteed to go first overall to the Colorado Avalanche, the Panthers will turn their attention to forwards Nathan MacKinnon, Jonathan Drouin and Aleksander Barkov. Considering they have a strong need for a top-line scoring center, the team could lean towards selecting Halifax Mooseheads‘ forward Nathan MacKinnon.
The 2013 NHL Entry Draft will take place on June 30th from the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. In an interesting turn of events, this year’s draft will have all 7 rounds on the same day for the first time since 2006. Stay tuned to Panther Parkway throughout the summer as we keep you updated on all of the Panthers’ draft options leading up to the 2013 NHL Entry Draft.
Thanks for reading and please share your thoughts in the comments section below!
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2013 NHL Draft Lottery Tonight.
Tonight at 8:00 P.M. you can catch the official lottery for the upcoming NHL Draft that will take place in June from New Jersey. The Florida Panthers who finished 30th in the NHL will have the best opportunity to be awarded with the number one overall pick with a 25% chance, followed by Colorado at 18.% and Tampa Bay at 14.2%. The worst that the Panthers can do is end up with the second pick, which still gives them a tremendous opportunity to draft a highly rated prospect, and someone who can almost immediately contribute to the franchise.
The lottery drawing can be seen live on NBCSN at 8:00 P.M., and will be rebroadcast on the NHL network at 9:00 P.M.. General manager Dale Tallon will be in attendance of course in hopes of obtaining that number one pick. Regardless, this will be the fourth draft that Tallon has participated in as Panthers GM, and all three of his four picks will have come in the top three. His first was in 2010 when he selected defenseman Erik Gudbranson with the number three pick. In 2011 Tallon and the Panthers selected Jonathan Huberdeau, who is in the running for the Calder Trophy as the league’s top rookie. Last summer the Panthers selected defenceman Michael Matheson in the first round, 23rd overall.
Preview: Florida Panthers vs. Tampa Bay Lightning. So Get Right, Get Tight, Get Down
FLORIDA PANTHERS: 14-27-6 (34 PTS.) vs. TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING: 18-25-4 (40 PTS.)
GAMEDAY SONG: Kitty’s Back Part one, & Kitty’s Back Part two. Bruce Springsteen
Back in October, knowing that there wouldn’t be a season due to a lockout, we were impatiently waiting for the season to begin, and the nonsense to end. The longer the stalemate dragged on, the further away the games seemed to be. Finally after months of waiting, on January 19th the season started, and faster than you can snap your fingers, it ends tonight. The final game of the “shortened” season is a meaningless one between state rivals, the Florida Panthers and the Tampa Bay Lightning. Other than pride and making a final statement for a few players, this game will have very little substance.
The good news for the Panthers is that their poor season has guaranteed them to have one of the top two picks in the upcoming NHL draft in June. Meaning that either Seth Jones, Jonathan Drouin or Nathan MacKinnon will be a Florida Panther come this summer. The draft lottery takes place on Monday, and the Panthers will learn their position then, and we’ll all begin speculating on which one of those three will be chosen. In the meantime, there hasn’t been much to get excited about this season other than the performance of Jonathan Huberdeau as he continues to make his claim for Rookie of the Year. If he does win the Calder Trophy, it would be the first time in Florida Panther history that a rookie did, and he stands the best chance of any rookie the club has ever had to do so.
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Panther Parkway Radio: NHL Draft Talk, Free Agency, Team Awards And More!
This week we talk about the upcoming NHL Draft, hand out our awards to some Panther’s players, breakdown some free agent options and more!
4/26/2013 Panther Parkway Radio
Click the link above to listen or search for Panther Parkway Radio on iTunes….
Follow All Panther Parkway writers on Twitter: Me @eyesonsunrise, Frank Rekas @FrankRekas, Scott Mullin @GreatScottsman, Paige Lewis @PaigeLewisFL, Jameson Cooper @JamesonCoop, Gabby Kiger @gabbykiger, Amanda Land @HockeyGirl2530 and David Lasseter @davidlasseter. Visit our Facebook fan page here and give us a like!
Panthers Home Schedule Ends With A Thud
Maybe the Florida Panthers knew something when they had their end of season festivities following Tuesday night’s win over the New York Rangers instead of Thursday’s home finale against the Toronto Maple Leafs. The playoff bound Leafs built a two-goal first period lead and never looked back en route to a 4-0 win over the Cats.
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Panthers Finally Play Spoiler In Win Over Rangers
The Florida Panthers were reduced to the role of spoiler for other teams fighting for the playoffs weeks ago. Unfortunately for them (and fortunately for those wanting the Cats to finish with the worst record for draft pick purposes), they haven’t been relishing that role. Everyone of the teams the Panthers played during their current six game winning streak were in playoff position and all easily walked away with the two points. That all seemed like good news for Tuesday night’s opponent, the New York Rangers, as they needed two points to clinch a spot in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. As the evening unfolded, the Blue Shirts would only need a win to punch their ticket. That win will have to come another day as the Panthers gutted out a 3-2 win in front of a slanted New York crowd at the BB&T Cetner.
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Game Day Preview: New York Rangers vs. Florida Panthers
NEW YORK RANGERS: 24-17-4 (52 PTS.) vs. FLORIDA PANTHERS: 13-26-6 (32 PTS.)
TSN GAMEDAY
GAMEDAY SONG: Backstreets
Tonight the Florida Panthers will play one of two final home games as they host the New York Rangers who happen to be riding a three game winning streak in their effort to make the post season. The Rangers who have struggled mightily this season compared to the expectations that were laid out for them could be peaking at the perfect time. In their last 10 games the Blue shirts are 7-2-1 and have sparked offensively scoring 41 goals in 11 games during the month of April. It was just 23 days ago that New York was the lowest scoring team in the NHL, but they have somehow been able to find the back of the net more often. There’s no better time to turn your game around than now and make your post season run as Ryan Callahan said after beating the New Jersey Devils on Sunday:
“We’re playing our best hockey we’ve played all year,” Rangers captain Ryan Callahan, who scored twice against the Devils, said. “Now is the time to do that. We’ve been playing playoff-style hockey the last couple of games. These are must-wins for us. It gives us a dress rehearsal for the playoffs.”
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