Panthers Beginning

[bthomp05]

Re: Panthers Beginning

DRAFT DAY 2010

Having amassed three 1st round picks last year the Panthers have 5 picks in the 1st two rounds, 5th-15th-17th-30th 1st round and 30th in the 2nd round.

But before things could begin Panthers management was seen scurying around the Islanders table (last year Panthers traded Vokoun to the Islanders for thier 1st round pick and landed Thompson) and sure enough a deal was announced.

Florida Send:
D Ville Koistinen (11-63-74 pts) and G Scott Clemmensen (23-17, 2.55 GAA)
Islanders Send:
D Anton Babchuk (5-27-32 pts, 27 pims) and D Alexei Semenov (4-19-23 pts, 54 pims)

A weird move by the Panthers considering Koistinen's great play last year, but the Panthers do get rid of an aging goalie (a call up from the baby Panthers is expected, maybe Alexander Salak) and ended up adding some great defence experience with Babchuk and Semenov. I guess only time will tell.

1st Round:
5th pick - Bjorn Backer (LW from Sweden)
15th pick - Ed Schnieder (LW from Canada)
17th pick - Bill Ebbett (D from Canada)
30th pick - Curtis Hobson (D from Canada)

Once again the Panthers were on the move with an interesting deal with the Habs.

Panthers Send:
D Brian McCabe (13-35-48 pts) and thier 2nd Round (60th pick)
Habs Send:
RW Brian Gionta (40-52-92pts) and thier 4th Round (125th pick)

Hands down a great deal for the Panthers. They move an aging defensemen and in return get a hard working performance enhancing winger. By picking up Babchuk and Semenov earlier the spot vacated by McCabe has already been filled and now its a question of who will play the right wing of points phenominum Thompson, Lukes or Gionta?

2nd Round:
Pick traded to the Habs

3rd Round:
120th pick - Brandon Lund (C from Sweden)

4th Round:
125th pick (from the Habs) - Ric Sumal (G from Russia)
150th pick - Clint Smith (C from Norway)

5th Round:
180th pick - Joel Tellqvist (LW from Finland)

All in all not a bad draft, 8 picks means 8 new players to consider for entry level contracts. Only one of those 8 players was lower then 70 and the highest was 77. Not bad in deed.

[bthomp05]

Re: Panthers Beginning

Gonguralations bthomp on winning the Cup

Thanks Mikko. I hope you continue reading for season 2.

[SENS_AK27]

Re: Panthers Beginning

Good Job BThomp05! One of my very first dynasties back in the day was with the Panthers. When they had prospects like Luongo and BouwMeester and Jokinen.

[bthomp05]

Re: Panthers Beginning

CONTRACT TIME

The Panthers move into the FA season with 7 expiring contracts (Campbell, Moore, Peltonen, Leopold, Recchi, Seidenberg, and Lukes) and 8 new draft picks (Backer, Schnieder, Ebbett, Hobson, Lund, Sumal, Smyth, and Tellqvist) to consider.

Who will stay/join and who will be sent packing?

Resignings:
Frantisek Lukes was signed to a 4yr 1.7 million deal
Mark Recchi was signed to a 1yr 1.3 million deal
Dominic Moore was signed to a 3yr 1.125 million deal

Campbell, Peltonen, Leopold, and Seidenberg were all sent a fairwell for thier services.

Entry Level:
Curtis Hobson was signed to a 3yr entry level contract
- Rated high 70s D (6'4", 201 lbs)
Ed Schnieder was signed to a 3yr entry level contract
- Rated mid 70s LW (5'11", 182 lbs)
Bjorn Backer was signed to a 3yr entry level contract
- Rated mid 70s LW (6'0", 175 lbs)
Bill Ebbett was signed to a 3yr entry level contract
- Rated mid 70s D (5'11", 205 lbs)
Ric Samul was signed to a 3yr entry level contract
- Rated mid 70s G (6'0", 202 lbs)
Clint Smith was signed to a 3yr entry level contract
- Rated low 70s C (5'11", 183 lbs)

Lund and Tellqvist were not signed.

UFA SEASON

With some spots to fill the Panthers waisted no time in acquiring some new talent.

First off the Panthers made a deal with the 4th worst team last year, Thrashers.

Panthers Send:
RW Brian Gionta (40-52-93 pts last year and a less then a month stay in the Panthers Organization)
Thrashers Send:
D Scott Hannan (2-15-17 pts, 124 pim)

An interesting deal, just like the one that brough Gionta to the Panthers, the Panthers aquire another great defencemen in Hannan but lost a definate scoring threat. When asked why, Panthers management felt that having Lukes and Recchi on the top 2 lines was enough and that Gionta wasn't the right fit at this time. I guess will see how this plays out.

Meanwhile the Panthers beefed up considerable with alittle scoring with 4 additional signings.

D Anton Volchenkov (3-23-26 pts, 118 pims) signed a 2yr 3.5 million deal

LW Donald Brashear (11-13-24 pts, 366 pims) signed a 1yr 0.5 million deal

RW Wade Belak (6-2-8 pts, 255 pims) signed a 3yr 1.125 million deal

D Marc-Andre Bergeron (6-37-43 pts, 84 pims) signed a 3yr 2.1 million deal

Atleast 3 of these signings will definately put some toughness on a team that lacked it last year, adding about 739 more penalty minutes and a whole lot of aggression. Look out for anyone who messes with the Panthers elit.

The signing of Volchenkov defiately fills the role vacated by Koistinen for a DD on Smith's right side, while OD Bergeron is a perfect linemate for Allen and will see extensive time on the PP.

Signing Brashear and Belak fixes a situation that seemed to happen on the 4th line all last year. Moore didn't have anyone significant in the toughness department to play with and it took its toll. Hopefully these bruisers are the answer.


Season write up and lines are next.

[bthomp05]

Re: Panthers Beginning

Good Job BThomp05! One of my very first dynasties back in the day was with the Panthers. When they had prospects like Luongo and BouwMeester and Jokinen.

Thanks Sens. The funny thing is that back in the day I also did one as well. So its been fun developing a powerhouse again.

[bthomp05]

Re: Panthers Beginning

2010 - 2011 Outlook

The Panthers had a franchise record season last year, not only breaking team and player records but also winning the Stanely Cup and bring home a trophy case full of hardware. It will be an interesting season to see if the Cup Hangover will effect them or will they begin thier own great dynasty.

Like last year the Panthers made some big trades, had a great draft, and acquired some decent help during the offseason.

In the draft, which the Panthers had 8 picks (5th, 15th, 17th, 30th, 120th, 125th, and 150th) they selected 3 LW, 2 C, 2 D, and 1 goalie. And of those 8 they signed 6 of them. D Curtis Hobson, LW Ed Schnieder, LW Bjorn Backer, D Bill Ebbett, G Ric Sumal, and C Clint Smith (no relation to Mike Smith) all of which will be playing this year for the Baby Panthers. Of those 6, highly sought after canadian D Curtis Hobson will be in the spot light. This aggressive hard hitting D-man can turn on a dime and has a reasonable shot from the blue line. If injuries happen on the blue line, you can expect this D-man to get the call. He should be an interesting player to watch.

On the trade front the Panthers moved a couple of players on and off the team. Starting with a trade with the Islanders, they sent Koistinen and Clemmensen and in return got Babchuk and Semenov. Next they moved McCabe to the Habs for Gionta and then moved Gionta to Atlanta for Hannan. So in short they lost 1 goalie, 2 d-man, and 1 winger, but brought 3 capable D-men to the team. Was this a wise move, management thinks so as they increased thier defensive average from a b- to a b.

Next came UFA and the Panthers added about 7.225 million to thier cap. The biggest signings here were the ones that brought over 739 penalty minutes, in Brashear-Belak-Volchenkov. These hard hitting, no crap players will definately be felt on the ice on an otherwise meak team. Look out forwards and D-man in the corners, for these players will make you pay. Also on this front the Panthers added OD Marc-Andre Bergeron, who had 43 pts last year. His expertise will be looked for on the powerplay and as well as a perfect replacement for McCabe.

Never to be missed the Panthers decided to bring back a few players with expiring contracts. Of these lucky few, Thompson linemate Frantisek Lukes (had 86 pts last year, as well 29 in the playoffs) was signed to a new 4 yr deal. Along with him Recchi (1yr deal) and Moore (3yr deal) also were invited back. Hopefully thier great contributions last year will continue as the Panthers hunt for number 2.

Key Additions: Anton Volchenkov (D), Donald Brashear (LW), Wade Belak (RW), Marc-Andre Bergeron (D), Anton Babchuk (D), Alexei Semenov (D), Curtis Hobson (D), Ed Schnieder (LW), Bjorn Backer (LW), Bill Ebbett (D), Ric Sumal (G), and Clint Smith (C)

Key Departures: Ville Koistinen (D), Bryan McCabe (D), Jordan Leopold (D), Brain Campbell (C), Ville Peltonen (LW), Clemmensen (G), and Siedenberg (D)

Forwards: Booth (LW-84), Thompson (C-94), Lukes (RW-82), Frolik (LW-84), Reinprecht (C-80), Recchi (RW-80), Dadanov (LW-75), Matthias (C-81), Kreps (RW-76), Brashear (LW-75), Moore (C-78), Belak (RW-79)

Defencemen: Smith (85), Volchenkov (83), Bergeron (80), Allen (81), Hannan (83), Babchuk (80)

Goalies: Fedorov (83), Salak (76)

Top 5 Prospects: C. Hobson (D), D. Ryder (C), B. Backer (LW), E. Schnieder (LW), T. Kundratek (D).

[bthomp05]

Re: Panthers Beginning

7 Game Recap:
(Games 1 to 7)

VS CHI: 3-2 W
VS DAL: 5-2 W
VS SJ: 4-1 W
VS BOS: 7-5 W
VS TOR: 4-3 W
AT CAR: 3-2 L
AT TB: 3-1 W

Panthers are 6-1-0 with 12 pts, are 1ST in the East
GF: 28 (2nd) GA: 17 (8th) PP: 7.1% (27th) PK: 76.2 (22th)

Top 5 Scores:

Thompson 11-9-20
Booth 5-6-11
Lukes 2-8-10
Smith 0-6-6
Volchenkov 1-5-6

Fedorov 5-1 2.64GAA
Salak 1-0 1.00GAA

6 and 1 is a great start for the Stanley Cup Champions and so far proof that this team is not suffering from a bad hangover.

Thompson has not lost a beat since the playoffs, contributing over 20 pts in the first 7 games, about 2.85 pts/game. Linemates Booth and Lukes are also over the 1pt/game mark with 11 and 10 respectively. D-men Smith and Volchenkov round up spots 4 and 5 with 6 pts each.

The PP and PK are still in ruins like last year so expect some changes soon.

To soon to make any predictions but after Clemmensen was sent to the Islanders duing the offseason, top goalie prospect Alexander Salak from Rochester, was called up to take on back-up duties behind Fedorov. In his first game of the season, an away game no less, he backstop the Panthers to a 3 to 1 win over Lightning. Management and fans both hope this youthful goalie can be the prefect partner for Fedorov.

Team News:

It wasn't long after the season began that the Panthers made thier first move. Trolling overseas the Panthers signed center Patrick Thoresen to a 4 year deal. His speedy European style and quick puck movement skills will definately be a bonous to an already fast, agile team. He is scheduled to play imediately after his medical checks out.

With Thoresen joining the team the new lines look like this:

Booth-Thompson-Lukes
Frolik-Thoresen-Recchi
Olesz-Matthias-Reinprecht
Brashear-Moore-Belak

Hannen-Smith
Allen-Volchenkov
Babchuk-Bergeron

Federov-Salak

[Bure10Beezer34]

Re: Panthers Beginning

As long as you're having fun with this franchise...that's what matters most to me. You can tell you are

A lot of your trades were kind of head scratching but you know your team better than we do. I laughed when I saw your UFA signings and thought, "just a LITTLE toughness?" I wouldn't want to play against your squad...LOL! I'd be affraid to go into any of the corners in the rink! My Capitals squad is lacking in toughness...it's something I will probably have to address during the season.

I know the NHL isn't as high scoring as it used to be so you chasing after Gretzky is a nice way to spice it up. Not sure all would agree on that since...well...he's Gretzky Good luck with the new season!

[bthomp05]

Re: Panthers Beginning

As long as you're having fun with this franchise...that's what matters most to me. You can tell you are

A lot of your trades were kind of head scratching but you know your team better than we do. I laughed when I saw your UFA signings and thought, "just a LITTLE toughness?" I wouldn't want to play against your squad...LOL! I'd be affraid to go into any of the corners in the rink! My Capitals squad is lacking in toughness...it's something I will probably have to address during the season.

I know the NHL isn't as high scoring as it used to be so you chasing after Gretzky is a nice way to spice it up. Not sure all would agree on that since...well...he's Gretzky Good luck with the new season!

Thanks Bure, I appreciate the support.

Yeah I know alot of people would have been shaking thier heads, but I know what team I wanted and toughness is the way I wanted to go.

I already have a superstar 1st line with Booth-Thompson-Lukes that is young and has great potential, while my next two lines are made up of veteran players (Rechhi is my main man in the 2nd line, just love him) intertwined with youth. My 4th line I wanted some sort of a roughneck set-up, and well Belak and Brashear sure fit the profile.

Defensively I always wanted some offense but alot more toughness then last year. Smith is my lead guy here on the offense, while Volchenkov is my lead strong man. The rest just fill in the holes with more DDs then ODs. Last year I had a balance between ODs and DDs and yes it seemed to work alright, but I was always being manhandled in front of my net so I hope this works.

In the goalie department I like youth, so thats why I went with Fedorov (He's only 19 now, the skys the limit with this kid) and Rochesters top goalie last year Salak as my back-up, instead of signing a veteran goalie. Will this bite me in the arse, I don't know. I guess time will tell.

Now why in hell did I flip Gionta to the Thrashers. Well I thought they needed him more... just kidding. I wasn't looking for a winger (already happy with the guys I have) and Gionta would have either bumped Lukes or Recchi and I wasn't prepared to do that. As well, not this year but next, Thompson, Smith, Fedorov have expiring contracts which are probably going to cost me an arm and a leg so I didn't want to commit to another big contract (I was already planning on signing C Thorensen for the 2nd line)
So that is why I flipped him.

What do you think I should have done? Any comments appreciated from anyone.

[SENS_AK27]

Re: Panthers Beginning

Great moves and I enjoy the analysis. Volchenkov will be a beast for you for sure. Going for youth is always a good thing, especially under veteran leadership. How is Olesz doing? I see him on the 3rd line. His not maturing properly, is it too early to call him a bust?

[bthomp05]

Re: Panthers Beginning

Great moves and I enjoy the analysis. Volchenkov will be a beast for you for sure. Going for youth is always a good thing, especially under veteran leadership. How is Olesz doing? I see him on the 3rd line. His not maturing properly, is it too early to call him a bust?

Thanks Sens. I'm glad your enjoying it.

Olesz, to be honest not to happy about him. Last year he had 21 pts in 81 games (Moore who only played 66 games and was on the fourth line and had 23 pts) which I guess is not to bad but he was in the bottom 5 on my team, hell ever defencemen except Seidenberg had more points. He has none so far this season and I am considering trading him before his value goes down (He's rated 81). What do you think?

[Bure10Beezer34]

Re: Panthers Beginning

Thanks Bure, I appreciate the support.

Yeah I know alot of people would have been shaking thier heads, but I know what team I wanted and toughness is the way I wanted to go.

I already have a superstar 1st line with Booth-Thompson-Lukes that is young and has great potential, while my next two lines are made up of veteran players (Rechhi is my main man in the 2nd line, just love him) intertwined with youth. My 4th line I wanted some sort of a roughneck set-up, and well Belak and Brashear sure fit the profile.

Defensively I always wanted some offense but alot more toughness then last year. Smith is my lead guy here on the offense, while Volchenkov is my lead strong man. The rest just fill in the holes with more DDs then ODs. Last year I had a balance between ODs and DDs and yes it seemed to work alright, but I was always being manhandled in front of my net so I hope this works.

In the goalie department I like youth, so thats why I went with Fedorov (He's only 19 now, the skys the limit with this kid) and Rochesters top goalie last year Salak as my back-up, instead of signing a veteran goalie. Will this bite me in the arse, I don't know. I guess time will tell.

Now why in hell did I flip Gionta to the Thrashers. Well I thought they needed him more... just kidding. I wasn't looking for a winger (already happy with the guys I have) and Gionta would have either bumped Lukes or Recchi and I wasn't prepared to do that. As well, not this year but next, Thompson, Smith, Fedorov have expiring contracts which are probably going to cost me an arm and a leg so I didn't want to commit to another big contract (I was already planning on signing C Thorensen for the 2nd line)
So that is why I flipped him.

What do you think I should have done? Any comments appreciated from anyone.

Not really any suggestions. Like I said it's obvious you know your team and what direction you want to go in. I just found it interesting that you traded for Gionta and then traded him away as quick as you got him

I was an offensive minded player so I tend to build my teams that way. I like skilled forwards and offensively gifted defensemen. I do like a good mix of younger players and veterans just like you. I'm in the same boat as you going with youth in Varly and Neuvirth as my goalies so I feel your pain.

My team is lacking in toughness and I will probably address that at the deadline. The Caps have been scouting quite a few players but who knows who will be buyers and sellers at the deadline. Let me know how Volchenkov does for you. I watched some highlights the other night of him killing the Flyers up and down the ice. Definetly caught my attention. He might be someone my Capitals might have to take a closer look at if the Sens fall our of contention. So I will be following him closely in your franchise!

I appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts on your franchise. Sounds like you have a good grasp on your roster and their talents

[bthomp05]

Re: Panthers Beginning

Not really any suggestions. Like I said it's obvious you know your team and what direction you want to go in. I just found it interesting that you traded for Gionta and then traded him away as quick as you got him

I was an offensive minded player so I tend to build my teams that way. I like skilled forwards and offensively gifted defensemen. I do like a good mix of younger players and veterans just like you. I'm in the same boat as you going with youth in Varly and Neuvirth as my goalies so I feel your pain.

My team is lacking in toughness and I will probably address that at the deadline. The Caps have been scouting quite a few players but who knows who will be buyers and sellers at the deadline. Let me know how Volchenkov does for you. I watched some highlights the other night of him killing the Flyers up and down the ice. Definetly caught my attention. He might be someone my Capitals might have to take a closer look at if the Sens fall our of contention. So I will be following him closely in your franchise!

I appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts on your franchise. Sounds like you have a good grasp on your roster and their talents

Well if you do, don't hestitate in commenting.

So far Volchenkov has been pretty decent. I don't have all his stats (will get them to you later) but he's 6th in points with the Panthers at 1-12-13.

I have him playing on the 2nd D pairing with Allen as I have my superstar OD man Smith with hard hitting Hannan on the 1st pairing. Vol also logs time on my PK.

[bthomp05]

Re: Panthers Beginning

13 Game Recap:
(Games 8 to 20)

Unfortunately I forgot to write down the scores but the Panthers went 12-1-0 during this stretch

Panthers are 18-2-0 with 36 pts, are 1ST in the East
GF: 83 (1st) GA: 45 (8th) PP: 19.7% (4th) PK: 83.2 (22nd)

Top 5 Scores:

Thompson 25-20-45
Lukes 8-18-26
Booth 9-16-25
Smith 2-17-19
Frolik 10-8-18

Fedorov 15-1 2.24 GAA
Salak 3-1 2.26 GAA

Belak 101 pims


Both home and away seem to be favourable playgrounds for the Panthers as they went 12-1 in the last 13 games. So far the best record for the Panthers period.

The Panthers powerplay has started to connect as they increased from 7.1% to 19.7% over the last 13 games. Unfortunately thier PK is still ranked 22nd with 83.2%.

Thompson continues his league supremecy scoring 14 goals and tallying on 11, as his points total hits 45 for the season. Surprisingly 5 of those goals are on the PK, thats right 5 shorthanded goals in 20 games. Not bad.

Linemates Lukes and Booth are also having great starts with 26 and 25 points respectively. If they keep this up they could both post 100 + point seasons.

Goaltending is ranked 3rd in the league with a GAA of 2.25 and a record of 18-2, while 4 of the D-men (Smith, Volchenkov, Allen, and Hannan) are in the top 10 stats for the Panthers.

Heavy weight tough man Belak is definately letting his presence known, leading the league with 101 pims with atleast 15 scraps this season. Definately a change from last year's meek team.

New Panther Thoresen, signed 13 games ago, has slipped into the lineup nicely with 6-3-9 pts and a FO% of 65% in his first 13 games with the Panthers. His linemates Frolik and Recchi have 18 and 11 points respectively.

Working on thier PK will definately be in the cards, as the Panther's try and continue thier success through the next 62 games.

Team Notes:

Hitting is fun, as long as its legal. Booth unfortunately learned the latter of that statement.

During last nights game againts the Blue Jackets, Booth (of all players) slammed D Sami Salo from behind into the boards. Salo left the ice and never came back, later reported to have a fractured elbow.

Booth was immediately given a 5 minute major for boarding and a game misconduct. The play was reviewed by the NHL and Booth was given a 3 game suspension for the malicious hit. The Panthers were also warned that if this happens again, any player, the suspension will be much higher.

Asked for a comment, Booth had this to say. "Of all people I can understand a bad hit and what it can do. But it wasn't my fault his head was down and his elbow was up. Ow well, I guess these things happen. I apologize to Salo and the Blue Jackets for the incident."

Panthers management was not available for comment.

With Booth out of the lineup with the suspension, Frolik will move up to take his position while Olesz will take his. Rochester winger Dvorak will get the call and take Olesz position on the 3rd line (Dvorak has 19 pts with Rochester, management will be watching him closely to see if the move might be permenant - as Olesz and Brashears play is questionable).

[bthomp05]

Re: Panthers Beginning

Bure:

The Gionta trade was an unexpected thing, this is why.

During the 10/11 draft the Habs offered me Gionta and I took the deal - who wouldn't. I was going to put him on the 2nd line and not re-sign Recchi. But after the draft Atlanta offered me Hannan for him and I took the deal. I was looking to beef up my defence and Hannan is a prefect guy (rated 83 and has over 50 hits this season with the Panthers), so in the end I think this was a better deal.

I signed Recchi to a 1year deal (will see whos available come UFA) and picked up Volchenkov, already securing Hannan and Babchuk. So yes I might have given up some potential scoring (Eventhough now I'm 1st in the league with 83, Caps not far behind with 81) but my defensive core is a beast.

So in short I traded scoring for hitting, and its worked out well.