Panthers 2008 Draft Review

2008 NsHL Draft – First round – 30^th overall

• Name: Nicolas Deschamps

• Position: C

• Shoots: Left

• Height: 6-0

• Weight: 173 lbs

• Birthdate: 1990-01-06

• Hometown: Delson, Quebec

Deschamps was ranked 35^th by NHL Scouting and he continues to rise in the rankings. Florida liked his talents and completed a trade to move down in the draft (from 26 to 30) to not only secure his rights but also pick up another 2^nd round pick (44^th overall).

Deschamps is a very good skater who battles hard for the puck. He played for Canada at the U18 Championship in April, where he helped the team to win gold. He scored three goals for Canada in his seven games. Deschamps is a player projected to be 2^nd or 3^rd liner with great work ethic and leadership.

2008 NsHL Draft – Second round – 44^th overall

• Name: Jake Allen

• Goalie

• Height: 6-1

• Weight: 175 lbs

• Birthdate: 1990-08-07

• Hometown: Fredricton, New Brunswick

By trading the 26^th overall pick in the draft, Florida took the player they wanted in Deschamps and got a bonus player at the 44^th position. Panthers scouts elected to improve team depth in goal with the selection of Jake Allen.

Allen played for Canada’s under-18 squad, leading Canada to a sweep of all seven games, picking up two shutouts in the process, posting an astounding .948 save percentage, and leading Canada to the gold medal.

Allen is quick between the pipes and great at moving the puck. He’s also strong at controlling the puck when he makes a save, limiting rebounds.

2008 NsHL Draft – Second round – 56^th overall

• Name: Shawn Lalonde

• Position: D

• Shoots: Right

• Height: 6-0

• Weight: 175 lbs

• Birthdate: 1990-03-10

• Hometown: Orleans, Ontario

Lalonde is one of the best skaters in the draft. The Panthers picked him up because of his skating but they also get a quality puck-moving defenseman to develop on the farm.

Shawn will play next season in Belleville working on his game.

2008 NsHL Draft – Third round – 86^th overall

• Name: Adam Henrique

• Position: C

• Shoots: Left

• Height: 5-11

• Weight: 183 lbs

• Birthdate: 1990-02-06

• Hometown: Burford, Ontario

Henrique is a solid two-way player. He scored 44 points two season in-a-row with Windsor. This past spring he had five points in five Playoff games.

He excels on face-offs and the penalty kill. He’ll get a chance to play on an improved Windsor team this season and that could help his already good offensive skills and instincts.

He projects as a third line, two-way center, who can score 15 goals a season.

2008 NsHL Draft – Fourth round – 116^th overall

• Name: Nathan Moon

• Position: C

• Shoots: Right

• Height: 5-11

• Weight: 179 lbs

• Birthdate: 1990-01-04

• Hometown: Belleville, Ontario

The Panthers did not own a fifth round pick this year but they wanted to grab Moon who was projected to be a high fifth round pick. Panther’s management made one call to GM Miller in Nashville and arranged a four pick swap which nets the Panthers the high fifth rounder they wanted.

But on draft day Panthers Management got a little antsy. As they were about to make their fourth round selection Panthers GM IronMike began to waiver. He might have been bluffed out by another poker-playing GM or maybe he had reason to be worried.

Regardless, the Panthers war-room called out Moon as their fourth round pick screwing up their draft board.

In Moon, they get an offensive-minded forward with big offensive upside. He scored 77 points on a bad Kingston Frontenacs team of the OHL. Moon is young and probably can play two more seasons in the OHL working on his game. Florida likes his ability to play all three forward positions.

2008 NsHL Draft – Fifth round – 121st overall

• Name: Justin Azevedo

• Position: C

• Shoots: Right

• Height: 5-7

• Weight: 183 lbs

• Birthdate: 1988-04-01

• Hometown: West Lorne, Ontario

Justin was the leading scoring in the OHL. His limitations have been well-documented. But this late in the draft the Panthers are more-than-willing to take a gamble on the kid. Plus the Panthers have always been known to favour OHL players so this pick is no shock to those who know IronMike.

"We think Justin can play in this league, “ IronMike said. “The kid is a winner and has character that we feel can make the difference."

Cats cursed by Tjutin-khamun

Florida -- With the Florida Panthers up 2-0 in the NsHL Cup Finals the scene shifted to their home in Sunrise Florida.

Fedor Tjutin wrist shot found the back of the net and the Vancouver Canucks found themselves back in the series.

Tjutin scored twice and Doug Weight and Milan Hejduk each added a goal as the Canucks beat the Panthers 4-3 to take game three of the NsHL Final.

Florida still leads the best-of-seven series 2-1, winning 4-1 and 5-2 in the first two games.

The Canucks were full value for the win tonight as they came back from 2-1 and 3-2 deficits.

"Nobody quit," Doug Weight said. "Everybody was confident and it showed tonight. We played a solid road game tonight."

Game notes: The Cup Final is a definite road show with the road team winning all three games ...... Evgeni Malkin and Justin Williams scored in game three and have scored in back-to-back games ....... Nathan Norton added an assist and now leads the Panthers with 6 points in the series ..... the power-play was terrific in game three ..... the Canucks were a perfect one-for-one and the Panthers were 2 for 3 ...... the Panthers suffered another injury in game three when Antti Miettinen left the game with bruised shoulder and he will not play in game four ....... Patrick Eaves will get his first taste of action in the Cup Final.

Florida

EVEN STRENGTH

    CENTER                LEFT WING             RIGHT WING            DEFENCE               DEFENCE
1  Jason Spezza          Antti Miettinen       Evgeni Malkin         Sergei Zubov          Ivan Majesky
2  Marc Savard           Kyle Calder           Juraj Kolnik          Ed Jovanovski         Paul Ranger
3  Mike Sillinger        Justin Williams       Nathan Horton         Jason York            Branislav Mezei
4  Alyn Mccauley         Jay Pandolfo          Evgeni Malkin         Jason Strudwick       Ed Jovanovski


POWER PLAY

    CENTER                LEFT WING             RIGHT WING            DEFENCE               DEFENCE
1  Marc Savard           Kyle Calder           Evgeni Malkin         Sergei Zubov          Ed Jovanovski
2  Mike Sillinger        Justin Williams       Nathan Horton         Ivan Majesky          Paul Ranger


PENALTY KILL

    CENTER                WINGER                DEFENCE               DEFENCE
1  Alyn Mccauley         Jay Pandolfo          Sergei Zubov          Ivan Majesky
2  Mike Sillinger        Kyle Calder           Paul Ranger           Ed Jovanovski


STARTING GOALIE

  Patrick Lalime


SCRATCHES

  Patrick Eaves (Healthy)
  Joel Bouchard (Healthy)
  Petr Taticek (Healthy)

Vancouver

EVEN STRENGTH

    CENTER                LEFT WING             RIGHT WING            DEFENCE               DEFENCE
1  Brendan Morrison      Fredrik Modin         Milan Hejduk          Paul Martin           Martin Skoula
2  Doug Weight           Brenden Morrow        Shane Doan            Brad Stuart           Fedor Tjutin
3  Henrik Sedin          Daniel Sedin          Kirk Maltby           Mathieu Dandenault    Daniel Mcgillis
4  Doug Weight           Brenden Morrow        Milan Hejduk          Brad Stuart           Martin Skoula


POWER PLAY

    CENTER                LEFT WING             RIGHT WING            DEFENCE               DEFENCE
1  Brendan Morrison      Fredrik Modin         Milan Hejduk          Paul Martin           Brad Stuart
2  Doug Weight           Brenden Morrow        Shane Doan            Martin Skoula         Fedor Tjutin


PENALTY KILL

    CENTER                WINGER                DEFENCE               DEFENCE
1  Jason Arnott          Kirk Maltby           Martin Skoula         Fedor Tjutin
2  Henrik Sedin          Chuck Kobasew         Paul Martin           Daniel Mcgillis


STARTING GOALIE

  Rick DiPietro


SCRATCHES

  Ron Hainsey (Healthy)
  Brooks Orpik (Healthy)
  Trevor Letowski (Healthy)

31 seconds of horror

Vancouver -- Game two of the NsHL Final was decided in a span of 31 seconds. The Florida Panthers won game two 5-2 and now have a two nothing advantage in the series.

The home crowd was stunned and watched in horror as the visitors scored three goals in the span of 31 seconds in the first period.

Jason York opened the scoring when his flutterball got past Canucks back-up goalie Chris Osgood. Just 19 seconds later Justin Williams got past the defense and beat Osgood glove side to make it 2-0. 12 seconds later Sergei Zubov long pass connected to Evgeni Malkin and from the top of the left circle he blasted a shot passed Osgood.

31 seconds and three goals and the Panthers were off to the races. The crowd was fit to be tied.

"I kept counting the Canucks players, it seemed we were playing without 5 guys," said Canucks fan Dennis Kearns. "What the &$#! happened?"

The visiting Panthers kept up the pace. Juraj Kolnik scored to make it 4-0 and the home crowd turned on Osgood. The crowd gave him the bronx cheer from that point on. After Paul Martin made 4-1 the Panthers went in for the kill. Zubov and Jason Spezza set up their third goal of the night this one converted by Antti Miettinen. This goal spelled the end of Osgood's night.

The Southern cats held the advantage of play the rest of the way and cruised to a 5-2 win.

Rick Dipietro played well to cement his status as the Canucks number one. He will obviously play the rest of the series healthy or not.

Game notes: The game turned out to be a battle of back-ups as Coach Keenan suprised most by starting Manny Fernandez over Patrick Lalime ...... The Canucks camp said Dipietro is battling flu type symptoms ...... when the media asked Keenan about the health of Lalime the coach answered "flu, sure that sounds like what he has" ........ Fernandez left the game in the second period holding his elbow ...... Keenan said he was day-to-day with an upper body injury ...... Ed Jovanovski was a physical force tonight leading all players with 7 hits.

Horton hears a who ... scores too!

Vancouver -- Nathan Horton scored twice and Patrick Lalime made 26 saves as the Florida Panthers took Game 1 of the NsHL Cup Final on Saturday night 4-1 over the Vancouver Canucks .

Ed Jovanovski opened the scoring early in the second period with a quick snapshot past Canucks goalie Rick Dipietro.

Horton then wheeled down the wing and fired a wrist shot through the pads of Dipetro. Vancouver sniper, Milan Hejduk blasted a one-timer past Lalime to make the score 2-1 for the Panthers as they took the second break.

Horton and Mike Sillinger scored late in the third to pad the lead.

"Horton had 11 points heading into the Final," explained Coach Keenan. "With only two goals in the post season he's been finding other ways to help us. Tonight he looked like the great power forward that we all think he can be."

The Canucks were flying in the opening ten minutes of the game. They clearly took control early and Lalime was called upon to make some key saves in the first frame.

"We gave up some chances," said Sillinger. "Patty was strong in the nets. He's been terrific for us."

Once the Panthers got through the first period and the strong start of the Canucks. They settled down and played a great game in the final two periods to earn the victory. The early second period goal was a key and then scoring on a power play soon after was enough to quiet the crowd and take much of the steam out of the Canucks attack.

Game notes: Jovanovski's first period goal was his first of the post-season ..... Jovocop led all skaters with 25 minutes of ice-time ...... both teams rolled over four lines and received some good quality minutes from the third and fourth lines ..... Florida received three goals from their third line and the fourth line scored the only goal for the Canucks ...... Lalime will not skate today as he is battling fatigue ...... he has been listed as a game-time decision for Game 2.

Vancouver

EVEN STRENGTH

    CENTER                LEFT WING             RIGHT WING            DEFENCE               DEFENCE
1  Brendan Morrison      Fredrik Modin         Milan Hejduk          Paul Martin           Martin Skoula
2  Doug Weight           Brenden Morrow        Shane Doan            Brad Stuart           Fedor Tjutin
3  Jason Arnott          Daniel Sedin          Kirk Maltby           Ron Hainsey           Daniel Mcgillis
4  Henrik Sedin          Chuck Kobasew         Milan Hejduk          Brad Stuart           Mathieu Dandenault


POWER PLAY

    CENTER                LEFT WING             RIGHT WING            DEFENCE               DEFENCE
1  Brendan Morrison      Fredrik Modin         Milan Hejduk          Paul Martin           Brad Stuart
2  Doug Weight           Brenden Morrow        Shane Doan            Martin Skoula         Fedor Tjutin


PENALTY KILL

    CENTER                WINGER                DEFENCE               DEFENCE
1  Jason Arnott          Kirk Maltby           Martin Skoula         Fedor Tjutin
2  Henrik Sedin          Chuck Kobasew         Paul Martin           Daniel Mcgillis


STARTING GOALIE

Rick DiPietro


SCRATCHES

Brooks Orpik (Healthy)
Valtteri Filppula (Healthy)
Trevor Letowski (Healthy)

Florida

EVEN STRENGTH

    CENTER                LEFT WING             RIGHT WING            DEFENCE               DEFENCE
1  Jason Spezza          Antti Miettinen       Evgeni Malkin         Sergei Zubov          Ivan Majesky
2  Marc Savard           Kyle Calder           Juraj Kolnik          Ed Jovanovski         Paul Ranger
3  Mike Sillinger        Justin Williams       Nathan Horton         Jason York            Branislav Mezei
4  Alyn Mccauley         Jay Pandolfo          Evgeni Malkin         Jason Strudwick       Ed Jovanovski


POWER PLAY

    CENTER                LEFT WING             RIGHT WING            DEFENCE               DEFENCE
1  Marc Savard           Kyle Calder           Evgeni Malkin         Sergei Zubov          Ed Jovanovski
2  Mike Sillinger        Justin Williams       Nathan Horton         Ivan Majesky          Paul Ranger


PENALTY KILL

    CENTER                WINGER                DEFENCE               DEFENCE
1  Alyn Mccauley         Jay Pandolfo          Sergei Zubov          Ivan Majesky
2  Mike Sillinger        Kyle Calder           Paul Ranger           Ed Jovanovski


STARTING GOALIE

 Patrick Lalime


SCRATCHES

 Patrick Eaves (Healthy)
 Joel Bouchard (Healthy)
 Petr Taticek (Healthy)

Cats feel like dogs.

Vancouver -- As the NsHL Cup Final gets ready to begin later today the Florida Panthers are hoping to overcome the odds and win one more series.

Coach Keenan held his first press conference yesterday and told the media his team is a huge underdog. "The Canucks have a great team," explained Keenan. "They are everyone's choice. They are solid down the middle and we have always thought that was one of our strengths too."

The coach was quick with the cliche to the media. According to Keenan its the Panthers against the rest of the world. He said the Cats have to take it one game at a time. He was also very kind to Patrick Lalime saying "Our goalie has really bailed us out."

With the cliches out of the way he complained that his GM is jinxing his team and he even took a few shots at his players for carrying the trophy around Scotiabank Place last week. "I guess we should have explained to these guys what you do with the trophy," said Keenan. "Don't touch it!!"

Panthers players Mike Sillinger and Jay Pandolfo skated around the Ottawa rink with the trophy and then rushed it into the dressing room where it was hoisted by all the players.

"This team is killing me," said Keenan. "You know i had a full head of hair last week. Now its gone."

Game notes: The Panthers head into the Final as healthy as can be expected at this time of year. Lalime has recovered from the injury which forced him out of game four against the Sens. Keenan has confirmed Lalime will start the opener ..... a few line-up changes are planned by the Panthers but Keenan was tight lipped about what that could mean ...... one switch in practice had Marc Savard skating with wingers Kyle Calder and Juraj Kolnik ........ secondary scoring will need to continue if the Southern Cats have a chance of beating the Canucks ....... Nathan Horton, Kolnik, Calder, Savard and Justin Williams will all need to be at their best in the NsHL Final.

Dream season rolls on, NsHL Cup is up next.

Florida -- For the Florida Panthers its been a spring of firsts. The played their first NsHL playoff game. Then they took out the New Jersey Devils to win their first playoff series. After beating the Philadelphia Flyers they had a chance to play against the Ottawa Senators.

The Sens series brought two more firsts to the franchise. The 4-0 series sweep was the first playoff sweep for the Southern Cats. But more importantly, the win meant the team had captured its first Eastern Conference Championship. Which leads to another first, a birth in the NsHL Cup. Whats next?

The Panthers started the playoffs with only two players with Cup rings. Jason York had played on a Cup winning team in New Jersey. While Alyn McCauley was a "black ace" for the San Jose Sharks in their Championship run.

Not exactly a huge amount of playoff savvy in the Panthers dressing room. But the Cats have been full value for their playoff victories.

Series One v. New Jersey:

The Panthers wore down the Devils. They battled hard every game and took over the series with game 3 and 4 wins in the swamp. The Devils just seemed to wilt late in the series.

Cats top players:

Jason Spezza 11 points
Evgeni Malkin 6 points

The top line of Spezza, Malkin and Miettinen was put together during this series and it paid off big for all three. Another big story was the play of Juraj Kolnik who had two goals in the series, both game winners. The defense was led by the great play at both ends from Sergei Zubov. Let's not forget the veteran York. The light scoring dman had two goals in the series, one a game winner.

Series Two v. Philadelphia:

The toughest series for the Panthers. They will look back at this series and say they didn't win but they survived. Four one-goal decisions in this series shows how tight it was. Injuries hurt the Panthers as they couldn't ice their full squad. A 4-0 shutout win in Philadelphia was the highlight and let everyone know the Cats were for real.

Cats top players:

Nathan Horton 7 points
Petr Taticek 7 points
Justin Williams 7 points

With all the injuries (and the Marc Savard suspension) the Panthers had to make some changes to their front lines. One change was the call-up of Petr Taticek. His play with Horton and Williams was one of the keys to their play in this series. Williams scored five goals in the six game series. Paul Ranger had a big offensive series from the blue line and Kolnik continued to score big goals. Ed Jovanovski had a good series and is starting to become the dominant Panthers dman. Laying out big hits, logging lots of ice-time and chipping in on offense too.

Series Three v. Ottawa:

The series sweep of the Sens was about the Cats keeping the pedal to the medal. But it was also about the poor play of Ottawa.

Cats top players:

Mike Sillinger 7 points
Evgeni Malkin 6 points
Jason Spezza 6 points

The cats now won three series with a different players leading the scoring in all three. Sillinger was the big story in games one and two. With Spezza and Savard beiong in and out of the line-up it was crucial for Sillinger to step up his game. Ranger had another good series and is starting to become their top offensive threat from the blue-line. Miettinen had a good series scoring three goals including the winner in games two and three. Malkin and Spezza ripped up the Sens in game four scoring 5 points each. The Malkin hattrick in game four was the best individual performance from a Panther this season.

Heading into the NsHL Cup Championship the Florida Panthers have several players who have stepped up in these playoffs. But they have only one true MVP, Patrick Lalime.

Lalime has been rock solid all spring. His record is 10-2 and he has a sparkling 1.78 GAA. He also has two shutouts this spring. The Cats will need another great series from Lalime to win its first NsHL Title.

2004 deal haunts 2008 Sens

Ottawa -- Who could ever imagine the type of impact a trade could have 4 years after the fact. A massive trade between the Ottawa Senators and Florida Panthers several years ago is being felt on the ice in this years Eastern Conference Final.

The blockbuster deal was as follows:

July 22, 2004 – Florida//Ottawa Trade:

TO FLA: Jason Spezza, Patrick Lalime, Igor Mirnov (prospect), Patrick Eaves (prospect) & Year 2006: OTT 4 (traded to NASH on 01/22/06)

TO OTT: Roberto Luongo & Year 2005: FLA 1

The trade involved some big names moving around. Jason Spezza and Roberto Luongo are Franchise changing type of athletes.

The early returns on this deal were pretty one sided as the Senators won back to back Presidents Trophies in '04-05 and '05-06. The Sens are still a major force in the NsHL as their march to the Eastern Final showed this season.

Luongo is now in Los Angeles and has his team two games away from a birth in the Championship Series.

In the long term this trade is proving to be quite a problem for the Senators. Lalime (a trade throw-in) is currently backstopping the Panthers to a series win over the Sens. Lalime has faced 97 shots in the Eastern Final and stopped 92 of them. He's been the main difference in this series as he outplays the goalie tandem in Ottawa.

Jason Spezza is also making life very tough on his former team. Spezza plays on the number one line for Florida and they've produced two of the three game winners against Ottawa in this East Final.

Panthers current management spoke out about the trade after practise today. "The current administration owes a great deal to the previous GM. The deal has helped build the Franchise to its point today. We recognize the potential in Spezza and felt great to have him in the organization. Patrick and Jason are key ingredients to every thing we've accomplished to date and we hope they continue to make life miserable for their former mates."

The Panthers hope to continue to frustrate the Sens and the rest of the NsHL with Spezza and Lalime leading the way.

Florida beats Ottawa to take 3-0 series lead.

Ottawa -- Antti Miettinen scored his second game winner in a row to propel the Florida Panthers into a commanding 3-0 series lead.

The Ottawa Senators pumped up by the home crowd had a tremendous first period on Tuesday night. But the Sens could not beat their former teammate Patrick Lalime.

Lalime stopped 14 shots in the first period to set the tone for the rest of the night.

"Patty has been terrific for us," said Jason Spezza. "They came out flying and he kept us in the game."

After weathering the storm, the Southern Cats scored late in the first period thanks to a Paul Ranger one-timer. It was Rangers 5th goal in his last 9 playoff games for the Panthers.

Kyle Calder scored a short-handed goal in the second period which deflated the Sens and lifted the Panthers to a 2-0 lead. It was a lead they needed as the Sens fought back in period three to make it close. Miettinen's game winner was sandwiched between Ottawa goals from Cammalleri and Phaneuf.

Game four goes Thursday night with Ottawa needing the win to stay alive.

GAME NOTES: Mike Sillinger continues his brilliant play versus the Sens. Sillinger had two assists in game three which gives him 7 points in the series ...... Marc Savard was back in the line-up after sitting out the last four games due to a suspension ..... Petr Taticek was sent to the press box to make room for Savard ..... Taticek had seven points in seven playoff games ..... Jonas Hiller was the surprise starter in goal for Ottawa. He made 25 saves in a losing cause.

Sillinger Stops Sens

Florida -- The Florida Panthers won the first battle over the Ottawa Senators in the war to claim the Eastern Crown. In front of another soldout crowd, the Panthers won game one of the best of seven series 4-2.

It could easily be said the Southern Cats actually survived more than won the game. Although they more than kept up with the grit of the Sens, Ottawa had much more of the attack time and peppered Panthers goalie Patrick Lalime all night long.

Although outshot by the Sens 41-29, the Panthers had control of the scoreboard for much of the game. Mike Sillinger was leading the charge for the Cats with 2 goals and a helper. While Paul Ranger added two points including the Game Winner.

The Big Cats grabbed a quick 1-0 advantage early in the first on a power-play goal by Ivan Majesky. Less than a minute later, Sillinger banged away a rebound for his first of the night and the Panthers were off to a flying start.

The Sens got a goal from Brandon Bochenski in the opening frame and then tied the game midway through the second period on a goal by Scott Thornton. The Sens certainly owned the middle stanza and were starting to take over momentum in the game.

But the third period proved to be a time for Sillinger to shine. He set-up the eventual game winner by Ranger at 4.07 and then scored late in the frame on a pretty little deke.

The game did have some messy moments. Several scrums and yap-fests took place during the game. In the third period, Scott Thornton hit the Panthers star pivot Jason Spezza with a clean crunching hit. His linemate Evgeni Malkin took a long run at Thornton and his boarding penalty was the only call on the play.

Coach Keenan was not happy with Malkin taking the penalty but did like his stars jam saying afterwards:
"We can't take silly penalties like that. This team will make us pay ... for sure. I thought we battled well tonight and obviously Evgeni was showing what he thought of the hit on Jason. Sticking up for a fallen teammate is something he probably would not have done earlier this season. I don't think the coaching staff has any problems with our performance tonight. But we don't want too much undisciplined play."

GAME NOTES: Patrick Lalime continues to be the biggest story of these playoffs. Lalime stopped 39 of 41 shots and upped his record to 8-2 in the post season...... David Aebischer got the call for the Sens and stopped 25 of 29 shots. The goalie call for game two should be interesting for the Sens coaches. It could be anyone ... maybe even the ghost of Percy LeSueur.......Jason Spezza is listed as a game time decision for game two with an upper body injury. Spezza has been nagged with several injuries in this post season run. He missed one game last series against the Philadelphia Flyers and left game one in obvious distress.......The Cats rolled four lines most of the game showing a nice balanced attack........The Sens used just three lines forcing Steve Begin and Wayne Primeau to be stuck riding the pine all night.......Ed Jovanovski was a strong force again last night playing a team leading 24 minutes......The line of Sillinger, Kyle Calder and Juraj "playoff performer" Kolnik was a combined +9 with 2 goals 4 assists and ten shots on goal.

Panthers Make Eastern Final

Florida -- The Florida Panthers Playoff run will continue for atleast one more series after they eliminated the Philadelphia Flyers in six games.

The Panthers played only one game in the series with a full line-up. In the first two games they played without Jason Spezza and Evgeni Malkin as the pair were injured in game one and missing from game two. The team scored 2-1 victories in both games to take a 2-0 advantage over the Flyers.

In the third game, Marc Savard was out of the line-up nursing an injury and the team won a key road game 5-3. Game four was the only game the Cats iced their full line-up. It resulted in a 4-3 overtime loss. The Flyers had crawled back into the series down 3-1.

In the final two games of the series the Panthers played without Marc Savard who was suspended by the league. After losing game five 3-2, the Panthers played a perfect game six and shutout the Flyers 4-0.

The Series versus Philadelphia was a very close one. Four of the six games were settled by one goal. The Panthers did not take a penalty over the final two games. It turned out to be important because the Panthers gave up 3 powerplay goals during the first four games of the series.

Important players in the series included:

The line of Nathan Horton, Justin Williams and Petr Taticek. This line was put together because of injuries to Spezza and Savard. The line combined to score 6 goals and 15 assists along with one game winner. The line was getting stronger as the series went on, Williams scored 5 goals in the final four games. Petr Taticek had 7 points in just five games.

On defense, the top pairing was Paul Ranger and Ed Jovanovski. Ranger had three goals and five points. Jovanovski added three helpers in the series and provided good tough play from the blueline. Jovocop played in all situations and was often double shifted to take advantage of his solid play.

Other solid performances came from Juraj Kolnik and Patrick Lalime. Kolnik played an intense series and contributed many big hits. Kolnik leads the Panthers in hits during this playoff run. He chipped in three goals during the series including the Series winner. Patrick Lalime is now 7-2 in these playoffs and leads all goalies in playoff shutouts with two.

Ranger a Danger as Cats Win Game Two.

Sunrise, Floida -- Despite missing their two best players, the Florida Panthers gutted out a 2-1 home victory over the Philadelphia Flyers. They now lead the series 2-0.

Jason Spezza and Evgeni Malkin were the top two scorers during the regular season for the Panthers. But both got hurt in game one and missed game two. The Panthers played a different type of game tonight. They were counting punching more and they lacked a physical edge for the first time this post season. But the fact remains they came through with a large victory on home ice.

For the second straight game Paul Ranger scored with a blast from the point.

"Ranger has elevated his game this season," said Panthers GM IronMike McComish. "It's so important to have that secondary scoring, especially with the injuries we faced tonight. Paul is getting his point shot on net and it's finding the mark this series. Obviously we hope he keeps it going."

Early in the final frame the Panthers received a big goal from the fourth line when Alyn McCauley scored his 3rd of the post season. It turned out to be a vital goal as the Flyers scored late to make it close.

The injury bug continues to bite the Cats in this series. Marc Savard left the game early in the second period. He was seen limping off the ice to the trainers room. But a release from the team after the game lists Savard as day-to-day with an upper body injury. Go figure!

Game Notes: Patrick Lalime won his fifth straight playoff game. He now has a 1.36 GAA in the post season......Patrick Eaves played his third game in the post season taking the place of Evgeni Malkin......Petr Taticek was called up from the Jacksonville Jokers to play on the second line. He replaced Jason Spezza and assisted on the first goal of the game by Paul Ranger......Most insiders questioned the Panthers decision to acquire Alyn McCauley at the trade deadline. McCauley is making it look like a very wise move. Alyn now has a team leading three goals in the Playoffs......The Panthers have listed Jason Spezza, Evgeni Malkin and Marc Savard as game-time decisions for game three in Philadelphia on Monday night.......Speaking of Philadelphia, Bruno St. Jacques was added to the line-up for game two replacing the suspended Chris Phillips. St. Jacques played 19 quality minutes in his first game this post-season.

Kolnik Earns Top Line Consideration.

Sunrise, Florida -- Juraj Kolnik is like most of the Florida Panthers, until this season he had no Playoff experience. Kolnik differs from all the other members of the Southern Cats because half way through this season he was still toiling in the minors.

Kolnik who had played 74 games in '03-04 and '04-05 under a different Panthers management was a player who was still trying to find his way in the NsHL. But just before his third season things changed in Florida as new GM McComish changed the look of the wingers on the pro roster.

"We brought in Williams and Pandolfo ... Miettinen was emerging," explained the GM. "We thought Juraj needed to find his game with Jacksonville."

Just when he thought he might become a permanent fixture in the "wrong" part of Florida. Kolnik was called up to replace Patrick Eaves in the line-up. Aside from his usual hard-hitting style, Kolnik potted two goals including the game-winner in Washington one night and had impressed enough to stay for the long haul.

"Every time I get a chance to get a shot I try to put the puck on the net,'' said Kolnik, who has two goals in his six playoff games. "Playing with Savvy and Calder, I just go to the net hard and try to bang in the corners.''

Whatever the strategy its paying off in the Playoffs. Kolnik is fourth on the team in Playoff scoring with 5 points in 6 games, including game winners in game three and five in the New Jersey series.

The amount of injuries suffered lately by the Panthers could mean the line of Kolnik, Savard and Calder will be skating as the top line in game two versus Philadelphia.

Game Notes: The Panthers wounded, Nathan Horton, Jason Spezza and Evgeni Malkin all skated today but none went all-out. All are listed with upper body injuries, Horton gave a thumbs up when asked if he will play in game two. Coach Keenan said both Malkin and Spezza will be game time decisions for game two.

The Philadelphia Flyers will have to play without defenseman Chris Phillips in game two tomorrow. Phillips has been given a one game suspension by the NsHL for his brutal hit on Malkin from game one.

Cats Take Game One

Florida -- Round two of the NsHL Playoffs began tonight with a rough-n-tumble game between Florida and Philadelphia. The Cats clawed their way to a hard-earned 2-1 victory to take a 1-0 series advantage.

The first period was evenly played but the Flyers showed they came to play a hard-nosed banging and crashing game. Gilbert Brule took the first of three charging penalties on the night for the Flyers.

Cats Coach Keenan: "They were running our guys all night. One thing is for sure, they found out in a hurry we can play that game too."

The second period saw the Cats take charge. Paul Ranger scored his first point of the post season when his point blast found the back of the net early in the second frame. Evgeni Malkin then fired a one-timer past Flyers goalie Evgeni Nabokov to make it two-zip.

During the second period, Panthers top scoring pivot, Jason Spezza left with an upper-body injury. Spezza did not return to the game and had a quick and terse "no comment" when asked if he would play in game two.

The third period had an edge to it from the outset. 36 minutes in penalties were called and the Panthers lost another Superstar to injury. Malkin left the game after a dirty hit from Flyers defender Chris Phillips. Malkin was taken to a local hospital for observation. Phillips received a two minute penalty, a ten minute misconduct and was ejected from the contest.

When hockey was being played it was all Panthers in the frame. But, Nabakov would keep his team in the game . The Flyers would rally thanks to a Ruslan Fedotenko goal to cut the lead in half. But the Southern Cats kept their advantage and won game one.

Game Notes: Nathan Horton was back in the line-up after missing game 4 and 5 of the first round series versus New Jersey. Horton was clearly not his normal self posting no hits and a minus-1.

Patrick Lalime made his 4th straight start in goal and stopped 17 of 18 shots to earn the win.

Paul Ranger had 5 shots on goal including one goal after being held pointless by the Devils. Ed Jovanovski was a massive star in game one. He logged 25 minutes was a plus-2, fired 3 shots and 6 hits plus he took a penalty and added a helper on Rangers goal.

Cats Grab 3 of 4 from Bolts.

-FLORIDA-

A midweek double-header between the Florida Panthers and Tampa Bay Lightning saw the Panthers take 3 of a possible 4 points. The Cats won the first contest 4-3 and both teams skated to a 4-4 draw two days later. Florida keeps a little distance between them and the Carolina Hurricanes in the Southeast Division.

The game Tuesday night was a nail-biter. A game Tampa will look back on as one that got away. Leading 3-2 with about 2 minutes to play the Bolts were called for two penalties which turned into two power-play goals for the Panthers. First was a long point blast from Paul Ranger which found its way through a maze of skates and legs. Then with just 36 seconds left on the clock Antti Miettinen scored the game winner.

Ranger was the star on this night for the Southern Cats with a goal and two helpers. Kyle Calder scored his 26th early in the third frame. Joel Bouchard got the comeback started by scoring the only goal in a lackluster second period.

Game two of the short series went Thursday and it saw the Bolts grab another advantage. Leading 4-2 midway through the game, Tampa could not close-out the stubborn Cats. Tonight it was Nathan Horton as the hero with two goals to give the Panthers the tie. Horton now has 24 goals on the season, a career high.

"I thought we played a much better game tonight," offered Coach Keenan. "The other night we took advantage of some power-plays, tonight we really played hard and played a full 60 minutes. We took the body and had plenty of scoring chances."

Patrick Lalime was named the starter for both games and earned the praises of the coach. "We knew these were two huge games for us against a division rival, we called on Patrick and he gave us what we needed."

Game Notes:

The addition of Alyn McCauley has allowed the coaching staff to ice four solid and balanced lines. Mike Sillinger and Jay Pandolfo have anchored the fourth line and are starting to contribute in limited ice-time. Sillinger scored two in a wild 7-6 win over Atlanta. Pandolfo scored a goal against Tampa while playing just 5 minutes.

Nathan Horton has scored three goals in the last three games and is having a breakout year for the Panthers. His play has lessened the mid-season loss of Ivan Novoseltsev.

The Panthers have spent some time recently trying to improve its special teams. The power-play has looked much improved but the penalty killing has not. The opposition has scored a power-play goal in five straight games against the Cats. During those five games, the Panthers have given up 7 goals in the last 16 short-handed attempts. Coach Keenan will no doubt have some not so nice things to say to his PK units.

Up next ... a trip to Washington to face the Caps.

Panthers Streak Towards Playoffs; Add Depth at Deadline.

FLORIDA -- The Florida Panthers have taken points in seven straight games. The streak started with a 3-2 win over the Philadelphia Flyers. It continued with a win over Southeast rival the Washington Capitals, then road wins over Los Angeles Kings and Carolina Hurricanes. The Southern Cats made it five straight wins when they clobbered the Atlanta Thrashers 6-1.

A sellout crowd then watched as the Panthers fought the New Jersey Devils to a 2-2 tie. Then last night on the road against the Colorado Avalanche , Ed Jovanovski scored in the third period as the teams skated to a 4-all draw.

The late season surge has enabled the Panthers to build a seven point cushion over the Tampa Bay Lightning in the race for the Southeast Division Title. The Panthers are seeking their first Division crown under the Management of IronMike.

In the past twenty games, the Southern Cats have posted a record of 12-6-2 while making a steady climb up the Eastern Conference table. They've managed to get within 3 points of Conference leading New York Rangers. With 14 games to play in the regular season, the sun is certainly bright in Florida as they gear up for spring hockey.

Panthers Add McCauley at the Deadline.

The Florida Panthers went into deadline day looking to fine tune its line-up as they prepare for the stretch drive. Nobody was looking for bigs things from IronMike at this deadline. His team is built through youth and they've developed really well this season.


It was thought the Cats had two minor holes to fill, one at center and one on defense. No additions were added to the blue-line, although it was thought for most of the day the Panthers were the leading candidates to get M.A. Bergeron out of Edmonton.


The team added a center when they sent, farm hand Mike Greene (no not that Mike Greene) and a 5th round pick in 2008 to the Oilers for Alyn McCauley.


In McCauley the Cats acquired a smooth-skating two-way pivot who is always working hard for his teammates. Alyn is a UFA after this season.


TEAM NOTES: Two Panthers were named to the Eastern Conference All-star team. Jason Spezza and rookie phenom Evgeni Malkin will be skating against the West all-stars in the annual NsHL game.


Up next for the Panthers is a trip to Carolina to play the Canes. Then two at home versus the Atlanta Thrashers.

Panthers Scouting Prospects

Brampton, Ont -- Panthers GM has left the playoff drive and trade deadline talks behind for the day. The Florida management team are in Brampton today scouting some of the best prospects on the planet.

The Panthers are always looking for great young talent. On display today at the "bunker" in Brampton are:

Lining up for the Hometown Battalion:

CODY HODGSON #19 ... gifted Center entered the 2007-08 campaign as one of International Scouting Service's top-10 rated prospects for the 2008 NHL Entry Draft .

MATT DUCHENE #9 ... soaring up the prospect ranks ... watch for him in the '09 draft.

CORY EMMERTON #25 ... drafted by DET in the NsHL

BOB SANGUINETTI #24 ... drafted by MIN in the NSHL

For the visiting PETES:

ZACH BOGOSIAN #4 ... "Boggs" to his mates ... dman will be hot property in '08 draft

JOHN ARMSTRONG #11 .. drafted by WSH in the NsHL

Of course the Panthers are hoping to see Petes goalie TREVOR CANN in action today. Cann was picked in round two (40th overall) of the '07 NsHL draft by Florida.

**Notes**
Watch the FLABLOG for all the exciting news from Panther-land as the trade deadline approaches. With the Panthers fighting for a playoff spot it is expected the team will be buying at the deadline.

Cats Sneak Past Isles; Horton Nets Hattrick.

Florida - The New York Islanders and the Florida Panthers played a wide open, friendly game of shinny tonight. The game was a high scoring affair with not one penalty. Kyle Calder scored the game winner in the third and the Southern Cats hung on for a 5-4 win.

The Panthers carried the play for the first two periods. They out-shot the Isles 28-15 through two frames and held a 4-2 advantage on the scoreboard. Panthers winger Nathan Horton scored three goals in the first two periods to pace the Panthers.

In the third, it was all New York. They were charging hard at Florida for much of the third period and Saku Koivu scored to cut the lead to one with just three minutes to play. Panthers goalie, Manny Fernandez held sway and the Panthers escaped with a one goal win.

NOTES: Marc Savard assisted on all three goals by Horton. Isles defender, Mattias Ohlund left the game with an injury, its not expected to be anything serious. The Panthers have six forwards with 14 or more goals. Calder leads with 19. Paul Ranger has been moved to the second line playing with Ed Jovanovski, against the Isles he played 23 minutes and was a plus2.

Panthers Rally After Losing Novoseltsev

The Florida Panthers have lost a key player in their quest for a playoff spot. Ivan Novoseltsev has been released by the team so that he may join the Amur Tigers Khabarovsk of the Russian League.

"We needed to do the right thing," said Coach Keenan. "Ivan expressed a desire to go back home and play in front of family and friends. In all fairness, how could we say no. He has meant so much to this team, a fan favorite and a favorite on and off the ice with players and the management team in Florida."

Novoseltsev, 28 years-old, a Florida Panther since the beginning was a key player in their offense. Ivan averaged 28 goals, 57 points and 4 game winners per season for 4 seasons with the Panthers.

After a slow start to the 07-08 season, Ivan had begun to start scoring again and regained his spot as a top six forward on the club.

"If anybody saw him play against Tampa Bay the other day," Keenan explained. "They would easily see how much he adds to the team."

In Tampa, on game 27 of the schedule, Ivan played his best game of the season and earned the first star in the Panthers 4-4 tie against their Southeast Division rival.

Novoseltsev was one of only three players (Mezei & Majesky the others) from 03-04 squad still on the club when this season began. Veteran pivot Marc Savard could see the benefit of having Ivan around. "Yeah, for sure ... he made us all better players. If you gave him too much time around the net he would bury any chance." Said Savard. "We miss him in the room and he makes the other team worry. He goes to the net and he can finish."

In his final three games as a Panther, the team went 2-0-1 and Ivan had 2 goals, 2 helpers, was a plus 4 and averaged 22 minutes of ice team. "No doubt our younger players will now have to pick up the slack of not having him around." Said Keenan. "Guys like Eaves, Horton, and Miettinen will be heavily counted upon to fill the void."

The last word goes to Savard: "We understand why Ivan had to leave, Russia makes it comfortable for their stars, lower taxes and lots of free perks ... but make no mistake Novo will always be a Florida Panther, we believe he would still be here if he could ... but we back him and understand why he is no longer part of the club. The team is confident we can rally around this and dedicate the season to him while finishing what we and he started."