This wasn\u2019t the position anyone expected the Florida Panthers to be in this year. The organization and fans alike went into the year with dreams of a three-peat. Unfortunately, that dream died with a season wrecked by long-term injuries to most of the lineup. However, it wasn\u2019t all doom and gloom at media day. HC Paul Maurice showed up in shorts and flip flops, if that tells you anything about where the mood was at. The general sentiment from Zito, Maurice, and the players who spoke with the media was disappointment, but acknowledgment that the long summer will be good for the team after playing deep into June the last three years. Some Panthers will still be in action in the coming months, with Barkov and Lundell confirmed to be playing at the World Championships. Bill Zito said Matthew Tkachuk could also be going, along with Uvis Balinskis, if he gets medically cleared to play. While the year isn\u2019t ending the way anyone wanted it to, the team is looking forward to coming back better and stronger next season.\u00a0<\/p>\n
We Win, or We Learn:<\/p>\n
Bill Zito called the phrase \u2018cliche\u2019 when he talked to the media, but \u201cWe win, or we learn\u201d is something that\u2019s been said throughout the organization over the last several years. HC Paul Maurice often talks about \u201cwinning your day\u201d as part of his coaching for the team. There was no shortage of adversity this season, with as many as 14-16 players out of the lineup by the end of the season. But an upside to that that both Bill and Paul touched on was getting to know the young players in the organization way better. For Paul\u2019s side of things, he mentioned that he has a better idea of how to utilize those players come training camp and how they could fit into the roster if they\u2019re needed. With all the injuries that happened, both Zito and Maurice talked about looking internally to see what they could do differently, if there was any correlation between the long seasons and the injuries, and taking a look at the equipment to see if something needs to change there. Paul said, \u201c There are lessons here, and we have to find them,\u201d and \u201cIt\u2019s only a lost year if we allow it to be a lost year.\u201d When it comes to getting ready for next season, Bill Zito said, \u201cNow we prepare, we re-evaluate, and come up with some ideas, and re-evaluate those ideas, and just keep doing it over and over. We\u2019ll spend a significant part of the summer planning, reviewing, and there\u2019s a lot of moving parts and what ifs, but we\u2019ll get to the bottom of it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Taking Advantage:<\/p>\n
For the first time since doing media at the start of the season, fans got to hear from Captain Sasha Barkov as he gave an update on his recovery and plans to play at World Championships. He unfortunately missed out on the Olympics this year, but will still get to captain and represent Team Finland this calendar year. He said, \u201cIt\u2019s a big honor to represent Finland for me, and one of those childhood dreams to win World Championships is a big goal for me too. Really excited about that and been working really hard to get in shape.\u201d He was quick to credit all the medical staff he worked with during his recovery and the surgeons as well. He said, \u201cAll the guys that I worked with this year, starting with the surgeons and our medical staff and strength staff, I\u2019m in best possible hands here. I feel great.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Marchand & Lundell talked about how the time off will be good for the team to reset mentally and heal up. Brad talked about fighting through an injury this season and that it finally got to a point where he couldn\u2019t play anymore; surgery isn\u2019t completely off the table for him. Anton shared a similar sentiment to Barkov on his excitement and pride to represent Finland at the World Championships in the coming weeks. He said, \u201cIt\u2019s a big honor to be able to go represent my country, play for the country, play for Finland in World Championships and I\u2019m excited for that opportunity.\u201d He also joked about how he has to make sure Barkov still knows how to play hockey.\u00a0<\/p>\n
There were plenty of injuries to go around this year. HC Paul Maurice said that there are 8 players with active fractures at the moment, something he\u2019s never seen before. The long summer will allow guys to fully heal up and be ready to go come the fall. Barkov spoke on the importance of being around the team while he was rehabbing, but one of the important things he touched on was that there were guys playing with injuries that had carried over from previous years. He said, \u201cA lot of injuries from past years too carried on this year and some of the guys played with them. Some of the guys couldn\u2019t, so a lot of time to heal those injuries.\u201d<\/p>\n
Culture, Culture, Culture:<\/p>\n
It got emphasized at the end of the season when there was plentiful chatter online about how the Panthers should be tanking to ensure their draft pick ended up in the Top 10. But the importance of Florida\u2019s culture was reiterated at locker room cleanout as well. Maurice said, \u201cCulture, in some ways, is a bit of a muscle\u2013it has to be exercised.\u201d Marchand spoke about how he\u2019d be more disappointed about the season if they didn\u2019t have the core that they have coming back next year. He also talked about how the team found a way to stick together through all the adversity and how they control the things they can control, like working hard. Brad complimented the group, calling them one of the hardest-working groups he\u2019s ever seen or heard of. He said, \u201cBeing in the National Hockey League,\u00a0 playing for the Viola\u2019s and being part of this group, you realize when you\u2019re in an organization like this, how special it is and how lucky and how honored we should be. It\u2019s not like this everywhere. I was very fortunate to be part of a great organization before, but when I come in the room every day, I\u2019m thankful and grateful.\u201d<\/p>\n
On the team culture Barkov said, \u201cThat\u2019s the most important thing. We have built a great culture here over the last few years. Even when things are not going well, even when there\u2019s a lot of losses and tough games that went the other way. Team just stuck together, kept working hard, kept working the right way. Never changed the way we play. That\u2019s going to be crucial moving forward too.\u201d Zito, like last season, spoke about bringing in the right pieces to the roster and being mindful that they fit the team culture. Similar to what he said at the trade deadline, he\u2019s not going to make changes just for change\u2019s sake. On the end of the season, Bill had this to say, \u201cI was really happy with the effort, the focus, and the professionalism of our guys down the home stretch. They had fun playing hockey. They cared. About his players heading into next season, Paul Muarice told the media, \u201cThey\u2019re excited about the rest for recovery and to be better. It\u2019s not I want to get out of this room, and I don\u2019t want to think about hockey. That\u2019s not what they\u2019re saying. They\u2019re saying I can\u2019t wait to get some rest so we can go after it again. They see this block of time as a springboard.\u201d It\u2019s been a long and arduous year that ended prematurely from what the players are used to. But with most of the core back next year, there\u2019s no reason to think they won\u2019t be Cup Contenders once again come the fall. And with both San Jose and the St. Louis Blues winning their final games of the season, Florida\u2019s locked up their first round draft pick for this year, now it\u2019s just a question of where it will fall. That\u2019s, of course, assuming that they decide to keep it. A situation to keep an eye on is how contract negotiations with Sergei Bobrovsky go. Coming out of the Jets media day, it sounds like Connor Hellebuyck could want out or get traded in the near future. I wouldn\u2019t put it past Bill Zito to find a way to make a trade for Hellebuyck if he feels like things won\u2019t get done with Bobrovsky.<\/p>\n
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