Fort Lauderdale — The Florida Panthers will skate onto the ice this morning to kick off their 2024-25 NHL season, as the defending Stanley Cup winners begin training camp.
Camp Maurice is known for being a difficult start to a season, but this is the third time most of the players have experienced it, and they are prepared.
With the Panthers hosting the Nashville Predators in a preseason doubleheader on Sunday, Paul Maurice will only have three days of rigorous skating before slowing down a touch.
That does not mean the Panthers are going to take anything easy this season.
“You get just this completely different source of energy now that you have a feeling of what it’s like. You want it more,” Maurice said.
“It’s hard to explain, but I don’t think we’re going to be short on energy this year.”
With camp starting today, we at FHN take a stab at what challenges face the Panthers prior to the season really starting on Oct. 8 when the team opens against the Boston Bruins in Sunrise.
That will be the day the Panthers get their championship rings, three new banners — including one very big one — are unfurled, and the long road to defending their crown begins.
But first, there’s Camp Maurice.
Here are three questions which face the Panthers going into training camp:
STANLEY CUP HANGOVER?
This question was asked of the Panthers last year, too.
After all, few teams which lose in the Stanley Cup Final make it back the following season.
Well, the Panthers did just that — and ended up winning the whole darned thing.
Last September, the Panthers came into camp with some bruised egos after losing in lopsided fashion to the Vegas Golden Knights.
They also had a lot of injuries with Aaron Ekblad and Brandon Montour out for an indeterminate amount of time. Turns out those two returned in mid-November, but when camp opened, it looked like Florida could be without two top defensemen perhaps until the New Year.
Matthew Tkachuk was also coming off a fractured sternum which probably led to his slow statistical start to the season.
Florida looks really healthy this time around.
“We’ll start right now with the ‘hangover’ concept,” Maurice said. “We don’t believe in it. It’s certainly not a physical issue with us.
“We’re stronger than we were last year at this time, and that’s a credit to them because they couldn’t have made improvements without spending the time to do it. We know, on Day 1, we are physically as good or better than we were last year. Now it’s about honing it every day, handling the day that we’re in.”
Of course, while the Panthers are healthy, they have also been enjoying themselves in what has been the shortest offseason in franchise history.
The Panthers partied like rock stars over the past couple of months.
They also have played a lot of hockey.
Counting the playoffs, Florida has played 209 games over the past two seasons.
There are going to be nights where all those games — as well as long stretches on the road — catches up to them.
Maurice even warned against that scenario Wednesday.
His message: Don’t read too much into it.
Even if the Blackhawks are in last place at the time.
“We’re going to get beat in November, and I’m going to end up answering this to [the media] and I understand that,” said Maurice, whose team lost 5-2 in Chicago last November.
“But we’re going to get beat in November, in a game against a team in the Western Conference that didn’t make the playoffs last year and probably won’t make the playoffs this year. It will be [called] a ‘hangover’ loss, but that won’t be true. It’s a game we lost the past two years.’’
The Panthers had to make a number of changes to their roster following their championship run and that will make for a number of things to watch at training camp.
Although Florida has eight of its top nine forwards back, there will be a battle for a spot on the third line (although perhaps Mackie Samoskevich opens on the top line with Sasha Barkov and Carter Verhaeghe) as well as a new fourth line.
Florida brought in veterans Tomas Nosek and Jesper Boqvist for the fourth line; newcomer A.J. Greer should battle with Will Lockwood, Justin Sourdif, Jonah Gadjovich, MacKenzie Entwistle, and others for not only a spot on the fourth line, but a spot on the team.
Defensively, Florida should be set with its top-6 after signing Adam Boqvist and Nate Schmidt.
Who gets the seventh spot?
Or, do the Panthers keep eight defensemen and one less forward?
That’s possible.
Right now, the edge for the seventh spot goes to Uvis Balinskis. After that, you’re looking at Toby Bjornfot, Matt Kiersted, Jaycob Megna, and rookie Mikulas Hovorka.
The goalie position appears pretty set with Spencer Knight backing up Sergei Bobrovsky — but Chris Driedger has shown he can do the job pretty well when healthy.
POWER PLAY QUARTERBACK
Montour ran the top power play unit over the past couple of years and is off to Seattle.
Oliver Ekman-Larsson also saw time on PP1 last season but is now in Toronto.
So, who gets the gig this season?
Adam Boqvist could be the newcomer who handles the job, although Ekblad has done so in the past. Perhaps the Panthers give a look at Gus Forsling.
This is one segment of the game that will be closely watched during camp — and throughout the season.
