Post by Florida Panthers on Feb 8, 2023 16:24:48 GMT -6
Can the Cats league-leading sharpshooter Kirill Kaprizov hold off red-hot competition from Ottawa and Buffalo?
By all accounts, the Florida Panthers have had a dominant season. They've outchanced opponents and been remarkably consistent all year off the back of an elite top-six forward group, excellent secondary scoring, and one of the league's top netminders in All-Star Juuse Saros.
For all of their efforts this year, the Cats look to be rewarded with...
....third place in their division and a first-round collision course against the #1 or #2 teams in the PFHL.
Yes, such is life in the Atlantic Division, whose top three teams lead the PFHL in points. All three of these powerhouses would lead any other division in the league, and the gap between 3rd-place Florida and 4th-place Detroit (15 points) is the same as the gap between Detroit and the East's worst team, the Washington Capitals.
The Ottawa Senators (36-13-2, 74 points) seized the #1 spot in the PFHL from the jump and haven't looked back. They're led by a deep, heavy forward group that features the likes of Zach Hyman, Vince Trocheck, and Bryan Rust, while Oliver Ekman-Larsson has been one of the league's best blueliners. After looking nigh unbeatable through the first half of the season, the Sens have fallen back to earth a little bit with a 5-4-1 record in their last 10 games. The Sens have a winning record in the season series against both of their competition this season (1-0 against the Panthers, 2-1-0 against the Sabres).
Ottawa's relatively pedestrian performances of late have allowed Jesse Edwards' Buffalo Sabres (34-11-6, 74 points) to ride a league-leading 6-game win streak to a tie with the Sens atop the PFHL. It's not hard to see why: this team boasts a wealth of talent headlined by stars like Alex Ovechkin and Steven Stamkos, and that talent is augmented by some of the best depth players in the league. The Sabres have the only goaltending tandem with a .900 SV% or higher (Hill .903, Petersen .900). Hill in particular has been absolutely unbeatable in net, having posted an incredible 10-0-2 record so far this season. Buffalo trails Ottawa 2-1 in their season series, but has tied Florida with the two clubs splitting one game a piece.
Their rivals' standout performances has posed a huge headache for the Florida Panthers (33-14-6, 72 points), who made a bevy of big trades to try and emerge supreme out of this three-horse deathmatch. The Panthers sent elite shooter Alex DeBrincat to Calgary in a deal that saw Evander Kane and rugged blueliner Ryan Lindgren arrive in Florida. Salary cap flexibility played a big part in making this deal, as the Flames agreed to retain almost $6M in salary to make the trade happen. That retention paved the way for blueliners Shayne Gostisbehere and Dmitry Orlov to join Florida from Carolina and Los Angeles, which should give the Panthers' blueline a much-needed boost. Finally, the Cats swapped Alex Killorn for Ryan Johansen in a deal that saw two underperforming forwards change scenery.
Time will tell which team will emerge alive from this three-team game of musical chairs. Whichever way you put it, the cruel format of the PFHL's playoff system makes it all but certain that one of the league's very best teams will suffer a cruel first-round exit.
For all of their efforts this year, the Cats look to be rewarded with...
....third place in their division and a first-round collision course against the #1 or #2 teams in the PFHL.
Yes, such is life in the Atlantic Division, whose top three teams lead the PFHL in points. All three of these powerhouses would lead any other division in the league, and the gap between 3rd-place Florida and 4th-place Detroit (15 points) is the same as the gap between Detroit and the East's worst team, the Washington Capitals.
The Ottawa Senators (36-13-2, 74 points) seized the #1 spot in the PFHL from the jump and haven't looked back. They're led by a deep, heavy forward group that features the likes of Zach Hyman, Vince Trocheck, and Bryan Rust, while Oliver Ekman-Larsson has been one of the league's best blueliners. After looking nigh unbeatable through the first half of the season, the Sens have fallen back to earth a little bit with a 5-4-1 record in their last 10 games. The Sens have a winning record in the season series against both of their competition this season (1-0 against the Panthers, 2-1-0 against the Sabres).
Ottawa's relatively pedestrian performances of late have allowed Jesse Edwards' Buffalo Sabres (34-11-6, 74 points) to ride a league-leading 6-game win streak to a tie with the Sens atop the PFHL. It's not hard to see why: this team boasts a wealth of talent headlined by stars like Alex Ovechkin and Steven Stamkos, and that talent is augmented by some of the best depth players in the league. The Sabres have the only goaltending tandem with a .900 SV% or higher (Hill .903, Petersen .900). Hill in particular has been absolutely unbeatable in net, having posted an incredible 10-0-2 record so far this season. Buffalo trails Ottawa 2-1 in their season series, but has tied Florida with the two clubs splitting one game a piece.
Their rivals' standout performances has posed a huge headache for the Florida Panthers (33-14-6, 72 points), who made a bevy of big trades to try and emerge supreme out of this three-horse deathmatch. The Panthers sent elite shooter Alex DeBrincat to Calgary in a deal that saw Evander Kane and rugged blueliner Ryan Lindgren arrive in Florida. Salary cap flexibility played a big part in making this deal, as the Flames agreed to retain almost $6M in salary to make the trade happen. That retention paved the way for blueliners Shayne Gostisbehere and Dmitry Orlov to join Florida from Carolina and Los Angeles, which should give the Panthers' blueline a much-needed boost. Finally, the Cats swapped Alex Killorn for Ryan Johansen in a deal that saw two underperforming forwards change scenery.
Time will tell which team will emerge alive from this three-team game of musical chairs. Whichever way you put it, the cruel format of the PFHL's playoff system makes it all but certain that one of the league's very best teams will suffer a cruel first-round exit.
