Post by Florida Panthers on Jun 3, 2023 2:03:33 GMT -6
It was all going to plan. The Panthers' new superstar, Nikita Kucherov was on fire after arriving at the deadline, Seth Jones was performing like a true #1 defenseman, and new #1 goaltender Semyon Varlamov transformed into a brick wall after a tough year in Detroit.
...and then Dan Renouf ruined everything.
Led by an all-time performance by the unheralded defenseman, Dan Renouf and his cinderella Columbus Blue Jackets embarrassed the East's #1 seed en route to a comfortable 4-2 series upset. Even though he hadn't quite expected the sweep that the PFHL's expert prognosticators had so confidently surmised in their playoff preview show, the first-round loss still left Panthers GM Jay Seo speechless.
"It's the worst loss of my sim league career," Seo said bluntly. "There's no other way to put it."
Such a strong statement is sure to reverberate throughout the franchise this offseason, and the sheer magnitude of the loss will likely precipitate significant change both on and off the ice. While some of the team's top players, including Conor Garland, Ryan Johansen, Robin Lehner, and Michael Bunting were already set to leave the team as unrestricted free agents, those changes could also extend to the bench, where coach Dean Evason is rumoured to be on the hot seat. Panthers captain Patrice Bergeron has been contemplating retirement following the season and should announce his decision in short order, while wingers Johnny Gaudreau and William Nylander have been put on the trade block in recent weeks. Sources suggest that GM Seo wants to replenish the void of draft picks and prospects that he created by pursuing an all-in, no-holds-barred approach to last season.
Still, not all is bad for a team that finished with 117 points this past season. Star forwards Nikita Kucherov and Nikolaj Ehlers both finished in the top 10 in scoring, ex-Cane Shayne Gostisbehere rediscovered his game in Florida en route to a 70-point year, and Seth Jones put up a dominant season that should see him well-prepared to lead a Panthers team that doesn't have many holes to fill for 2023-24. Although further changes are all but certain, the team's projected roster is as follows, with just four spots at the bottom end of the roster to fill:
Ehlers - Scheifele - Kucherov
Gaudreau - Bergeron* - Nylander
Tatar - Danault - Fischer
TBD - TBD - TBD
Jones - Gostisbehere
Brodin - Orlov
Coghlan - Murray
Varlamov
TBD
How will this team look at the end of the offseason? Will GM Seo make as many trades in 2023-24 as he did this year after getting Renouf'd out of the playoffs? When posed with these questions, Seo pondered for a moment, then answered:
"I don't know, but Aaron, Corey, and Scott probably think they do. Maybe you should ask them."
...and then Dan Renouf ruined everything.
Led by an all-time performance by the unheralded defenseman, Dan Renouf and his cinderella Columbus Blue Jackets embarrassed the East's #1 seed en route to a comfortable 4-2 series upset. Even though he hadn't quite expected the sweep that the PFHL's expert prognosticators had so confidently surmised in their playoff preview show, the first-round loss still left Panthers GM Jay Seo speechless.
"It's the worst loss of my sim league career," Seo said bluntly. "There's no other way to put it."
Such a strong statement is sure to reverberate throughout the franchise this offseason, and the sheer magnitude of the loss will likely precipitate significant change both on and off the ice. While some of the team's top players, including Conor Garland, Ryan Johansen, Robin Lehner, and Michael Bunting were already set to leave the team as unrestricted free agents, those changes could also extend to the bench, where coach Dean Evason is rumoured to be on the hot seat. Panthers captain Patrice Bergeron has been contemplating retirement following the season and should announce his decision in short order, while wingers Johnny Gaudreau and William Nylander have been put on the trade block in recent weeks. Sources suggest that GM Seo wants to replenish the void of draft picks and prospects that he created by pursuing an all-in, no-holds-barred approach to last season.
Still, not all is bad for a team that finished with 117 points this past season. Star forwards Nikita Kucherov and Nikolaj Ehlers both finished in the top 10 in scoring, ex-Cane Shayne Gostisbehere rediscovered his game in Florida en route to a 70-point year, and Seth Jones put up a dominant season that should see him well-prepared to lead a Panthers team that doesn't have many holes to fill for 2023-24. Although further changes are all but certain, the team's projected roster is as follows, with just four spots at the bottom end of the roster to fill:
Ehlers - Scheifele - Kucherov
Gaudreau - Bergeron* - Nylander
Tatar - Danault - Fischer
TBD - TBD - TBD
Jones - Gostisbehere
Brodin - Orlov
Coghlan - Murray
Varlamov
TBD
How will this team look at the end of the offseason? Will GM Seo make as many trades in 2023-24 as he did this year after getting Renouf'd out of the playoffs? When posed with these questions, Seo pondered for a moment, then answered:
"I don't know, but Aaron, Corey, and Scott probably think they do. Maybe you should ask them."
