When the 2021-22 season came to an end for the Florida Panthers, those who watched the team finish with the best regular season record in the NHL that season knew that things had a big chance of being different.
With all the hype that surrounded winning the Presidents' Trophy and the their first playoff series win in 26 years, the reality was coming into play that not every member of that memorable squad would be able to suit up in Sunrise next season.
Less than a week into the start of the free agency period, the Panthers have seen several players instrumental in that magical season walk out the door.
Center Claud Giroux, an important mid-season acquisition, is on his way to Ottawa while another mid-season pickup in defenseman Ben Chiarot is on his way to Detroit. Left winger Mason Marchment is heading to Dallas while center Noel Acciari is on his way to St. Louis.
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In return, the Panthers have agreed to deals with a total of ten different players. On the surface, that sounds great - until you realize three of those players didn't skate in a single NHL game last season and a fourth player took part in a total of two games.
The player with the most potential signed by Florida was forward Colin White, who played 24 games last season with the Ottawa Senators. The player with the most experience is defenseman Marc Staal, who has played 15 NHL seasons and was part of a 2013-14 New York Rangers team that made the Stanley Cup Final.
If that doesn't give you all the confidence that the Cats can "skate it back" and make another deep playoff run, you aren't alone. Florida is experiencing the reality of the NHL's salary cap squeeze along with knowing they are going to have to pay up to re-sign left winger Jonathan Huberdeau, who becomes an unrestricted free agent after this upcoming year.
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The Panthers know what lies ahead of them: having a season starting without the veteran leaders like Giroux and Chiarot while forward Anthony Duclair will miss significant time recovering from surgery to repair a tear to his Achilles tendon. Add to that the fact that fans now expected a season like 2021-22 and the pressure is being felt at the FLA Live Arena.
Is there going to be an absolute collapse for Florida this upcoming season? Of course not. The combination of players like Huberdeau, center Aleksander Barkov and others is enough to make sure the Panthers get back to the postseason.
Will it be a lot tougher for this team to get out of the first round? It just might be.
