George Richards, FHN Publisher
On January 18, 2019, the Florida Panthers activated injured center Vincent Trocheck. To make room on the roster, rookie Juho Lammikko was sent to the minors for what was thought to be a short trip.
“This is not a demotion,” then-coach Bob Boughner said, adding that Lammikko would probably be back after Florida’s All-Star break.
Yeah, about that.
Friday morning, a little over two years later, Lammikko was back on the ice with the Panthers for the first time since being, well, demoted.
Lammikko never did return to the Panthers during the 2018-19 season, playing 36 games for AHL Springfield after losing his job as Florida’s fourth-line center.
Not long after returning home to Finland following Springfield’s season, Lammikko signed a one-year deal with Kärpät in the Liiga where he played all of last season.
This year, he played for Metallurg Magnitogorsk in the KHL before agreeing to a one-year deal and a return to the Panthers in November.
“I felt like I needed a fresh start to get my career going again,’’ Lammikko said following his first practice with the Panthers since 2019.
“I think it was a good decision. … I needed to go back there and improve my play with the puck and stuff. It was a fun experience to play back home. We never had any big talks, but I think (the Panthers) understood and were supportive. They were positive about it.”
Lammikko had been on the NHL’s COVID-19 protocol list and did not participate in training camp nor any practices before Friday.
Coach Joel Quenneville had him up with the first group Friday, giving him a look in a spot Ryan Lomberg and Vinnie Hinostroza have split over the first two games.
“I liked how he skated,’’ Quenneville said. “That’s the first time I’ve seen him live. I liked his enthusiasm out there and I think he’s got good instincts. I’m looking forward to it.
“I was happy with the way he moved. He’s got some pace to him. He’s got a long stride. He’s a big guy.”
Before training camp started, it was thought Lammikko could slide into one of Florida’s bottom-six center roles now held by Eetu Luostarinen.
Where Lammikko will fit with the Panthers in the near future is not known. The Panthers’ 23-man roster is full, as is the six-man taxi squad.
Someone likely has to go down to Florida’s split AHL team in Syracuse — and after missing the past three weeks, it may just be Lammikko.
“I haven’t skated in a couple of weeks but I feel pretty good,” Lammikko said. “I just tried to work hard on stuff.”
In 2018, Lammikko was one of Florida’s final cuts but never played in a game with Springfield before being recalled.
After Derek MacKenzie hurt his shoulder in the opener at Tampa Bay in what would be his final NHL game, Lammikko was recalled and took MacKenzie’s place centering the fourth line in the home opener against the Lightning.
Lammikko held down the job until January when Trocheck returned from his ankle injury and Jared McCann was put on the fourth line.
A lot has changed around the Panthers since 2019 from Boughner being fired and Quenneville being brought in to Trocheck and McCann being traded among many other things.
Of the 39 players who suited up for the Panthers in 2018-19, only nine remain not including Lammikko.
MacKenzie, the player Lammikko replaced at the start of 2018-19, is now an assistant coach. Many of the people who drafted and helped develop him in Florida, such as GM Dale Tallon, are also gone.
“There are some familiar faces around and a lot of new faces,” said Lammikko, who now wears No. 83 as his old No. 91 is now worn by Anthony Duclair.
“I think the atmosphere is good and great. It is very fun to be back here.”
Although the Panthers really liked Lammikko’s defensive play on the fourth line, his complete lack of scoring and inconsistent work in the face-off circle in January made him the odd man out when Trocheck returned.
In 40 games with the Panthers that season, Lammikko did not score a goal and had just six assists.
Four of those assists came in one game as he set a franchise record for a rookie in a 7-5 win at Ottawa.
“We told him that he has done everything we have asked and he has gained my trust,” Boughner said at the time Lammikko was sent down.
“He’s a guy we can depend on with the penalty kill, in the last minute of a game. He’s going down there because we have a break coming up and we want to make sure he gets some playing time right now.”
Florida wanted him to get his offense going in Springfield.
Unlike with the Panthers, Lammikko was given a bigger offensive role in Springfield but he only ended up scoring six goals with 18 points in 36 games.
“Once he has the confidence that he can score, he can score,” former Panthers assistant GM Eric Joyce said in 2019.
“He had to adjust from going from a fourth-line role in the NHL where he is worried about getting scored on to playing in the AHL where we need him to score.
“It was a completely different game but we know what he does well. He is great at positioning, is a good defensive player at the NHL level.”
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Following the 2018-19 season, the Panthers signed veteran Noel Acciari to center their fourth line and it looked like Lammikko would have to fight for a roster spot or, more likely, start the next season back in the minors.
He went home to play in Finland instead.
With the uncertainty of the 2020-21 season, he signed a deal in the KHL.
Over the past season-plus, Lammikko’s offensive game has improved as he was close to a point-a-game player with Karpat (22 goals, 51 points in 57 games) and he had six goals in 22 games with Magnitogorsk.
“I just felt this was the time to come back,” Lammikko said Friday.
“I was pretty happy to come here. I was with a great organization (Karpat) and got a lot of icetime, played first-line minutes and was on the power play. That was a fun year. Everything seemed to go well before the pandemic.”