George Richards, FHN Publisher
The Florida Panthers, along with every other team in the NHL, will be in a new division this season as they move from the Atlantic to the Central in 2021.
The new divisions were on full display when the NHL kicked off its season Wednesday night including one in the new Central as Tampa Bay throttled Chicago 5-1.
Florida opens its season Sunday night at 7 against those same Blackhawks (FSF, 560-AM).
It will be the first of eight meetings against Chicago as the teams in the Central will play each other eight times this season.
Teams will definitely get to know one another this year — and perhaps some new rivalries will be born from the many games played.
Florida and Columbus, for instance, played some fun games last season after Sergei Bobrovsky left the Jackets to sign with the Panthers. Now, there are three former Columbus players with Florida not including those in the front office.
Carolina, with former Florida center Vincent Trocheck, could also renew its old Southeast Division rivalry it had with the Panthers.
“It’s going to be a little bit different but it could also be a good thing,” said Florida center Alexander Wennberg, who was bought out by Columbus and signed with the Panthers in October.
“You probably are going to know the teams you’re playing a little bit better. The scouting reports is going to be easier … there’s nothing you can do about it. I think it’s a great opportunity.”
By moving to the Central, the Panthers will be losing some strong competition for making the playoffs and may have gained some ground if they can improve their play against their new rivals.
Under the current setup, teams will only play within the division with the top four teams making the playoffs.
There will be no wild card teams this season.
For the Panthers, being a contender in the Central Division this season depends on how they do against teams they haven’t fared well against the past few years.
Boston, Toronto and Montreal are gone, but the Panthers pick up Carolina, Columbus, Dallas and Nashville as new divisional foes in their fight for a playoff spot.
And, as has always been the case for the Panthers, the Lightning remain a divisional rival.
According to the NHL, the Panthers and Lightning hold the longest continuous divisional rivalry in the Central.
Florida and Tampa Bay has shared the same division ever since the Panthers joined the NHL in 1993 — from the Atlantic (twice) to the Southeast and now to the Central.
The Central may not be the sexiest division in the NHL, but it does tout the past two Stanley Cup finals teams as well as a couple of real solid teams.
What we do know is that the Panthers are better off here than in the Metro/Atlantic division now known as the East.
That division, which will be home to the Bruins, Rangers, Islanders, Penguins, Flyers, Sabres, Capitals and Devils is a monster.
Making the top four in against that competition will be quite a feat. The Central will be tough — but not that kind of tough.
“I think our division is up for grabs,” coach Joel Quenneville said. “Outside of Tampa, I think everyone has a real shot. I think we might be flying under the radar a little bit — and that’s not a bad thing as far as I am concerned.”
The Panthers have won their division only twice in their history (2012 in the Southeast and the 2016 Atlantic) and no one is suggesting they will win it this year.
But making the top four and advancing to the postseason seems more than plausible — as long as they improve their play against not only the Lightning, but the other newcomers to the division.
Over the past 10 games against Central Division opponents, the Panthers only have a winning record against Detroit (8-1-1), Nashville (7-3-0) and Chicago (4-2-4).
Florida’s worst records against Central opponents is against Tampa Bay (1-6-3) and Columbus (1-6-3) with Carolina (2-6-2) coming in third.
The Panthers are expected to compete with five teams for one of the four spots in the playoffs as Detroit and Chicago do not appear to be much of a threat this season.
So, that leaves Tampa Bay, Dallas (the Panthers are 4-5-1 over their past 10 against the reigning West champs), Carolina, Columbus and Nashville.
The Central will be very competitive, for sure, but landing in the top four here is very doable.
Among the eight teams within the new Central, five (Dallas and Nashville in the west with Tampa Bay, Carolina and Columbus in the east) either held a playoff spot or were within a point when the season stopped on March 12.
Florida was three points out of a wild card with 13 games left and a game in hand (with a head-to-head remaining) against Toronto for third in the Atlantic.
So, while the Panthers were included in the expanded postseason, they were also right in the mix and had plenty of games left to earn their way in had the season played itself out.
As we like to say around these parts: We’ll see.