Colby Guy
From now until the start of training camp on Thursday morning, Florida Hockey Now will profile players who will play a key role for the 2022-23 Florida Panthers.
Today’s Player: Defenseman Gus Forsling
What Happened Last Year: Gus Forsling built off his breakout 2021 campaign by doubling his career-highs in goals, assists and points in 2021-22.
Since being claimed off of waivers from Carolina by the Panthers in January 2021, Forsling has 54 points (15 goals, 39 assists) in 114 games. He eclipsed career-highs in both of his seasons in Sunrise, most recently hitting 37 points (10 goals, 27 assists) in 71 games.
Forsling scored eight of his 10 goals after March 20 — the day star defenseman Aaron Ekblad went down with a lower body injury. He led the league in goals among defensemen during that span.
What to Look For at Camp: With former top pair stalwart MacKenzie Weegar now in Calgary, Forsling is likely to take his place on Florida’s top pair.
As the 26-year-old showed when Ekblad was out of the lineup, he is more than capable of playing that role.
The dynamic between Ekblad and Forsling should be the most interesting storyline as the season rolls along.
Forsling’s smooth skating ability allows him to cover for Ekblad in a pinch when he jumps up on the offense. He is also a skillful passer who will allow the Panthers’ transition offense to continue to flow smoothly.
Questions To Be Answered This Season: While he has proven himself in short spurts, the question of whether or not he can be a capable top pair defenseman for the long haul remains.
The organization is very confident in Forsling and given the sample size he has given them in each of the last two seasons Ekblad went down, it is warranted.
On top of his totals last season, he led the league in on-ice goals for percentage (74.1 percent) after Ekblad went down with a lower-body injury on March 28, 2021.
In Their Words: ”That’s how we want to play,” Forsling said of generating offense from the blueline. “We want to be a threat in the rushes, so if we keep doing that, we will be a threat.”
Overall Outlook: Forsling is going to be a very key piece to the Panthers’ blue line for the foreseeable future.
He is on one of the most team-friendly contracts in the league at $2.67 million per year for the next two seasons and continues to be one of the most underrated players in the league.
This year looks to be the year that he gets attention from a wider audience, although Panthers brass already believes that he has broken out as a star on the team’s blue line.
The floor is now his to prove them right.
FHN COUNTDOWN TO CAMP
Upcoming: Carter Verhaeghe, Matthew Tkachuk, Anton Lundell