Injuries Giving Way to New Opportunities for the Florida Panthers

FORT LAUDERDALE — The Florida Panthers practiced Wednesday before their flight to Columbus missing a few key players due to injury and suspension.

A former boss of mine once gave me a bit of sound advice.

“Son,” he said, “think of every problem as an opportunity.”

Unfortunately, the problem at the time was that he was firing me.

True story.

The situation for the Panthers as the season winds down is similar.

The manpower shortage due to injury and suspension has created opportunities for others.

Nobody knew it at the time, but the acquisition of Seth Jones was quite fortuitous what with the suspension of Aaron Ekblad.

Jones hasn’t put up real numbers on the scorecard with the Panthers yet, but with the surrounding cast, his superior skill level can be exploited.

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In the six games he played, on the top pairing with Gus Forsling and on the first power play, he is Florida’s time-on-ice leader by far during that span.

His acquisition is a long-term, win-win situation for the Panthers.

With Dmitry Kulikov now “week-to-week” with an injury of his own, it provides an opportunity for Toby Bjornfot to show his stuff over a sustained period.

Bjornfot impressed earlier this season in an eight-game stint while Ekblad was injured.

He knocked around the NHL and AHL for several seasons  before Bill Zito claimed him from Vegas on the waiver wire last March.

A few seasons back he was a regular with Los Angeles.

“We feel very comfortable with him in our lineup,” Paul Maurice said.

Another one who has capitalized on his opportunity has been Mackie Samoskevich.

He has sparkled since moving up to the second line with Sam Bennett after just starting to get some time on that line before Matthew Tkachuk got hurt.

He has five goals and eight points in the eight games since Tkachuk’s injury.

“It’s definitely nice playing with a guy who is such a physical presence out there (Bennett),’’ Samoskevich said. “He could do a lot more than just that, too, but definitely fun playing with him.”

While the Panthers may be limping into Columbus, they will be facing a team still in the playoff hunt but fading fast.

The Blue Jackets lost four straight and six of the past seven.

They scored a total of one goal in the previous three games.

Goalies Elvis Merzlikins and Daniil Tarasov both have a GAA above 3.00 and a save percentage under .900.  

The Jackets are No. 27 in the NHL in goals-against per game but are a respectable No. 10 in goals-for per game.

On the positive side, defender Zach Werenski is having a Norris Trophy consideration season. He leads the Jackets in scoring with 20 goals and 69 points.

Third-year man Kirill Marchenko is having a breakout season with 25 goals. Likewise center Kent Johnson is having his best season, with 21 goals in an injury-shortened season.

Columbus has five players with 20 or more goals.

Adam Fantilli has been a surprise with 21 goals, and Dmitri Voronkov has chipped in with 20 goals.

On the negative side, Sean Monahan’s production has dipped substantially this season. He is in Year 1 of a five-year $27.5 million contract. He lost 25 games to injury this year.

James van Riemsdyk’s offensive production is well off of his peak years in Toronto and Philadelphia.

Injuries have been problematic for the Jackets.

Former Panther Erik Gudbranson has played only three games this year due to shoulder surgery. Boone Jenner has only recently returned from shoulder surgery and has yet to score a goal this season.

Cole Sillinger has missed the last eight games with a shoulder injury. His return is imminent.

No words can express the heartbreak over the tragic loss of Johnny Gaudreau. The Jackets have performed remarkably well.

If the Jackets rally and make the playoffs, they are the story of the year in the NHL.

Gaudreau was last season’s leading scorer.

At home and on the road, the Jackets honor Gaudreau by hanging his No. 13 jersey in his stall.

ON DECK: GAME No. 69

FLORIDA PANTHERS at COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS 

• When: Thursday, 7 p.m.
• Where: Nationwide Arena, Columbus
• Local TV: (Miami/FtL); WHDT 9 (WPB); LAFF 36.3 (SW Fla)
• Streaming: Panthers+; ESPN+
• Radio: WPOW 96.5-FM2; WBZT 1230-AM (Palm Beach); WCTH 100.3-FM (Florida Keys); SiriusXM
• Panthers Radio Streaming: SiriusXM 932, NHL App
• This Season (Panthers lead 2-0) — At Florida: Panthers 3, Blue Jackets 0 (March 3). At Columbus: Panthers 4, Blue Jackets 3 (Oct. 15); Thursday.
• Last Season: Panthers Won 3-0
• All-time Regular Season Series: Tied 26-26
• Up Next for the Panthers: Saturday vs. Washington Capitals, 5 p.m.