George Richards, FHN Publisher
Owen Tippett did not necessarily take any the long road when it came to joining the Florida Panthers, but there were no shortcuts, either.
When Florida took Tippett with the 10th overall pick in 2017, it looked like he was on the fast-track to the Panthers.
That track took a few detours along the way but Tippett, now in his second NHL season, really seems to be hitting his stride.
When the Panthers open the 2021-22 season, Tippett will be thrust into the spotlight playing on Florida’s second line with Jonathan Huberdeau and Sam Bennett.
It was a trio that was put together out of necessity at the end of last season and really put some fantastic shifts together in the playoffs.
“That was a big step for him last year and it came against big teams in big games,” Joel Quenneville said.
“He came in here this year and it looks like he wants to be a big part of that line. The three of them can all do pretty good things with it.”
The three haven’t skipped a beat in the preseason and Tippett’s aggressive play, big shot and overall confidence is a big reason.
Playing with the likes of Huberdeau and Bennett probably hasn’t hurt, either.
The three really seem to compliment each other.
“Last year we got a feel for each other,” Tippett said. “We started to click in the playoffs and saw there could be something going forward. I think that was our mindset coming in that we just want to build off that and be even better this year.”
ROAD TO FLORIDA
Tippett made the team coming out of his first training camp as an 18-year-old. On Oct. 17, 2017, after being being scratched for the first four games, Tippett made his NHL debut in a loss to the Flyers.
“I was excited all day and itching to get back to the rink and get on the ice finally,’’ he said afterward. “It was a great experience.”
Yet after a home game against Columbus on Nov. 2, the Panthers decided that after seven games (and a minus-6 rating), it would be best for Tippett to go back to his junior team the Mississauga Steelheads for some more development.
The next year, Tippett looked out of shape and a little out of place. He didn’t get much time to change Florida’s mind as the Panthers sent him back to junior with their first cuts of camp.
In Tippett’s third season with the Panthers organization, he did not make the team in 2019 and was sent to their AHL squad in Springfield.
There were some rumblings that Tippett, after what looked like such a fast start with the Panthers, was a first-round bust.
But the Panthers never felt that way.
They loved Tippett’s skill set — his hard skating, his booming shot.
They simply wanted him to figure the game out when his talent was canceled out a little by equally talented players on the other side of the ice.
In junior, Tippett dictated the way he played; it wasn’t that way when he moved up in class.
Tippett kept his head on straight. He listened to what the Panthers were trying to instill in him. He worked harder than he had before.
It has paid off.
The Panthers were so impressed with Tippett’s play with Springfield in his rookie season that despite vowing not to rush bringing him up, they were considering doing just that.
Tippett was hurt, however, injuring his wrist right before the AHL All-Star break. Tippett still went to the All-Star Game in California to soak it all in and, despite not playing again, still led the Thunderbirds in scoring that season.
The injury kept him from doing much in the 2020 postseason bubble but in January, he finally made the Panthers.
It was an up-and-down kind of year, Tippett rolling throughout the lineup and never seeming to get much traction.
He was a healthy scratch at time, moved to the taxi squad at others.
But then he got in with Bennett and Huberdeau during a game against Nashville and everything changed.
“I think the difference, with him, was his confidence,’’ Huberdeau said last week.
“I knew Tipp was a great player, a big guy who can skate with a big shot. But as soon as he started playing with us, you could see he really worked well with us. I like playing with a guy like him. He gets into spots where I can pass it to him, he creates room for us to work.
“Last year, his game just took off. He got better and better every game. Now, I tell him to keep the puck. He’s a playmaker. He doesn’t always have to pass to us. You’ll see a difference.”
Huberdeau kind of knows what Tippett went through having attended Panthers camp following his draft year and being sent back to junior.
The Panthers sent Huberdeau back in 2011 simply for his own safety; they did not think he was big enough to endure the rigors of a full NHL season and, even he admits, they were probably right.
Sometimes it is not fun to take things slow, but sometimes it is for the best.
Tippett certainly isn’t taking anything for granted.
“My mindset hasn’t changed at all,” said Tippett, who led the Panthers in preseason scoring after playing in six of the seven games.
“I still want to prove I deserve to be here each and every day. And that’s what I’m going to do.”
Said Huberdeau: “This is going to be a great year for him. He is going to do great things.”