George Richards, FHN Publisher
When the Florida Panthers traded for Mason Marchment a year ago, it was basically viewed as them trying to get something in return for a player they had given up on.
Denis Malgin was not playing much in Florida and it appeared he desperately needed a change of scenery.
In return for Malgin, Florida got back an undrafted forward who has spent much of his pro career in the AHL as well as part of a season with the ECHL’s Orlando Solar Bears.
Marchment got in four games in four seasons with the Leafs organization so he also looked like a guy who may benefit from a fresh start with a new team.
Although it is still too early to judge who won or lost what was by no means a blockbuster trade, the Panthers are pretty happy with what they got back in the deal.
Malgin went directly from the Panthers to the Leafs (Marchment reported to the Springfield Thunderbirds) and went scoreless in eight games.
In October, Malgin signed a new contract with the Leafs and was loaned to Lausanne HC in his native Switzerland. He has 14 goals and 30 points in 32 games there this season.
Marchment made Florida’s taxi squad out of training camp but only played in one game on Feb. 7 in Detroit, getting limited minutes before being returned to the taxi squad.
Upon getting back in the lineup last Thursday against Dallas, Marchment has made sure the Panthers could not take him out again.
When you talk about a player taking advantage of his opportunity, right now, you’re looking square at Mason Marchment.
In his past four games since returning to the lineup, Marchment had an assist in his first three games before getting his first NHL goal in Thursday’s 5-4 win in Nashville.
“I am just trying to play my game. Q has shown a lot of confidence in putting me out there,” Marchment said.
“I’m just trying to battle for him and for the boys. I feel like it has been going well and I’m going to keep rolling with it, keep playing hard and heavy. … It’s a mindset where it is confidence and believing in yourself.”
The 25-year-old Marchment has been a nice surprise for the Panthers but without the addition of a taxi squad this season, he would likely have started back in the minors.
Florida placed him on waivers at the start of camp and he went unclaimed, allowing the Panthers to keep him with the team but on the taxi squad.
On Feb. 7, he was recalled and was on the fourth line against Detroit. He played less than eight minutes minutes, and was returned to the taxi squad the following day.
Marchment continued to show hustle during practices and was given another chance to show what he had last week against Dallas.
“I know that he’s been patient,’’ Joel Quenneville said before the team left for Nashville.
“We like the way he works in practice. He’s a hard guy to play against in practice. He makes things happen.”
In that return game against Dallas, Marchment was extremely noticeable as he played a little more.
Marchment had three shots, three hits and assisted on Anton Stralman’s game-tying goal in the third period helping the Panthers rally from a 2-0 deficit to win 3-2.
In the two games to follow, he was moved up to the third line with Eetu Luostarinen and got assists in both as his playing time increased to close to 13 minutes.
Thursday night, he and Keith Yandle broke out on a rush with Marchment deciding to keep the puck and test goalie Pekka Rinne.
The shot was blocked.
Not long afterward, Marchment and Noel Acciari had a 2-on-1 and, again, Marchment kept the puck and fired.
This time he went low and beat Rinne for his first NHL goal and a 2-0 lead for the Panthers.
Scoring that first NHL goal sounds like something he will never forget.
“Honestly, I never really thought it would happen,” Marchment said afterward. “Now that it has, it is unbelievable. It is a dream come true. It was a great pass from Ekblad and I kind of drove around the D and Cookie drove wide and it opened right up for me.
“It was nice. And to get it against a goalie like Pekka Rinne, he’s so good, it’s just a good moment.”
What happens to Marchment moving forward is unknown, of course.
If he continues to play like this — he was all over the ice Thursday, playing 19 shifts with a block and a takeaway — there will be a spot for him with the Panthers.
Because of the flexibility the taxi squad allows, the Panthers can mix-and-match players on their bottom six pretty regularly.
One does not have to remind Marchment — nor Ryan Lomberg, Vinnie Hinostroza or Owen Tippett — of this.
But, as we have seen with Lomberg, consistent strong play once given the opportunity can mean a nice stay in the lineup.
“It’s definitely hard on the mental aspect when you’re in the taxi squad and you see the team doing so well,’’ Marchment said.
“You just want to be a part of it. You have to just stay positive and keep doing the small things every day, trying to get better every day. They do a good job on the taxi squad here but I am happy to be in the lineup and contributing.”
Marchment is a player who has fought to get where he is right now.
A late comer to the game, Marchment spent his younger years growing up in San Jose while his dad Bryan was a defenseman for the Sharks and didn’t start playing hockey until they moved to Canada when he was 10.
He joked that he took up playing forward instead of following his father because he couldn’t skate backward.
Marchment was not drafted after playing in the OHL with Erie, Hamilton and Mississauga but signed a free agent deal with Toronto.
Last year, on Jan. 1, he was called up to the big leagues for the first time and ended up recording an assist in four games up with the Leafs.
Just over a month later, he was traded to the Panthers for the talented but, at least in Florida, underused Malgin.
Marchment played in six games for Springfield following the trade and was part of the Panthers during the summer bubble but did not see any game action.
His father, by the way, is currently a scout and development coach for San Jose and was a first-round pick of the Winnipeg Jets in 1987.
Known as one of the toughest players to go up against in the league during his playing days, Bryan Marchment lasted 926 games over parts of 17 seasons in the NHL with a host of teams including the Jets, Chicago, Hartford, Edmonton and San Jose.
Mason Marchment hasn’t earned any type of reputation in the NHL just yet but he’s trying to at least make a name for himself.
So far, he is on the right track.
“He plays with purpose, he hits, gets the puck in and gets the puck out. He keeps it simple,’’ Quenneville said on Friday.
“He has added an element with play recognition on pucks, his physical presence has been noticeable. … His first game was ordinary but then he got back in and has done everything he can to not go back to where he was.
“He definitely has enhanced his position and quality of ice time here.”
UP NEXT: PANTHERS AT NASHVILLE
When: Saturday, 2 p.m.
Where: Bridgestone Arena, Nashville
TV/Radio: FSF/560-AM