Yet another casualty of the Florida Panthers remarkable organizational depth, Evgeny Dadonov (who saw no action in either of the first two games) was assigned to the Rampage earlier today. Unfortunately for the promising winger, it seems this move was creeping up in the rear view ever since training camp where we rarely heard any mention of him. If Dadonov was to secure his spot, it meant someone else had to lose theirs; that someone just played two remarkable games and recorded an assist. Yes, Jack Skille essentially pushed Dadonov back to the AHL.
Just think about this, Evgeny Dadonov — one of the Panthers most talented wingers the organization has produced in a while — would have never been sent down last season. His pure skill and scoring prowess was one of the few bright spots last year, but the summer roster overhaul brought in enough guys with the same characteristics to make Dadonov expendable. If that is any kind of indication of the potential skill on the current roster, I don’t know what is.
In the end, Dadonov is better off getting playing time in the AHL than waiting for someone to get injured. Don’t get too worked up over this move, we will likely see Dadonov again in the near future when injuries do occur.
On a related note, Anthony Luciani and Keith Seabrook were assigned to the Cincinnati Cyclones.