We’re still in the midst of the hockey dog days of August, however, there were a smattering of interesting Florida Panthers tidbits on the interweb worth checking out.
In The Athletic’s Ranking the best NHL players and prospects under 23 article, Cats forwards Sandis Vilmanis (ranked 133rd) and Simas Ignatavicius (ranked 138th) were placed in Tier 6 (Middle of the lineup player). Corey Pronman had this to say about Florida’s top two prospects:
Vilmanis had a very positive season. He was quite good in the AHL and with Latvia’s senior team, and got extended time with Florida. He’s a fast, competitive winger who contributes at both ends of the ice. He’s not overly physical, but Vilmanis wins a lot of puck battles and always seems to be around the play. He has good hands, and while not overly creative, he can create chances by attacking in a direct way. He projects as a middle-six winger.
A U.S.-born player of Lithuanian descent who has played for their senior national team and at the pro level in Switzerland, Ignatavicius is a legit NHL prospect. He’s a tall, fast winger with very good hands who projects to play and create chances at an NHL pace. His vision is fine, and he’s not overly physical. His compete level is a minor issue on his projection, but the toolkit is so good that he could still be a middle-six winger.
Sticking with The Athletic, Sean McIndoe’s Remembering a time your NHL team got smoked by a random rookie making his debut cited this example for the Panthers:
The stories we’re telling today span many legacies, but could I interest you in a Manny Legace? (Crickets chirp, tumbleweed blows by.) Anyway, he stopped 49 of 50 shots in his debut, helping the Los Angeles Kings steal a point in a 1-1 tie in Florida in 1998.
Ryan Dixon’s Ranking the best all-time seasons by the NHL’s ageless warriors looked at the ten best performances by players 41 or older in league history.
4. Jaromir Jagr, Florida Panthers, 43 years old, 2015-16
Playing for his eighth NHL franchise, Jagr netted 27 goals and 66 points for a Florida team that finished first in the Atlantic Division. The only Panther to score more goals than Jagr that year was a young 20-year-old buck named Aleksander Barkov, who posted 28. Jagr received MVP votes 25 years after he debuted as an 18-year-old with the Penguins.
After sifting through 80,490 submissions, the New York Islanders announced Thursday that their fans have selected “Navy Lighthouse” as their specialty sweater concept for the 2027-28 season.
The Detroit Red Wings acquired the rights to forward Sutter Muzzatti from the Nashville Predators in exchange for future considerations. Detroit then signed Muzzatti to a two-year, entry-level contract. Muzzatti produced 13 goals and 19 assists during his senior season at Notre Dame.
The New York Rangers re-signed defenseman Scott Morrow to a one-year, two-way contract worth $850K at the NHL level. Morrow played 29 with the Rangers (6A) and 34 games with the Hartford Wolf Pack (5G/14A) last season.