The Florida Panthers made the announcement Thursday that they will be honoring the original Team President Bill Torrey in a home game against the New York Islanders on October 23rd.  A banner will be raised in Torrye’s honor and a special Den of Honor dedication  will take place along with an in-game tribute.

One of the most respected men in the game of hockey, Bill Torrey Tribute Night is probably long overdue, but nonetheless, good things come to those who wait, and this will be a special night at the Bank Atlantic Center.  Here’s the official announcement from the Panthers website.

In other news, as you may know general manager Dale Tallon has qualified to participate in this years Senior Open Golf Tournament.  Having the opportunity to play with the likes of Fred Couples, Mark Calcavecchia, Paul Azinger, Tom Watson and a host of others, this is really big deal.  Best of Luck to you Dale.

I can certainly understand that some people would say, why is he out golfing when he should be attempting to offer contracts to some of the unsigned free agents in the market place?  A very good question, but the answer to that is, because the one’s that have recently signed don’t fit the mold of what he’s trying to build.  That’s why.  Alexander Frolov, highly skilled, but extremely high maintenance.  Moody and delusional thinking that he’s really worth 5-6 million on the open market.  At three million even for one year, I don’ think we need that on this roster.  Alexei Ponikarovsky?  A big body, a decent skater for his size, and good hands.  But that’s where it ends.  Pokihoseky as Don Cherry calls him, was virtually invisible in last years playoffs with the Penguins, and it’s a history of of his that he’s trying to shake.  Well, let the both of them figure it out in other cities, as we are done babysitting.

If you want to follow Dale’s progress go here and check on him.  NBC will be broadcasting the final two rounds on Saturday and Sunday afternoons from 4-7 P.M. Eastern time.

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The end of the dog days are finally in sight as the Miami Dolphins return to the practice field, the Florida Marlins season is winding down and the hockey season is right around the corner! Expectations are certainly high for the Dolphins while the Marlins have been a disappointment. There has been a lot of excitement in recent weeks in South Florida as the Miami Heat has taken over the national sports spotlight.  With the additions of LeBron James and Chris Bosh, to go along with Dwyane Wade, the Miami Heat have formed a “superteam” that the city of Miami hopes will bring lots of titles. However, if you’re reading this, you’re probably wishing that the Heat could spread some of the wealth around to the Panthers.

There is a famous saying, “high tides raise all boats,” that has been discussed recently around these parts. Dolphins writers are worried that Miami is about to become a Heat town, leaving behind King Dolphins for King James. However, the Panthers have taken the recent acquisitions in stride, even offering “Seats Fit for a King” and taking out a full-page ad in the newspaper welcoming the newest superstars to Miami. The recent attention that South Florida is receiving, and can expect to throughout the NBA season, can only help a franchise such as the Panthers, desperately needing some local and national attention to improve.

Never before has Miami been in this position nationally when it comes to our sports teams. Known for being fair-weathered and late-arriving, Miami is not considered an excellent sports town. However, it always seems that Panthers games draw reasonably well for a southern, sun-drenched city. If they can keep afloat while struggling to win games this long, the Heat’s preeminence in the media can only help. So could winning a few more games.

Unfortunately, for us Panthers fans, the summer is still rolling on and we all can’t play in the Senior US Open like Dale Tallon to pass the time. As it currently stands, I believe the roster is set except for those training-camp battles to be decided. Finally, we have some competition up the middle and some young guys that should be ready to take the next step after putting up solid minutes at the end of last season. Personally, I’m excited to see what newly acquired Michael Grabner can add to our offense and if the #3 Draft pick, Erik Gudbrandson, makes the team out of camp. This will be a rebuilding year as evidenced by the summer being pretty quiet, however, I think this team is ready to compete for a spot in the playoffs. Hopefully, come May we’ll have two teams fighting battles for their postseason lives. We know we’ll have at least one.

I've seen that look before. It's not comforting. Photo source: Miami Herald

As you might be able to tell with a the summer being as quiet as it’s been for fans of the Florida Panthers, coming up with news is all but impossible.  My job, or my objective of this site is to bring you news, or information, or make something up if I have to.  In an effort to generate some possible conversation amongst my readers I have to ask the following question, “Does Peter DeBoer, head coach of the Florida Panthers survive the season”?

It’s a legitimate concern, and there are opinions all over the place about the type coach that he was before he got here, and the type of coach that he’s become since he got here.  Known for his ability to work players hard, be fair, and be a no nonsense type in juniors, it was expected that the same style would be able to turn the Panthers fortune around.  The style he wanted his team to play would be what we know as uptempo.  More offence, less defense, yet responsible at both ends of the ice.  A far cry from the “watching paint dry” system that Uncle Jack forced us to watch during his time as a coach. 

His first year with the Panthers they missed the playoffs by one point.  Everyone seemingly felt that he had done a pretty solid job given the roster of grunts he had to put on the ice.  Finishing the year 41-30-11 with 93 points, most felt that the job he did was short of miraculous.  There were some mistakes along the way as would be expected by a rookie coach, especially one making the jump from juniors to the NHL, but for the most part he did a solid job.  Personally the most glaring mistake I feel he made that first year is the treatament of defenceman Nick Boynton.  Not to rehash the entire situation, but the two got into a shouting match during the playoff run and Boynton was sent home for disciplinary reasons.  Taking Boynton’s place was an old friend of DeBoer’s, Steve Eminger.  Not exactly an even tradeoff, but Deboer was apparently making an example of Boynton.  I think he was picking on the wrong guy, and we may never know the exact truth of that situation, but so be it.

Last year the Panthers finished 32-37-13 good enough for 5th in the Southeastern Division and finishing 14th in the Eastern Conference.  While the rosters of both clubs were virtually the same, minus Jay Bouwmeester, DeBoer’s ways, or habits if you will seemed to fail a bit in his second season.  Known for his toughness and unwillingness to stand for lackadasical play, the team played many nights as though they couldn’t wait to get to the golf course.  Or South Beach.

The Panthers team that was put together for Pete last year was short on scoring, short on defense, short on character and short on heart, many, many nights.  Some of you may not want to believe it, but the fact of the matter is, it’s true.  I myself grew tired of the cliche’s.  “We got some chances, but couldn’t convert.  We need to play a full sixty minutes.  We need to come prepared.  We can’t just play the third period”.  On and on they went.  On top of it the team lacked toughness and the willingness to display almost any type of aggression.  The Mike Richards hit on David Booth was the most obvious scenario of that.

The Cats went out and acquired bruising forward Steve MacIntyre, known for his ability to drop the gloves and take on anyone at anytime.  He would serve a purpose as the enforcer of the team.  Big Mac played 22 games for the Panthers last season and averaged 2:52 minutes of ice time and had only 24 minutes in penalties.  The clamps must have been put on him, as it seems that DeBoer isn’t a fan of that type of player.  Granted Mac wasn’t brought in for his skill, but if you’re going to dress a guy like that, especially on this team, you better figure out a way to use him.  We certainly aren’t talented enough to carry a player like that if he’s not going to play.  MacIntyre is now back with the Oilers, and the Panthers lack a player of his toughness completely at this point.

So as we look to the new season, how many games does DeBoer get?  Is it a fair assesment of him and his performance with the roster that he’ll have?  Again, lacking a goal scorer, a number one center, a solid right wing, and absolutely no toughness, I would say that Pete’s tenure here is hanging by a thread.  If the Panthers get off to another slow start, he’s going to feel the heat.  Even though general manager Dale Tallon has said he likes Pete, there’s no way that Tallon will stand for another display of what we saw last year. 

The 20 -25 game mark will be DeBoer’s first test I imagine.  If after 20 games the Panthers don’t have at least 20 points, the clock will start ticking.  If by game 25 they have less than 30, the hook will most likely come.  Unless there are some obstacles that DeBoer can’t control.  Granted this is all speculation on my part, and knowing that we have a roster that’s not much of an improvement over last season, I still believe that Tallon has DeBoer on a short leash.

It’s almost a situation where DeBoer is a lame duck, but you still have to see it through.  One improvement should be the defence and the penalty kill with the removal of Mike Kitchen, who was replaced with former Panther defenceman Gord Murphy.  Or will it be different?  Maybe it’s not Kitchen and maybe it’s the players?  Kitchen moves on to Chicago to take the same role with the Stanley Cup Champs.  We may really find out the answer to the previous question. One thing that Blackhawk forwards do is backcheck, and come back to help the defence.  Something not all Panther forwards were willing to do.  At least nightly.

Time will tell. Question is how much time?  Is DeBoer in over his head?  Is he a lame duck?  Was he really ready for the big time?  All opinions pointed to yes. 

Remember though, people also thought that Roberto Luongo was the best goalie in hockey!

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An extremely busy day for me in my “real world”, will prevent me from doing a normal post.  However thanks to Donny over at Litter Box Cats, I’m going to piggy back on a story about general manager Dale Tallon and his golf game.

Taking a break from the busy slow free agency period, here’s a story about Tallon that appeared in the Montreal Gazette discussing his golf game.  Great story on Dale’s hobby and his love affair with the game.

From the sounds of it, I would say that his game is much better than these three knuckleheads!

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I Won't Regret This Will I ?

Never let it be said that The Rat Trick is not in the 21st century.  After many days (and I mean many) of careful planning, reviewing, tweaking, and just making damn sure that I (we) knew what the hell I (we) were doing, The Rat Trick has gone SOCIAL!  Not to be confused with Postal!

Yes my loyal and passionate readers, the Rat Trick now has a Facebook Fan Page !!!!!! Whoooo hoooooo!  Now from what I understand this will give more visibility to our site, and allow for more interaction by you the fans.  What I’d like to ask you to do is go ahead and join by visiting the page and hitting the “like” button so you can follow us.  It’s really pretty easy, and we already have some followers at this early stage.  I didn’t want to set this up without anyone following, and to prove that yes, The Rat Trick has friends.

Everyone is welcome, not just Panther fans, but any fan who loves hockey, or sports, or you just want your name all over the place.  The more the merrier right?  It took me quite sometime to do this and feel comfortable with it, so you’ll have to bear with me during the initial stages.  Also, please note that while I’m at my day job working, the server blocks me from Facebook.  It’s probably a good thing as I need to concentrate on my real work, but I will do my best to stay in touch with you.

Looking forward to having you all join.

Also, as you know  you can follow the Rat Trick on Twitter  @TheRatTrick

You can get to both sites really easy from here by clicking on the icons at the top of this page.

Thanks.  I really appreicate it!

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Fighting the doldrums of the offseason there is zero going on not only here in Pantherland, but the rest of the NHL as well.  I am so bored of the non-activity, and lack of news I’m ready to start watching college Lacrosse!

That said, I felt the need to post something tonight that you might enjoy.  Growing up in Chicago, I  was fortunate to listen to guys like Lloyd Petit, Jim West, and the current and best hockey game announcer ever, Pat Foley.

Something that you Florida Panther fans may not know is that your new general manager Dale Tallon was a color analyst for many years with the Chicago Blackhawks, working along side Pat Foley. Dale being a former NHL defenceman was very astute in this position. He never held back, was intelligent, funny, and knew what he was talking about.

I was looking around You Tube Monday evening and was actually looking for goal calls by either Foley, or our own Randy Moeller.  But rather than a specific goal call or series of goal calls, I stumbled upon this famous comment by Mr. Tallon that happened in 1996, as the Hawks were playing the Ottawa Senators. It’s only two minutes long, but you have to watch, and listen!

It’s a classic comment by Dale!

Enjoy!

Thanks for watching and listening.

Your comments are always welcomed and appreciated.

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