Florida Panthers: How Mike Hoffman Can Help the Cats

After being acquired in a three-way trade by the Florida Panthers, forward Mike Hoffman can bring many positives to the Panthers roster.

The Florida Panthers at the start of last season took a look at their current roster and knew they had most of the pieces they had in a winning lineup. But, as the season progressed, they started to recognize their main issue, depth scoring. Since most of their goal scoring came from their first two lines, Panthers GM Dale Tallon knew he had to make a move.

On June 19th, 2018, the Panthers acquired the player they were looking for. In a three-way trade, the Florida Panthers made a deal with the San Jose Sharks and the Ottawa Senators to bring forward Mike Hoffman to South Florida.

The deal started with Hoffman being sent to San Jose, after Tallon claimed the Sens were asking for too much. Then, to the Sens’ ignorance, the Sharks and the Cats made a side deal to move Hoffman to the sunshine state, just hours later.

This transaction is just what the Panthers needed, a move to bring in a man who is capable of scoring goals on a consistent basis. Now, they have another winger to play alongside either one of Florida’s top centers in Aleksander Barkov or Vincent Trocheck. This move brings many positives to the Florida Panthers roster, as it’s probably safe to say that Hoffman’s game will definitely help the Cats in the near future.

First off, Hoffman being another human being to play and take up ice time can be a big help. As last season progressed for the Panthers, it was obvious to see that some players were exhausted from the workload that they encountered. This showed specifically in the play of Florida’s top wingers like Jonathan Huberdeau, Evgeni Dadonov, and more.

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With the Canadian forward now being apart of Florida’s top 6, he can give the other top players a rest as the ice time can now be dispersed more evenly. For example, last season, when coach Bob Boughner was looking for an entire offensive uni, he’d look towards Huberdeau, Barkov, and Trocheck to carry the load. This gassed those three, leading the Cats with little options to play with up front. However, with Hoffman now in the mix, the ice time can now be distributed evenly so the need to burn the big three can stop, and the burden on their shoulders is less than what was before.

Secondly, Hoffman can also help improve the Panthers’ power play. While it’s been a struggle in the past to get the man advantage going, the fans and the organization of South Florida have always wanted one thing on their special teams, a rocket one-timer on the power play. This relates to what the Washington Capitals have on their power play with captain Alexander Ovechkin.

Mike Hoffman has shown in his career that he can rip a shot from a one-time pass on the man advantage and that he isn’t afraid to shoot from anywhere in the slot, either. For instance, he had a goal that replicates this situation last season.

The Sens were playing the

Calgary Flames

in their fourth game of the season, and the clock was ticking on their man advantage. Off the faceoff, Sens defenseman

Cody Ceci

fed the puck over to Hoffman for a blistering one-timer for his first of the season. This is what the Panthers have been searching for:

Last but not least, Hoffman can help boost Florida’s goal scoring for the season. In their previous season, according to NHL.com, the Cats were 14th in the league averaging 2.99 goals per game. Despite it being a decent ranking, the Panthers could definitely strive for more when it comes to scoring.

Florida’s game consists of a fast-paced high scoring plan that has a desperate need for goal scoring. With Hoffman now in the mix, that need for scoring can be fulfilled. With his presence on the squad, the Panthers can possibly take the next step in the amount they score, potentially reaching an average of three goals per game and finishing among the league’s best.

Next: Maxim Mamin’s 2017-18 Season Recap

The move by the Florida Panthers to bring forward Mike Hoffman to the team was an underrated decision, and one that’ll pay off in the near future.

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