As we know, the Florida Panthers signed forward Micheal Haley to replace Shawn Thornton on the 4th line. Let’s take a look at some things we should expect from the 31-year-old this season.
On July 1st 2017, the Panthers went out and signed scrapper Michael Haley to a two-year, $1.65M deal. The idea behind this was to replace Thornton with a younger and quicker version of himself. Micheal would ideally fall under this category, being more or less like Shawn Thornton (playing style).
Last season with the San Jose Sharks, Haley recorded 2G, 10A and 12 points in 58 games played. Last season’s production would mark a career high for the 31-year-old, as he would surpass his record high of three points dating back to the 2010-11 season with the New York Islanders. Micheal has also spent significant time playing in the minors (AHL), where the veteran has found most of his success (offensively).
Heading into this season, the only real expectations that will lie on Micheal’s shoulder, will be to bang bodies, protect our core guys (star players) and to create some energy in crucial moments of the game. Other than that, don’t really expect much else from Haley. He wasn’t brought here to score goals or put up points.
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Obviously, it would be an addition if Micheal could add to the scoring department. I’m sure he will bag a few goals this season (maybe 5). However, don’t get worked up if he ends the year off with the same amount of production (points) as Thornton. Haley should focus on protecting our core guys and keeping them safe from dirty players.
In the past, the Panthers have lost guys like Ekblad, Trocheck and even Barkov to dirty hits (lower and upper body). Unfortunately, it’s hard to prevent dirty plays from happening. But sending out a guy like Haley would send a message to that specific player that we won’t tolerate any cheap or dirty hits. This team cannot afford any major or crucial injuries to our star players. Especially when we’re thin as it is upfront.
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There’s really not much more I can say about Haley and his role here on the Panthers. His role is quite simple and he shouldn’t have a hard time fulfilling it. His role will be overlooked the majority of the time, but it doesn’t mean that his presence isn’t important. He obviously won’t take place in every game this year, but should feature in at least 30-40 games (give or take). He will be looked upon to deliver in different areas of the ice and rightfully so.