Florida Panthers: Why Vincent Trocheck Should Be the Next Captain

Every successful NHL franchise has someone who can lead by example, a role model that can show every player what it means to put on the jersey every night.

Perfect examples would be Jonathan Toews of the Chicago Blackhawks and Anze Kopitar of the Los Angeles Kings, two star centers who’ve led their respective clubs to multiple Stanley Cups this decade.

The issue with this for the Florida Panthers is that their captain is Derek MacKenzie: a loyal servant to the franchise, but definitely isn’t the crown jewel of the Cats. Derek MacKenzie has had the honor of captain for the last two seasons, taking over from defenseman Willie Mitchell.  MacKenzie has played on the fourth line for the last two seasons, recording 30 points in 157 games with 81 penalty minutes by his name. Not exactly the motivation for the top team the Panthers will stride to be.

Every other major South Florida sports team embraced a new identity this offseason. The Miami Heat have always embraced their culture of their workouts and conditioning of their players and are well-known in the NBA for that. The Miami Dolphins moved away from star talent such as Jay Ajayi and Jarvis Landry to show the team and the NFL how they were addressing attitudes, and the Miami Marlins began to embrace a new young core. So now it’s the Panthers’ turn, and changing captaincies from MacKenzie to Vincent Trocheck might be a perfect idea of leading by example.

Panthers general manager Dale Tallon was very proud of MacKenzie’s actions during the Panthers’ 2015-16 season, in which he played some of his best hockey. That season, MacKenzie helped a team who was expected to achieve very little as the team’s backbone, so the appointment of captaincy made perfect sense. Tallon went on record speaking his praises of the veteran center in October of 2016:

"“Derek offers the type of character and work ethic we want a Florida Panther to possess… [MacKenzie] is a respected leader both on and off the ice in this organization and within the South Florida community. We are very excited to move forward with Derek as our team’s captain.”"

Since then however, things have gone downhill for MacKenzie and co. and the Cats finished with just 81 points the next season as MacKenzie faltered on and off. This past season the Panthers showed that they can and will win for years to come, and that came with speed and youth, not grit and veterans. Logically, this feels like the perfect time for the Panthers to shift away from old pieces like MacKenzie and Micheal Haley to move forward as a franchise.

Vincent Trocheck has a lot of good qualities for a captain for the Panthers’ franchise. Trocheck has been with the franchise since his NHL career began, so he’s known what it means to represent the Florida Panthers. He’s very passionate for both the club and his fellow teammates, and is usually one of the most vocal players on the ice, as head coach Bob Boughner has often called Trocheck one of the most important players to the team.

Trocheck isn’t afraid of any opposition, and standing up to any ego or personality has never been a problem. In February 2017, Trocheck wasn’t having it with the antics of Nashville Predators‘ star defenseman P.K. Subban, and dropped the gloves. Trocheck at the time was 2 inches and 34 pounds lighter than the former Montreal Canadiens defenseman. At the point in the game, the Panthers were leading by 3 goals, with Subban losing his cool and going after the forward. Trocheck put Subban in his place, sticking up for himself and everybody else on the Panthers.

That courage was the kind of capabilities a captain should show: leadership and action. Trocheck wasn’t at all concerned with the scoreline or the period, but was still able to drop the gloves with one of the NHL’s elite talents. It’s not often that captains get into full-on fights, and Trocheck’s brawl with Subban was a total rare occurrence, which happened to be the only fight of his NHL career.

Another quality needed in a captain is leadership through a strong voice. This is where Vincent Trocheck gets a slight edge over fellow center Aleksander Barkov, as Barkov is a lot more cool and collected, while Trocheck constantly voices his advice to his teammates (in the video, Jamie McGinn).

He’ll always try to make adjustments to the team and the way his line will play against the opposition on every shift. This is something that all captains from Alex Ovechkin to Sidney Crosby to Zdeno Chara excel in; they are the motivators of their team, their passions unrivaled.

As mentioned in the last article from The Rat Trick on Trocheck, Bob Boughner is fully confident of his abilities to control a game and lead a team. Here is what he had to say about Vinnie Trocheck after a ‘Trocheck-inspired comeback’ over the Arizona Coyotes:

"“We needed somebody to step up, and for Trocheck to get his thirtieth out there is a statement… The first goal was a big goal and it got us going. That’s what he’s been all year, I call him the engine of our team, when he’s going, we’re going.”"

Vinnie also had his best season in the NHL during the 2017-18 campaign, recording career-highs in goals, points, game-winning goals, short-handed goals, power play goals, and more. Trocheck is a three-headed monster, meaning that he’s a constant force on 5-on-5, as well as on both man up and man down on special teams. He, like Toews in Chicago, will grow into one of the most reliable and used players for the Florida Panthers for years to come.

Next: Evgeni Dadonov’s 2017-18 Season Recap

Trocheck knows the meaning of the Florida Panthers franchise, is ready to win as much as possible, and isn’t afraid to stick up for his teammates. Combining all of these great characteristics would turn Trocheck into a perfect captain for almost any NHL team.