Florida Panthers: Josh Brown Earns Roster Spot in Rookie Season

After a being called up from the minors, Josh Brown has proven that he deserves a spot on the Florida Panthers roster next season.

On December 30, 2018, the Florida Panthers made a transaction to send one of their lower-tier defenseman, Alexander Petrovic, to the Edmonton Oilers.

The Panthers needed to clear some room on the back end and since Petrovic’s playing time was fading away, this move made perfect sense from a Panther perspective.

Even though this seemed to be a great move by Florida, their team had lost an element to their roster.

The 2018-19 season for the Florida Panthers was not one that anyone would want to remember. Their biggest weakness was their inability to keep the puck out of their own net, as the defense seemed to be scrambling across every pair.

What they needed was someone who could move the puck quickly and throw the body to protect the star players.

In the sixth round of the 2013 NHL Entry Draft, the Cats selected a defenseman who fits into this description in the London, Ontario native: Josh Brown.

At 6’5″ and 215 pounds, Brown is a massive man who can intimidate any forward entering the defensive zone.

While he spent a lot of time with the Panthers’ affiliate squad, the Springfield Thunderbirds, he was called up to fill in Petrovic’s role on the back end, and he did a great job.

During the year, Brown was moved up and down the pairs, in order to discover some kind of defensive chemistry. It seemed that he benefited well by playing with his fellow Springfield teammate: Ian McCoshen.

As they both provided a quick, aggressive game in the defensive zone, teams started to become intimidated by these two monsters. They found a way to get into the heads of opposing forwards, helping contribute to the team’s defensive play.

Brown found his game in high-pressure situations, where he mostly got the team out of some sticky situations. Now, there were instances where he messed up and turned the puck over to the opposition.

However, as a rookie defenseman in the NHL – the hardest league in the world – you have to give the kid some credit for the positive side of things.

He’s battling some of the best hockey players in the world and his improved defensive play shut them down during the season.

He took it to them by using his big body and quick stick checks to get pucks out and keep goals off the board. As he continues to learn how to control the back end, his game will only improve.

While his defensive game is strong, there’s something else that Brown brings to the roster that no Panther, besides Micheal Haley, has brought since the days of Shawn Thornton: intimidation.

Thornton, now a part of the Panthers’ front office, was the team’s enforcer or fighter just a few years ago.

He agitated and intimidated many players throughout the league with only his fists. He would come to the rescue of threatened star teammates by beating up hockey players like a predator on prey.

Now, with Josh Brown in the mix, that intimidation factor has come back into play for the Cats. Come on, who wouldn’t be afraid of a towering man with a good amount of meat on his bones?

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At 6’5″ and 215 pounds, Josh Brown’s glove-dropping mentality helps bring protection and aggression to the Cats, helping to prove why he’s essential to the team.

Finally, what Brown also brings to the team is something that most people don’t realize. With all of the superstar defensemen the Panthers have, coaches have practiced playing them for heavy minutes. This can lead to extreme exhaustion on the Panthers’ blue line.

When you add a strong, trustful defenseman to the lineup like Brown, you can start limiting the time for your superstars, as they can eat up minutes that the stars use to rest.

When they have less playing time, the higher-tier defensemen can get to their full potential on each shift. So, what may be most important from the addition of Brown may just be the fact that he fills a roster spot.

After being called up from the minors in the earlier stages of the season, the play of Josh Brown has led us to believe that he should be playing on the Florida Panthers roster next year in some capacity.