Panthers emphasize offense with 4 of 6 picks
The Florida Panthers were all over the map in the NHL draft, but they stuck to a straightforward course toward improving their offensive potential in selecting forwards with their first four picks.
They tapped into Russia for razzle-dazzle left wing Grigori Denisenko in the first round, Canada for powerful right wing Serron Noel, son of a former CFL running back, in the second, the United States for Tampaborn center Logan Hutsko in the third and Germany for left wing Justin Schutz in the sixth.
“We don’t care where they come from as long as they can play,” Panthers general manager Dale Tallon said during the draft in Dallas. “We’re so strong up the middle that we’re adding scoring on the wings now and we’re going to have depth through every line.”
It wasn’t until the seventh round that the Panthers selected a pair of defensemen, Michigan State commit Cole Krygier at No. 201 and Santtu Kinnunen, a rangy Finn, at No. 207.
“It’s been an exciting two days for our organization,” Tallon said. “We’ve added great skill, speed, size and character to our system. We are thrilled to have these young men join the rest of our prospects in South Florida [Tuesday through Friday] for development camp and look forward to their continued development with the Panthers.”
Selecting the three Europeans continues a trend in reaching across the pond, which has paid off for the Panthers in recent years.
In his draft-night interview, Denisenko noted that he was well aware of players with Russian heritage already on the Panthers — Aleksander Barkov, Evgenii Dadonov, Denis Malgin and Maxim Mamin. Defenseman Bogdan Kiselevich was recently signed out of the KHL.
“When you look at my past, I wasn’t a big European draft guy earlier in my career, but now things have changed. And the game has changed,” Tallon said. “It’s an open market, a global game and you’ve got to change your ways a bit.
“The best interviews in the [NHL] combine this year and the last couple years have been a lot of the Russian guys. They’ve got a lot of spunk, personality and they’re not afraid to express themselves — where before they were a little more reluctant.”
After grabbing the slick and shifty Denisenko with the No. 15 pick Friday, the Panthers went for big and powerful in the second round with Noel, who is 6 feet 5, 204 pounds and still two months from turning 18.
Noel, ranked as the 10th-best North American skater in the draft by NHL Central Scouting, attributed the work he did last summer at improving his skating ability for a breakout season with Oshawa of the Ontario Hockey League. The Nepean, Ont., native tallied 53 points, including 28 goals, in 62 games.
He will encounter a familiar face at the upcoming development camp in former Oshawa teammate Riley Stillman, a defenseman who the Panthers drafted in the fourth round in 2016 and signed to a three-year entrylevel contract earlier this year.
Noel said his father, Dean Noel, didn’t attempt to steer him toward football, but “His lectures and speeches were never really about the hockey aspect, but more about the effort and how you hold yourself and being a professional.”
With his African-American heritage, Noel said he embraces the chance to connect with the diverse community in South Florida as “a role model, an ambassador, someone who can reach out to the young children and kind of inspire. Hockey is becoming more diverse and I want to become someone that can be a role model in the game.”
The most notable story out of the Panthers draft is Hutsko, who they selected at No. 89 after trading their 2019 third-round pick to Nashville.
Hutsko, who grew up in the Tampa area, broke his neck while playing for the U.S. National Under-18 team and was told by doctors that he might not play hockey again. He proved that prophesy wrong, then promptly suffered another debilitating injury when he fractured a kneecap.
After two lost years to those injuries, Hutsko led Boston College in scoring as a freshman last season.
“When I broke my neck it was really scary. I didn’t actually know if I was going to be able to play again,” Hutsko said. “It was just a lot of faith and belief in my religion. That’s kind of what turned me around. … It was my family’s constant support.”
Hutsko has a sister who attends the University of Florida and much of his family resides on Florida’s Gulf Coast. He expects to have a half-dozen relatives, including his grandparents, at the development camp.
“It’s super, super special. My whole family — aunts, uncles, cousins — all live in Florida. So when I get to development camp it’s going to be kind of funny to see how many Hutskos are over there,” he said.