One of the reasons the Florida Panthers have become such a formidable hockey club is the amount of players with high-end scoring talent on the roster.
Last season, Florida had four players who were point-per-game guys.
They were Sam Reinhart, Sasha Barkov, Matthew Tkachuk and Carter Verhaeghe, who we’re including with the PPG fellas because he had 72 points in 76 games which is close enough.
Reinhart led all Panthers in goals and points last season, racking up 57 tallies and 94 points.
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The year before it was Tkachuk leading the way with 109 points, though Verhaeghe’s 42 goals were most on the team.
At the end of the day, each one of the aforementioned four players are capable of putting up some big numbers, and they’re also all in what should be the prime years of their respective careers.
Which means they are all realistic candidates to lead the Panthers in scoring this season.
But what would the betting odds be?
THN Florida took a shot at handicapping the Panthers scoring race. Here is what we came up with.
Matthew Tkachuk -150
The favorite to lead the team in scoring is Tkachuk. He’s one season removed a 40-goal, 109-point campaign and still managed to put up 26 and 88 last year despite starting the season far from 100%. Now completely healthy and feeling the hunger to repeat as Stanley Cup Champions, the 26-year-old is poised to have another big season.
Sasha Barkov +130
Even money for the steady captain. Sasha Barkov is fully capable of putting up some massive numbers, but he’s played 67, 68 and 73 games the past three seasons. He’ll likely need to stay healthy to have a legitimate shot at leading the team in points.
Sam Reinhart -110
Similarly to Barkov, Reinhart has proven that he can put up some big numbers, evidenced by his 57 goals last season. If Reino picks up where he left off and has another 40 or 50-goal season up his sleeve, he could easily come out on top of the race.
Carter Verhaeghe +200
He’s scored 76 goals over the past two seasons, accumulating 145 points. Verhaeghe has all the skill – an elusive shot, elite playmaking skills and a high hockey IQ – and he also receives time on the Florida’s top power play.
Mackie Samoskevich +1100
We’re throwing the rookie in as a longshot because if the stars align just right, as JP said in Angels in the Outfield, “It could happen.”
It’s not crazy to think that if Samoskevich makes the Opening Night roster, he will get a look on Florida’s top line with Barkov and either Reinhart or Verhaeghe at some point.
If the kid takes off with the top line talent and ice time, who knows what kind of numbers he could put up.
Also, if Samoskevich is having that impressive of a rookie year, it makes sense to think he’d receive some power play minutes as well.
Let us know in the comments which player or players you’d be betting on.
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