Okposo: ‘All the pieces in place to make a run here’

Some opportunities are too good to pass up.

For 17-year NHL veteran and former Buffalo Sabres captain Kyle Okposo, coming to South Florida was a chance that couldn’t be missed.

“I know that in my heart, I would have regretted not taking a shot at it and not trying to contribute to something special,” said Okposo, who was acquired by the Florida Panthers at the trade deadline. “They have all the pieces in place to make a run here. At the end of the day, that's what I want to do.”

Playing the Panthers’ style of play throughout his career, the seventh-overall pick in the 2006 NHL Draft has logged 614 points (242 goals, 372 assists), 942 hits and 552 penalty minutes in 1,046 career games.

Hoping to make the deepest playoff run of his career, Okposo joined the Panthers after amassing 22 points (12 goals, 10 assists), 61 hits and 32 penalty minutes in 61 games with the Sabres this season.

“Off the ice is going to speak for itself,” said forward Sam Reinhart, a former teammate of Okposo’s in Buffalo. “On the ice he’s a pro. He does everything well. I think he’s going to fit into our system and he’s eager to win.”

Far from a stranger in his new locker room, Okposo ties to current Panthers go well beyond Reinhart.

“It's great,” Okposo said. “When you're around for a number of years, you're going to know a few guys, with Evan [Rodrigues] and Brandon [Montour] and Dmitry [Kulikov], too. Then obviously Sam [Reinhart], who I'm really close with. So it's nice to have some familiar faces, but you also talk to guys in the summer. Like [Sam] Bennett, I've been at a few camps with him, and just talking to different guys.”

With the allure of a Stanley Cup still driving him to be better every single day, the Minnesota native has registered 15 points (seven goals, eight assists) while appearing in 24 career postseason contests.

Last appearing in the postseason with the New York Islanders in 2016, the 35-year-old veteran assisted on the game-winning goal in double overtime to eliminate the Panthers in Game 6 of the first round.

Now, he’ll have a chance to help push the Panthers to the promised land.

“It's been too long since I played in the playoffs,” Okposo said. “I was talking to my son the other day, and we were talking about playoffs, and I just said, ‘It's the most pure form of hockey.’ I get butterflies thinking about it now. I know I haven't had a taste of it in eight years, but I can still remember the feeling of skating out on the ice for a playoff game. There's really nothing like it as an athlete.”

Debuting with his new team on Tuesday at Dallas, Okposo brought the physicality with three hits in 10:34 of ice time as the Panthers clawed back from a 3-0 deficit to stun the Stars in a wild 4-3 win.

When he was on the ice at 5-on-5, the Comeback Cats also held an 8-4 edge in shots on goal.

“He’s just a smart, cagy veteran,” Panthers head coach Paul Maurice said of Okposo after the come-from-behind win the Lone Star State. “He made a lot of good plays. I like what he says on the bench. He’s very aware of what’s going on. He could tell we weren’t going right, so he kept his game very simple.”

A natural fit in South Florida, Okposo should continue to provide an noticeable boost both on the ice and in the locker room as the Panthers start to gear up for another shot at winning hockey’s ultimate prize.