2022 Draft Check-In: Late-round picks are picking up steam for Panthers

The Florida Panthers 2022 draft class kicked it up a notch during the 2023-24 season.

In both league play and internationally, the team’s seven draftees rose to the top.

"We have a little bit of everything as we move forward," Panthers General Manager Bill Zito said shortly after the 2022 draft had wrapped. "The guys are pretty fired up. We didn't have the high picks, but we managed to get guys that were all very high on our list."

With the Panthers set to be on the clock once again at the 2024 NHL Draft on June 28-29 at Sphere in Las Vegas, here’s a quick look back at how the team’s 2022 class performed this past season.

Marek Alscher (3rd round, 93rd overall)

Position: D

2023-24 Team: Portland Winterhawks (WHL)

It was another big year for Marek Alscher, both home and abroad.

The 6-foot-3 defenseman recorded career-highs in points (26), assists (19 and plus/minus rating (+32) in 57 regular-season games for the Portland Winterhawks.

Alscher also reached new career-highs in the playoffs in points (5), goals (2) and assists (3) on the way to helping the Winterhawks make it the third round in the WHL.

In March, the 20-year-old native of Czechia became the all-time leader in goals for the Winterhawks among import defensemen after netting his 22nd career goal.

Taking home some hardware on the international stage, Alscher earned a bronze medal after Czechia took down Finland in a dramatic 8-5 win at the 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship.

On March 13, 2023, the Panthers inked Alscher to a three-year, entry-level contract.

Ludvig Jansson (4th round, 125th overall)

Position: D

2023-24 Team: Luleå HF (SHL)

Ludvig Jansson got his first taste of the Swedish Hockey League this season.

In 50 games, the 20-year-old had three assists and appeared in seven playoff games.

Still just 20 years old, the mobile defenseman will look to take another step forward and make an even greater impact in his second year with Luleå HF in 2024-25.

Sandis Vilmanis (5th round, 157th overall)

Position: F

2023-24 Team: Sarnia Sting / North Bay Battalion (OHL)

No matter what jersey he had on, Sandis Vilmanis lit it up.

Starting the season with Sarnia, the Latvian forward was traded halfway through the season to North Bay, where he still finished in the top four in goals.

Between the two teams, Vilmanis registered 67 points (38 goals, 27 assists) in 60 games. All of those numbers were career-high marks.

In the OHL playoffs, the goal-scoring forward collected 27 points (10 goals, 17 assists) in 16 games.

For Latvia at World Juniors, the fifth-round pick was named one of Latvia’s top-three players after putting up four points (two goals, two assists) in five games.

On March 2, 2024, Vilmanis inked a three-year, entry-level contract with the Panthers.

Josh Davies (6th round, 186th overall)

Position: F

2023-24 Team: Portland Winterhawks

Josh Davies found another level and then some.

Not going unnoticed, his efforts were awarded mid-season with a three-year, entry-level contract with the Panthers.

“Josh is a physical, energetic and talented player who competes with heart and tenacity,” Zito said. “We are excited to have him continue to develop his game within our system.”

In the past two seasons, Davies has recorded 36 goals and 70 points in 117 games.

This season, the Winterhawks forward found the back of the net 36 times, good for second best on the team, and totaled 61 points in 55 games.

The 20-year-old carried his play into the WHL playoffs, recording 11 points (five goals, six assists) in 13 games.

Tyler Muszelik (6th round, 189th overall)

Position: G

2023-24 Team: University of New Hampshire

Tyler Muszelik stepped up when he got the call at the University of New Hampshire.

Getting eight starts, the New Jersey native went 5-3-0, including backstopping the Wildcats to a 1-0 shutout against Rensselaer on Dec. 9.

Muszelik also recorded a season-high 35 saves against Quinnipiac in a 5-4 win on Oct. 21.

The netminder will play at the University of Connecticut next season.

Liam Arnsby (7th round, 214th overall)

Position: F

2023-24 Team: North Bay Battalion (C)

In his third full season with North Bay, Liam Arnsby saw another year of improvement.

Coming off a 30-point season (12 goals, 18 assists) in 2022-23, the two-way center saw career highs in points (34) and assists (23) this past season.

Not afraid to bring the physicality, the Battalion captain led the team in penalty minutes for the third straight year, amassing 93 minutes in the box.

Arnsby also saw a jump in the dot, winning 627 faceoffs, up from his previous career high of 457.

Jack Devine (7th round, 221st overall)

Position: F

2023-24 Team: University of Denver

Jack Devine couldn’t have asked for a better season.

On the path to winning his second National Championship with the University of Denver, Devine led the team and ranked fourth in the nation with a career-high 27 goals.

Bringing more than just goal scoring, the Glencoe, Illinois native sauced out 29 assists to total a team-high 56 points in 43 games.

“I’ve been able to grow my game to showcase my scoring ability this year and I know I also possess the power to be a playmaker,” Devine told FloridaPanthers.com earlier this year. “It’s exciting for me to be able to show that I am not one-dimensional and can do both things.”

The 20-year-old forward had 18 multi-point games, including five straight to start the season.

Devine will return to Denver for his senior year.