CORAL SPRINGS, Fla. -It wasn't long after the Florida Panthers acquired Matthew Tkachuk from the Calgary Flames that Aleksander Barkov's phone lit up with a fiery text from his new teammate.
"The first message was '(expletive) right' and how he was excited to come to Florida," the Panthers captain recalled during the team's Media Day on Wednesday at the Panthers IceDen. "'Let's take this next step, let's be a winning team for many years to come.' That's who he is. He wants to win. He wants to bring that character to this organization, and I think he's done some damage already."
Taking that next step is exactly why the Panthers sought out Tkachuk's services.
Bolstered by new additions, Panthers look to take another step in 2022-23
Although they had to part ways with a pair of franchise mainstays -- Jonathan Huberdeau and MacKenzie Weegar -- in order to acquire the 24-year-old forward, the Panthers knew they couldn't rest on their laurels after having the shine of the franchise's first-ever Presidents' Trophy dulled by a second-round sweep in the playoffs at the hands of the cross-state rival Tampa Bay Lightning.
Likewise, it's the organization's hunger that drew Tkachuk to South Florida.
"I'm here for the on-ice stuff," said Tkachuk, who tallied career-highs in goals (42), assists (62) and points (104) during his final season with the Flames. "I'm here to produce and help provide wins. That's the most exciting part for me. We've basically had everyone here for a few weeks. I feel like I've been in training camp for a couple weeks. … Let's get the games going. I'm sick and tired of just practicing and working out. I want to start playing games. I think everyone feels the same way."
That's likely true.
From newcomers looking to make their mark to returning players itching to avenge last season's abrupt end in the playoffs, it's clear that there will be no shortage of high-stakes hunger on the ice when the Panthers finally say goodbye to summer and open up their training camp on Thursday.
In addition to Tkachuk, it'll be the first time that other key offseason acquisitions such as Rudolfs Balcers, Colin White and Marc Staal step onto the ice with the Panthers an official capacity.
"I don't think our group needed much more motivation going into the offseason," said forward Sam Reinhart, who's coming off a stellar 82-point campaign. "Obviously it kind of leaves a sour taste in your mouth going into it the way we did, and that's healthy. That's a learning experience.
"A lot of teams go through experiences like that, so it's how you react, how you work to get better and put yourself in that spot again, and to work towards a different outcome. We know it's going to be another long year to get to that point. It's the start of camp. This is the first step in that process."
With 1,684 games behind the bench -- the fourth-most in NHL history -- new Panthers head coach Paul Maurice has spent the months since his hiring in June mulling over that process. Making clear his intentions, Maurice said the plan for the upcoming season isn't to stifle the offense that scored a league-leading 4.11 goals per game last season, but rather support it by improving in other areas.
That's where Tkachuk's unique skillset comes in.
"The players are the clear definers of how we play," Maurice said. "Whatever they're great at, that's the stye you have to play. What Matthew does is change options that we have in the style of play. We would like to think that we're going to get to the point where we're much stronger in corners and within the three feet of the wall, which is where 85% of this game is played.
"We can grind offense as well, but not become an offensive-grinding team. How this team gets through the neutral zone is almost unique. With the execution they have, they don't lose any speed off the rush. They put pucks into holes. They don't necessarily slow down and make tape-to-tape passes], they just keep pressing speed which causes a tremendous amount of chaos."
Whatever the finished product ends up looking like under Maurice, one thing is clear -- the Panthers are aiming to be playing a new playoff-style of hockey long before the postseason hunt even begins.
"We want to make sure that we build a game here that suits our talent," Maurice said. "We're not going to change styles. We're going to build a game here that we can play past April and that we can have success with. … We want to start the process of building a game that we can carry straight through from the regular season into the playoffs."
*The Florida Panthers will celebrate their 2022-23 Home Opener at FLA Live Arena against the Philadelphia Flyers on October 19, 2022. The first 10,000 fans through the doors will receive a commemorative magnet schedule courtesy of Bally Sports Florida. Click [HERE to purchase your tickets today!*
