If you were looking for entertainment value, that was about the best opening night you could have asked for last night! Let's go through some of the highlights:
- Aaron Ekblad's two goals to tie the game in the third: I'm predicting somewhere in the neighborhood of 20 goals for Ekblad, who led NHL defensemen with 11 at the time of his injury last season. He's well on his way to a 20-goal campaign after two in the opener, and any questions about how he'd bounce back from the injury have been answered after one regular season game.
- Carter Verhaeghe's two goals, including the overtime winner: I'm predicting a 30-goal season for Verhaeghe, and he's also off to a good start. I also had to mention this to toot my own horn as well; I called that he'd score the first goal of the season for the Panthers. Katie Gaus and Jameson Olive can confirm this.
- Anton Lundell's NHL debut: he didn't register a point, but he logged 5:26 of shorthanded time on ice. That's more than any other forward in a game that featured a combined 15 power plays and over a full period of special teams play. That says the coaching staff trusts him in key situations, and that he possesses a hockey IQ beyond his years; something we've heard since he was drafted. There are so many other items we could reference.
It was a great team win that included a little bit of everything. Without further delay, let's get to your questions!
Doug Plagens' Panthers Mailbag: Recapping 2021-22 Opening Night
@GMoneyDC1: #DearDoug is Owen Tippett solidly in the opening night starting lineup and do you see him holding his spot on the 2nd line this season ??
Thanks for the question, Greg! Well for starters- and I know your question was submitted before opening night- Owen Tippett was indeed in the lineup for game one, and I think he'll be a staple in the lineup all season. To answer the second part of your question, lines can always be tinkered with, but Tippett came on so strongly late last season and in the playoffs on the line with Sam Bennett and Jonathan Huberdeau, that it was natural to give him a shot in that spot again in the preseason.
In the preseason, he registered six points in five games played, and drew praise for his performance from both General Manager Bill Zito and Head Coach Joel Quenneville. Coach Q said the following during the early stages of camp:
"A big step for him last year. He played against some big teams in big games. Now, he looks like he wants to be a big part of that [2nd] line. The three of them can all do good things. He's got a terrific shot, but he's also got some playmaking ability."
In addition, Zito told Jameson Olive and me on Territory Talk that "Owen Tippett has just looked outstanding in training camp." The biggest thing I've noticed since the late stages of last year is his comfort at the NHL level; he has become a very confident player.
Tippett has had an NHL shot and an NHL build since the day he was drafted, and I'm predicting a 20-25 goal season from him.
@SamuelScouting: Defensive pairings. Defensive pairings are on Samuel's mind!
Here's what the pairings looked like at the start of last night's season opener vs. Pittsburgh:
Mackenzie Weegar - Aaron Ekblad
Gustav Forsling - Radko Gudas
Matt Kiersted - Brandon Montour
Kiersted was recalled from Charlotte of the American Hockey League prior to the game, along with fellow defenseman Chase Priskie. In practice on Wednesday- the final tune-up before opening night- Markus Nutivaara had been skating alongside Montour, but he missed the season opener with an injury.
Prior to Ekblad's injury last season, Weegar-Ekblad blossomed into one of the league's best defensive pairs. The two complement each other perfectly: both are great at each end of the ice, both can play well upwards of 20 minutes nightly against the opponents' best players, and they both have said they're friends off the ice and push each other in practice.
Forsling and Gudas, as well as Nutivaara and Montour, and Kiersted for that matter, all have experience playing together. Montour and Nutivaara played together almost exclusively after Montour was acquired from Buffalo last season. In the lead-up to the season, I asked a couple of the defensemen about the familiarity they have as a group; the six opening night defensemen were all on the team last year, and come with a great deal of familiarity. Ekblad and Forsling both said this is a great advantage for the defense corps entering '21-22.
Most teams are lucky to return a solid group of six defensemen from the previous season. Off the top of my head, the only Panthers defenseman in the top-10 on the depth chart that wasn't with the team last season is newly acquired Olli Juolevi. This familiarity will give the coaching staff a great deal of flexibility when it comes to forming pairings as this season goes along.
@fakejedega: What is the proper portion of peanut butter to jelly on a sandwich?
I've been known to consume several peanut butter and jelly sandwiches daily. Historically, I'm a huge fan of peanut butter and bread. I was known throughout college and grad school for often having a loaf of bread and jar of peanut butter in my backpack, because I am very much afraid of going hungry.
I think the perfect combination on a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, first of all, is a low-end, very soft bread. Usually the stuff that costs like $1.00-$1.50 per loaf and lasts forever will suffice. My preferred peanut butter is Skippy Natural or Jif Natural; I like the natural peanut butters that do not require stirring. Skippy Natural was my preferred peanut butter for about 15 years, but Jif came out with the squeeze container for their natural peanut butter, and this was a game changer.
My jelly consumption followed a similar pattern. For years, I considered Smuckers Simply Fruit Strawberry as the gold standard for jelly, but Smuckers and Welch's both have a "natural" product in a squeeze container, which is much more user friendly. I'm also not a fan of the "bulk" containers, because when I get to the bottom of the jar, I tend to get peanut butter and/or jelly all over my wrist and hand, and that's not ideal.
When piecing together the sandwich, I like an even distribution of peanut butter to jelly; perhaps even a tad bit more peanut butter. I have a food scale, and usually I have approximately 23 grams of peanut butter on my sandwich and 18-20 grams of jelly. I've gotten pretty good at eyeballing the amount!
Peanut butter and jelly, though… you can't go wrong. On bread, a bagel, English muffin, a waffle, or out of the jar… it's a winning combination!
@ColbyDGuy: #DearDoug, if you put marshmallows in coffee, is it cereal, soup, or both?
Neither! It's an enhanced beverage. We've all added lemon to water, sugar to iced tea, etc. Marshmallows added to coffee- and marshmallows added to hot chocolate as well- is not cereal, nor is it soup.
It's an enhanced beverage.
Thanks everyone for the questions. 'Til next time.
