Roblogg’s Panthers Portal

The Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet is reporting that the Florida Panthers are giving up on signing star winger Alex Tanguay. The paper claims that Canadian press now believe it’s a race between the Phoenix Coyotes and Tampa Bay Lightning to sign the experienced forward.

I have been unable to either confirm or reject these latest rumors that the Cats have given up on Tanguay. The interest of Tampa Bay Lightning and Phoenix Coyotes however has been widely reported. The deal between those two teams, which brought Radim Vrbata to Phoenix for Fedoruk and Hale, does give our western neighbors the necessary cap space to pursue a player of Tanguay’s caliber.

It would no doubt be a real blow to Panthers fans if these rumors came true – and Alex Tanguay were to join Tampa Bay instead of us. Take this latest information for what it is though, speculation, but as soon as anything more substantial comes along I’ll let you know…

On a sidenote, the same paper – this time using Russian sources, claims that winger Ilya Kovalchuk of the Atlanta Thrashers; is going to sign a new multi-year contract. The deal, if these sources are correct, will give him the maximum amount possible (20% of the teams total wages against the cap) and make him the best paid player in the NHL, earning an estimated $11.36 million a year!

Not bad for a player plying his trade on one of the worst teams in the league…

Despite rumors to the opposite effect, circulating the Internet yesterday, star winger Alex Tanguay has not signed with the Panthers. It doesn’t mean he won’t, but like I reported here a few days ago; Alex will likely take his time to review several offers from a plethora of interested teams and then make an informed decision.

After declining numbers in recent years, mainly due to injury woes, he will need to jump start his career with his next team. That makes his decision an important one, not just for his future career, but also, it could mean he’d be willing to spurn some dollar signs in return for a perfect fit.

Whether or not the Florida Panthers could provide that remains uncertain. Certainly they are one of the interested parties, and inter-rim GM Randy Sexton also states that the club indeed have money to spend on a good player/addition to the squad (such as Tanguay, we would presume): “We’ve got dollars,” Sexton said on the Panthers website. “We don’t have unlimited dollars. I don’t think anyone does these days…There’s dollars available if we need them.”

He further goes on to say: “We’re having ongoing discussions with agents and players. We’re being selective to find the right fit to fill the right need at the right price. We the like the chemistry of our team and have to be sensitive to that. I think there’s going to be a fairly good-sized pool of people still around. We also want to provide a spot for some of our younger players.”

One can gather from this statement that the Cats indeed aren’t finished in the marketplace, and there are several good signings to be made (check out this list from the NHL website to see which ones are yet to find a new home), but it is likely the Panthers may only make one/two at most/ additions to the projected roster. The other signings are likely to be aimed at the Rochester Americans; who need an overhaul after last season’s dreadful performance in the AHL.

Meanwhile, one Eastern Conference team that was active today was the New Jersey Devils. They snapped up former Panther Cory Murphy on a 2-year, two-way contract. The details have not been released, but his salary will obviously depend on whether he can make the Devils team or if he’ll spend the season in the AHL. Murphy is a skillful and quick, yet small blueliner that can contribute on the power-play. He was picked up by the Tampa Bay Lightning on re-entry waivers last season, as the Panthers had plenty of depth in defense and didn’t need his services.

I always felt it was a bad deal for the Cats to lose him to the Bolts on re-entry waivers (hence being stuck with half his wages) and a slap in the face for the Amerks – who could have needed his experience on that level. However, it was a chance for Murph to re-ignite his career in the NHL. And now the Devils, who are well known to pick up fringe players and then mold them in to stars, have reached out toward him and wish him the best in Jersey.

Hopefully the Panthers won’t be left to rue this move in the future. We’ll see I guess….

The Florida Panthers today announced the signing of another depth centerman. 27-year old Jamie Johnson was signed to a one year deal. He comes previously from a stint in Finland with TPS Turku of the Finnish Elite League. Last year he played 42 games for the team and notched up 8 goals and 20 assists. Prior to his Finnish adventure, Jamie played in the AHL with the Albany River Rats, pacing the team with 59 points in 79 games played.

While this is a move to provide depth at center, it is likely that the 27-year old will see action in Rochester rather than in Sunrise. Sounds like a solid move for the AHL affiliate, but Panthers fans were not waiting for this piece of news. Rather, the news everyone wants to know/dreads to hear, is if the club have been successful in luring veteran winger Alex Tanguay to South Florida or not.

Meanwhile, the 2009/10 NHL schedule has been released. As was known for a while the first two games will be played in Helsinki, Finland, against the Chicago Blackhawks on October 2-3. The regular season then begins on October the 9th with a visit to Southeastern Division rivals Carolina in Raleigh. The following night the Cats will entertain the New Jersey Devils at the Bank Atlantic Center; which should be an interesting game!

The season will be concluded on April the 9th with Tampa Bay Lightning coming for a visit. That is, unless the Panthers manage to brake both the odds and habit – by qualifying for the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Florida fans will be able to get a look at more teams from the Western Conference this year, seeing as they will now play each team in the league at least once. Colorado and Nashville will be the "select" two teams that the Cats will both meet twice from the west.

“This year’s schedule sets up fairly well for our team,” Panthers Assistant General Manager Randy Sexton said when commenting upon the news. “After returning from Europe, we have the opportunity to get some rest as we play just four games over a 16-day period in October.  Additionally, we play five of our final eight games at the BankAtlantic Center, which could prove to be crucial in terms of playoff positioning,” Sexton also said.

However, playing teams in the playoff race at home during that last stretch may not be too much of an advantage. After all, the Panthers had a similar schedule this previous season and still managed to fumble and stumble over the finishing line – beaten barely by the woeful Habs.

For upbeat comments from Michael Yormak and a pitch of what the Panthers are offering pricewise, visit the Panthers official website, here you can also find the complete schedule.

The Florida Panthers are one of 5-6 teams involved in talks with F Alex Tanguay‘s agent according to several sources. It has become apparent that the Cats have an interest in the former Montreal winger and his potential signing could go some way in appeasing fans that so far have been discouraged by the lack of substantial action from the franchise on the free agent market.

It is no secret that the Panthers need offensive reinforcements and Tanguay could become a great addition to the team and take some weight off the shoulders of young wingers such as Horton, Frolik, Olesz and Booth to produce the offensive goods. Alex is an experienced NHL player that has produced very high numbers in the past, and if injury free, there is no reason to believe he couldn’t do it again.

Last season Tanguay played 50 games for the Habs, scoring 16 goals and assisting on 25 other. His cap hit for last season was $5.25 million, but it is expected that he will be forced to take a substantial pay cut this coming season. However, considering he is one of the best names still left on the market and has plenty of suitors – he should still be in a position to get a good deal.

In addition to the Florida Panthers, it is rumored that the Phoenix Coyotes, Ottawa Senators, Dallas Stars, Edmonton Oilers and New York Islanders are all interested and have contacted Tanguay’s agent, Bob Sauve.

It is expected however, that Alex will take his time before making up his mind, so don’t expect any immediate movement on this front. It also remains uncertain how much muscle the Florida Panthers really have to flex cash-wise, considering the questions of its ownership and possible take-over.

Two players that played for the Cats last season: RW Anthony Stewart and D Noah Welch have moved out of Florida state line and joined the Atlanta Thrashers. Neither player was able to make an impression during the previous campaign, but will hope to get a fresh start in Atlanta instead.

Both players have potential, but question is if they can yet transform that into proven skill and do what it takes on a consistent basis as well. Either way, we wish them the best and hope they can get their careers onto the NHL track. Both are terrific personalities that will be missed in Florida.