With development camp in the books, fans turn their sights towards what this Florida Panthers roster might realistically look like come opening night and beyond.
Per
George Richards, it could be something like the below:
Verhaeghe - Barkov - Rodrigues
Luostarinen - Bennett - Tkachuk
Cousins - Lundell - Reinhart
Lomberg - Stenlund - Lorentz
Forsling- OEL
Kulikov - Reilly
Mahura - Mikkola
Extras: Lucas Carlsson
In the Mix: Matt Kiersted, Uvis Balinskis
With big pieces like Ekblad and Montour being ruled out for the beginning portion of the season due to injury, Zito hit the defensemen bargain bin hard on July 1st when free agency opened.
One name in particular stood out amongst the rest:
Oliver Ekman-Larsson
Admittedly, I have vague memories/knowledge of OEL. All I remember is he was a very good player on a bad team (Coyotes) who, like the organization itself, began having rumors of being moved circulate around him frequently.
After he signed an 8-year, $66M extension with Arizona and being named Captain, I assumed he would probably ride into the sunset as a Coyote. However, those trade rumors persisted, because at the the time he was the best piece Arizona had in terms of getting some kind of haul back for one of their (many) rebuild attempts.
After years of "will he, or will he not" be moved, OEL waived his no-movement clause in 2021 and was traded (with Conor Garland) to the Vancouver Canucks for Jay Beagle, Loui Eriksson, Antoine Roussel, a 2021 first-round pick, 2024 second-round pick and a 2023 seventh-round pick. Arizona retained 12% of his contract.
If I remember correctly, it seemed like an odd move at the time for Vancouver. I don't remember them being an OEL piece away, or really that competitive. They finished 10th in the Western Conference with a 40-30-12 record for the 2021-22 season and were/still are in some serious cap chaos.
A big fish in a little pond when he was in Arizona, OEL essentially disappeared after getting to Vancouver. But there is a reason for that (keep reading). In June of this year, the Canucks bought out the last four years of his contract, making him a free agent.
Here are his numbers since the big 2018 contract he signed with Arizona:
2018-19 (AZ)
GP: 81
G: 14
A: 30
P: 44
+/-: -16
2019-20 (AZ)
GP: 66
G: 9
A: 21
P 30
+/-: -3
2020-21(AZ)
GP: 46
G:3
A: 21
P: 24
+/-: -17
2021-22 (VAN)
GP: 79
G: 5
A: 24
P: 29
+/-: 5
2022-23 (VAN)
GP: 54
G: 2
A: 20
P: 22
+/-: -24
A bit of research reveals that in May of 2022, OEL suffered a broken foot. He took time that summer to recover rather than train. The long recovery and time away from training hurt his overall game. What's more, his speed and skating ability - what he's known for - suffered the most.
To compound matters even more, he sprained his ankle in February, an injury that ended his 2022-23 campaign.
It seems that a lot of teams are looking at OEL similarly to an injured race horse. Most probably think he's done. I'm sure there were conversations with other teams, but, ultimately, he signed a 1-year, $2.25 M deal with Florida -- a far cry away from the kind of deal he once garnered.
But let's remember that this was the summer of one-year deals across the league. Many teams held off on bigger deals due to the cap increasing next year.
This is where Bill Zito likes to live. Seeking out guys trying to bounce back from injury, ones that other teams overlook, think are done, whatever it may be…
While he may never get back to those Coyote-type numbers and play, this one-year "prove it" deal is a low-risk-potential-high-reward for the Panthers.
I have read he has an incredible work ethic. This is good when battling injuries and Father Time. My thought is that he doesn't need to be the lightning fast guy he once was. He may have to adjust his game to be smarter and more defensive-minded as he ages and navigates injuries. If he can do this, I think he'll find success as a pairing with Forsling.
In some ways, OEL reminds me of a Greek tragedy of sorts. A guy who was once on top of the sport in his respective position, harnessing a God-given talent of speed, cut down by injuries to his feet/ankle. But like a lot of those ancient tales, hopefully this hero can battle back and overcome his obstacles.
The Panthers need all the help they can get on the blueline and I think scooping up OEL was a great move. I feel he will be a big boost on the PP. I believe he is a legit QB back there on the man advantage and will help (finally!) get this broken PP system working…
I'm excited to see what he can do in Florida.
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