After a smoldering start and showing all the hype surrounding him was legitimate, Jonathan Huberdeau has been very quiet over the last few weeks. The line of Huberdeau-Mueller-Shore has been kept in check by the opposition for the most part since March 10th, and needless to say the punchless Panthers have suffered over that time.
The 6'1", 177 lb., 19-year-old Huberdeau still has lots of growing to do, and with a condensed, asterisk season as his first, it's not the easiest environment for a rookie to get his feet wet. However, he is still in the Calder discussion and if he gets a second wind he could easily lock up the only award for which any Panther is being considered.
Watching the Panther games, it isn't hard to see that the opposition has figured out that if you shut down Huberdeau and his line, the likes of the Mike Santorellis of the world beating you are slim. Needless to say, the opposition was correct to this point on their game plans. Here are Huberdeau's stats over the last two weeks.
Maybe he is tired, or a bit beat up after consistently playing with the big boys for over two months. After being one of the very few players that was hanging around an even rating for the year, his -7 over the last two weeks says a lot. But whatever the reason this is the perfect situation for him to learn where he needs to improve in preparation for next season. But let's face it. Putting on weight is #1.
Regardless of the current slump, Huberdeau has proven that he not only is the real deal, but is absolutely a cornerstone of this franchise moving forward. With all the youth in the pipeline waiting to explode on the scene in South Florida, the speed bump that is this season will be a distant memory in a year's time.
But what do you think? Knowing how good Huberdeau is and can be, is he squeezing the stick a bit too tight right now?
Thanks for reading, and as always I look forward to your comments.
Dan Spiegel...
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