Florida Panthers set the record for most points while missing the playoffs

[Ciao]

With 96 points, the Florida Panthers have broken the previous record of 95 for most points on a team that missed the playoffs.

Prior to this season, Florida's 96 points, which were not enough to qualify them for the playoffs, would have been tied for the highest regular season point output in franchise history for the Toronto Maple Leafs.

These 96 points are 2 more than last year's Clarence Campbell Trophy winning Nashville Predators finished with.

Wrong on point one.

Wrong on point two.

Why bother posting this at all?

 

[kudymen]

Sorry Philly, you're out now.

God damn it!

 

[chizzler]

Every year something similar happens.

 

[Jeti]

Panthers deserved better.

Not anymore than any other year when some team barely misses. Their point totals are as much a reflection of how many awful teams there were this year as anything. Even just in their division, Montreal, Buffalo and Ottawa were all terrible this year. That means there's more points for the teams at the top.

Panthers weren't good enough.

 

[Brock Radunske]

Not anymore than any other year when some team barely misses. Their point totals are as much a reflection of how many awful teams there were this year as anything. Even just in their division, Montreal, Buffalo and Ottawa were all terrible this year. That means there's more points for the teams at the top.

Panthers weren't good enough.

I just meant they're better than they ended up.
Barkov is one of the best in the league and they played the Leafs hard IMO.

 

[LeafFever]

Panthers are just missing something every year and are horribly run.

 

[Nico the Draft Riser]

Panthers deserved better.

No they didnt

 

[LeafFever]

Panthers deserved better.

They fired the soon-to-be NHl coach of the year for nothing and changed their entire organization oddly enough after a breakthrough season.
It's a badly run organization.

 

[ZeroPucksGiven]

Panthers deserved better.

 

[RainingRats]

Slow starts will kill you. Nothing new. Happens every season. Florida had to be one of the best teams in the league after the ASB to even have a shot at the playoffs.

Sucks but they're trending in the right direction.

If they hadn't blundered the expansion draft I wonder where they would have finished...

 

[ColdSteel2]

They fired the soon-to-be NHl coach of the year for nothing and changed their entire organization oddly enough after a breakthrough season.
It's a badly run organization.

They were on the right track until they switched GMs, now Tallon is back but it takes time to undo the mess of the previous regime.

 

[LeafFever]

They were on the right track until they switched GMs, now Tallon is back but it takes time to undo the mess of the previous regime.

It was so stupid it's hard for me to feel sorry for them. They did it to themselves.

 

[mcpw]

They were on the right track until they switched GMs, now Tallon is back but it takes time to undo the mess of the previous regime.

And he's off to a great start.

 

[ColdSteel2]

And he's off to a great start.

Dadonov doesn’t touch that team with a 10 foot pole without Tallon so you can’t just pick and choose like that. Smith didn’t fit Tallon’s direction, so he did what he had to do to get rid of him. He obviously fits well in Vegas and you could say Tallon got bad value there because he did but he has a budget team, everyone knows it, and he wanted to free up money for Dadonov which looks like a steal of a contract now.

 

[Rebels57]

Probably shouldn't have taken half the season off.

Then they had to play out of their minds in the second half to catch up to the other playoff teams which meant those teams had to play desperate and rack up points to hold them off.

 

[Rebels57]

Dadonov doesn’t touch that team with a 10 foot pole without Tallon so you can’t just pick and choose like that. Smith didn’t fit Tallon’s direction, so he did what he had to do to get rid of him. He obviously fits well in Vegas and you could say Tallon got bad value there because he did but he has a budget team, everyone knows it, and he wanted to free up money for Dadonov which looks like a steal of a contract now.

There is no sugar-coating the Smith-Marchessault debacle. He gave Vegas one great player to take one really good player in the draft because they didnt feel like paying him. It was a terrible decision and nothing will change that.

 

[ColdSteel2]

There is no sugar-coating the Smith-Marchessault debacle. He gave Vegas one great player to take one really good player in the draft because they didnt feel like paying him. It was a terrible decision and nothing will change that.

Nothing will change that, agreed. He still got Dadonov long term at 4M per with the freed up money so if we’re going to criticize him, we should look at it as trading Smith and Marchesault for Dadonov and cap space. I agree that they could have had Dadonov + assets + cap space if Tallon played his hand better, no question.

 

[Rebels57]

Nothing will change that, agreed. He still got Dadonov long term at 4M per with the freed up money so if we’re going to criticize him, we should look at it as trading Smith and Marchesault for Dadonov and cap space. I agree that they could have had Dadonov + assets + cap space if Tallon played his hand better, no question.

The Dadonov move was very good. No denying that. They just shouldn't have let March go for free. I guess they had no faith in him that he would repeat his performance from last year, but they were wrong.

 

[RainingRats]

They were on the right track until they switched GMs, now Tallon is back but it takes time to undo the mess of the previous regime.

Not really. The new GMs brought in great players and drafted very well in their small sample. Tallon messed up the progress by giving away March and Smith, two players brought in by the non-tallon GM.

Non Tallon GM crew:
Signed Yandle to a good UFA deal and he's been our #1. Put up great numbers this year.
Signed March for pennies.
Key in trading Hayes for Smith.
Signed our core to an overall great cap hit. Only non great deal for our core is Ekblad and it's not looking so bad after his play this year. Trocheck has a cap hit of 4.7 and just put up 75 points. Barkov 5.9 and almost a PPG. Hubs 69 points at 5.9.
Sceviour who has been a good and cheap bottom 6 guy.
Key in drafting Borgstrom and Hepo.
Got rid of Kulikov and Gudbranson who would have been expensive bottom pair d-men. Acquired McCann who had a very nice year for a 21 year old 3c.

If they made one mistake it was firing Gallant last year and replacing him with Rowe but maybe Gallant wasn't the right fit long term. They had Jagr as a top line winger and too many injuries so who knows with Gallant as coach last season. The team looks great and on the right track now. Fans are happy with Boughner.

 

[ColdSteel2]

The Dadonov move was very good. No denying that. They just shouldn't have let March go for free. I guess they had no faith in him that he would repeat his performance from last year, but they were wrong.

Agreed, March should not have had anything to do with moving Smith, he would have been the difference maker to get them in the POs this year. He would have then walked but yeah, this Panther team+ March could have went on a surprisingly long run in the POs.

 

[Rebels57]

Agreed, March should not have had anything to do with moving Smith, he would have been the difference maker to get them in the POs this year. He would have then walked but yeah, this Panther team+ March could have went on a surprisingly long run in the POs.

Looking at their protected list, I just can't fathom how they thought some of these guys were more valuable than March.

Aleksander Barkov, Nick Bjugstad, Jonathan Huberdeau, Vincent Trocheck, Aaron Ekblad, Keith Yandle, Mark Pysyk, Alex Petrovic and James Reimer.

They should went 7-3-1, added March to the protected list and exposed Pysyk.

 

[ColdSteel2]

Not really. The new GMs brought in great players and drafted very well in their small sample. Tallon messed up the progress by giving away March and Smith, two players brought in by the non-tallon GM.

Non Tallon GM crew:
Signed Yandle to a good UFA deal and he's been our #1. Put up great numbers this year.
Signed March for pennies.
Key in trading Hayes for Smith.
Signed our core to an overall great cap hit. Only non great deal for our core is Ekblad and it's not looking so bad after his play this year. Trocheck has a cap hit of 4.7 and just put up 75 points. Barkov 5.9 and almost a PPG. Hubs 69 points at 5.9.
Sceviour who has been a good and cheap bottom 6 guy.
Key in drafting Borgstrom and Hepo.
Got rid of Kulikov and Gudbranson who would have been expensive bottom pair d-men. Acquired McCann who had a very nice year for a 21 year old 3c.

If they made one mistake it was firing Gallant last year and replacing him with Rowe but maybe Gallant wasn't the right fit long term. They had Jagr as a top line winger and too many injuries so who knows with Gallant as coach last season. The team looks great and on the right track now. Fans are happy with Boughner.

Well, it’s not to say everything they did was bad but they made the playoffs with Tallon and his hand selected coach, brought in a guy who thought he could do both jobs, didn’t, then brought Tallon back who found a new great coach. As you said, he’s done great in mixing the right players with the right coach so no need to mess around when you are on an upward trajectory.

Maybe in the long run, it went perfectly just so Tallon didn’t overpay his own guys as he is known to do.

 

[Panthers Rock]

Agreed, March should not have had anything to do with moving Smith, he would have been the difference maker to get them in the POs this year. He would have then walked but yeah, this Panther team+ March could have went on a surprisingly long run in the POs.

I think it goes without saying that losing March was beyond stupid, almost as stupid as letting Gallant go. However, the Gallant decision was certainly not Tallon's move, but you can blame Tallon for losing March and Smith. One could argue, though, that if they kept and re-signed March (contract that kicks in next year), do they then go out and still acquire Dadonov? If they don't, does it wind up making a difference? Hard to say, those players aren't that far apart in production. (I think Smith was a goner either way).

The Panthers put up a tremendous effort in the 2nd half of the season. It is just a shame that the teams they were chasing did nearly or as well as them in that same stretch, truly remarkable how little help they got. But then, that's why you shouldn't rely on other teams to get you in. As they say, you can't make the playoffs early in the season, but you sure can miss them/hurt your chances. Slow starts are killer. Can only hope they build on it next year.

 

[Whalers Fan]

The loser point system makes these "records" irrelevant.

 

[tony d]

Solid team, was hoping they'd make the playoffs. Very good young team there.