A quick glance at the Eastern conference standings wouldn’t reveal much in terms of surprise, unless that is you notice the Florida Panthers in third place overall, and in the top spot in the Southeast division despite being labeled as sports betting underdogs. In a group that at least for now includes the Washington Capitals and Tampa Bay Lightning, it’s rather strange to see the Panthers sitting in first place as we make our way through the month of December. But on the heels of consecutive losses, now is the time when Florida’s slide could begin, and that will open the door for a true Eastern conference contender to move up in to a playoff spot.
It isn’t that the Panthers haven’t played good hockey, or that Panthers’ general manager Dale Tallon didn’t do an excellent job of bringing quality players in to the fold down south with limited resources this past summer according to the numbers on the Betonline site. After all, Kris Versteeg seems to finally be ready to reach his potential with 13 goals and 31 points, while Brian Campbell already has 22 assists as the two biggest free agent pickups from the summer of 2011. Stephen Weiss is playing excellent two-way hockey with an incredible plus-17 rating, and the team has some solid depth at both ends of the ice. But the biggest problem for the Panthers at this point is in goal, where the team was forced to pull Jose Theodore, and allow Scott Clemmensen to play the final 20 minutes of a 6-1 loss to the New York Rangers. For now, Florida wants rookie netminder Jacob Markstrom to concentrate on improving for another year before they make him their starter, which leaves the job up to Theodore and Clemmensen. While neither has been an awful option so far this year, it is hard to argue that either one can be the No. 1 for a legitimate playoff contender. Despite getting good goaltending so far and playing sound fundamentally, the Panthers still have the worst goal differential among the top five teams according to the numbers the pay head bookies look at, and many feel as though it is likely to get worse as teams begin to figure them out.
The Capitals have too much talent to remain on the outside looking in, and if the Lightning can get some quality play from their goaltending, they should be back in the mix. While this could take time, Washington will be in first place in the Southeast division by February, and that will leave the Panthers fighting for a spot in the top-eight. The Lightning, Montreal Canadiens, and New Jersey Devils are all teams currently on the outside looking in, and considering that Montreal is finally getting healthier and the way that the Devils closed out last season, it will only be a matter of time before one of them emerges as the legitimate Eastern conference contender that overtakes the Panthers in the standings.
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