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Trocheck, OHL’s scoring king, looks to stop Knights’ consecutive coronation Photo: Plymouth Whalers forward and Florida Panthers prospect Vince Trocheck, shown here playing for the Saginaw Spirit, is looking to secure his second title in 2012-13 after winning gold with the USA at the 2013 U20 WJC (courtesy of Terry Wilson/OHL Images) The Plymouth Whalers are looking to storm the castle and prevent a second-consecutive OHL coronation of the London Knights — and they’ll be relying on their own scoring king to lead the charge. Florida Panthers own several quality prospects in NCAA and Europe Photo: Forward Yaroslav Kosov is one of four prospects the Florida Panthers have who are currently playing in Europe. (courtesy of Derek Leung/Getty Images) Although a couple of the Florida Panthers prospects have moved on from the collegiate ranks and begun their professional careers, the organization still has several valuable players in the NCAA and in Europe, including a Hobey Baker finalist. At least two and perhaps as many as four or more players may have already played their final seasons in college. The prospects currently playing in Europe may be a thinner crop, but there are a couple of them who look ready to move to North America. Top prospects for Florida Panthers starting to make an impact in the NHL Photo: Forward Nick Bjugstad's decision to return to Minnesota for another season has paid off, as the Golden Gophers have been among the top teams in the nation. (courtesy of Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images) Since the beginning of the truncated NHL season in January, several of the Florida Panthers prospects have had a chance to play in the NHL, and their experiences with the big club have helped to shuffle the order of the organization's top 20 prospects. Matheson develops in winning culture of Boston College hockey Photo: Boston College defenseman and Florida Panthers prospect Mike Matheson is the top scoring defenseman on the BC roster (courtesy of Gregory Shamus/NHLI via Getty Images) When you’re a first round draft pick, expectations can be exceedingly high. The challenge of meeting such expectations can be even more daunting when you’re adjusting not only to a higher level of play, but also to a new culture that has established itself as a winner. Such has been the case for Boston College freshman defenseman, Michael Matheson. Florida Panthers get top talent in 2008 Draft despite limited picks Photo: Goaltender Jacob Markstrom is one of the top goaltending prospects currently playing North American hockey. Markstrom was selected by the Florida Panthers 31st overall in the 2008 NHL Draft. (courtesy of Al Bello/Getty Images) The Florida Panthers went into the 2008 NHL draft without a first-round pick, having traded away the rights to that pick in a package that brought Tomas Vokoun to Sunrise, Florida. The Panthers (under then general manager Jacques Martin) made a sequence of trades that gave them the 31st, 46th, and 80th overall picks, as well as their own fourth (100th overall) and seventh round picks (190th). |
