Panthers have coach, now they need players

From David J. Neal of the Miami Herald:

He needs at least four of six defensemen who handle the puck smoother than they would a greased frog. The Panthers have maybe three. He also needs at least three lines of forwards who can take a pass in stride with a decent idea of what they are going to do next. The Panthers have maybe two.

To that end, the Panthers need to get defenseman Jay Bouwmeester re-signed. This would the kind of team on which he would flourish, as he has shown in the World Championships and World Cups in which he has participated with other players of similar talent.

Also, the Panthers need to develop the skill guys among their draft picks better than they have. They haven’t cornered the market on guys who can do everything with the puck but consistently score or at least set up a gimme goal, but if that commodity were oil, they would be ExxonMobil.

Maybe Martin found the right coach. We will know if he finds the right players.

Read the entire article here.

Basically Neal is calling for the Panthers to get better players. Which, of course, is far easier said than done. What team in the NHL doesn’t want what Neal has asked for?