When one thinks of the more underappreciated franchises in the league today, almost all would tip their cap to the Panthers way down south in Sunrise. Catch one of their games on television and just seeing the routine emptiness of seats at a home game is enough to dishearten avid hockey fans. Boasting the most unheralded player in the game today in Aleksander Barkov alongside some other talented names, this team is currently one of the hottest in the league. Coming off a six-game win streak and winners of 13 of 17 contests since January 30th, they’ve catapulted themselves into the wild card picture and look poised to capture a postseason berth.

Let’s focus on the core pieces that have brought about the Panthers winning ways starting with Barkov. I’m sure you’ve all heard the name and seen him at least in limited exposure but this guy needs his own channel. Scorching hot with nine goals and 12 assists over the past 14 games, he’s doing this without Jonathan Huberdeau at his side as has been customary in the past. For the first time in his career we could see a relatively complete season from Barkov. Already surpassing his career best points in a year thanks to remaining healthy, he’s now entering a new forward tier. Beyond offense, he’s a Selke Trophy candidate for his phenomenal two-way play. To put into perspective just how great Barkov is, look to his points-per-60 in comparison to his offensive zone starting percentage. A 2.8 pts/60 while only seeing 40% of his shifts start in the offense zone is flat out ridiculous dominance that directly correlates to the Panther’s success. Remove him and the wheels would fall off the wagon.

But it’s not all Barkov despite casting an immense shadow. Vincent Trocheck is in the midst of a career season and has really turned into an offensive weapon. Trocheck has steadily improved his point totals each year he’s been in the league and in campaign five he’s seemingly taken the next step in his development as a go to player. From a fantasy standpoint the difference this season is him finally cementing a role on the primary power play unit. A multi-cat star, his 225 shots, 112 hits, 640 faceoff wins, and 58 points make him a top asset amongst the forward crop. Having Huberdeau on his wing consistently bodes well for Trocheck continuing to add onto his already career season statistically.

Then there’s Evgenii Dadonov. Reminiscent of an Alex Radulov return to the NHL, Dadonov has been a pleasant surprise during his second stint in the league. With nine goals and nine assists in his past 14 games, life’s been good alongside Barkov and Nick Bjugstad. Speaking of Bjugstad, the once promising youngster has five goals and nine assists in his past 14 games to go with 19 PIM and 45 shots. Boasting four 20-goal scorers for the first time since their 2015-16 division championship squad, the Panthers are seemingly coming online at the right time. Being able to split Barkov and Huberdeau without hemorrhaging their respective offensive output has been a boon to Florida’s fortunes and makes it tough for the opposing team’s defensive deployment(s).

If in need of immediate fantasy help please look to Nick Bjugstad at once. He is already in must own territory alongside Barkov and would make for a deadly duo on your squad with him (Barkov) or Dadonov. Bjugstad has low ownership after his dreadful 2016-17 coupled with his overall mediocre current year prior to uniting with Barkov. As long as he is seeing time consistently with him, Bjugstad should make for a strong addition with point-per-game ability when it matters most for your fantasy playoffs.

Beyond the forward core, there has been a great overall showing from their defensive big three in 2017-18 led by Keith Yandle. The 31-year old offensive defender has regained his Coyotes-era poise and is on pace for over 50 points. Alongside him, Aaron Ekblad is experiencing a somewhat resurgent though overall solid season on pace for just shy of 40 points. Ekblad has a real shot at 15 goals from the blue line which is highly valuable for our fantasy purposes along with impressive ice time and blocks. The lesser discussed of the three, Michael Matheson, makes for a sneaky good multi-cat play on pace for 30 points, 50 PIM, 155 shots and 125 blocks. He as well receives solid ice time averaging just over 21 minutes per game and isn’t a tremendous hamper on plus minus sitting at -4 on the year. Beyond these three the fantasy capabilities of the remaining defenders are negligible.

The Panthers are middle of the pack on the power play overall this season, but their primary unit has been decent. Trocheck leads the top unit in production with 21 points, 12 of those being goals! Barkov, Dadonov, Huberdeau and Yandle account for another 56 power-play points making all of them a solid play at the least. Nobody besides Trocheck is a strong source of power-play goals though assists have value too. None of them depend on the power play to produce which speaks to each player’s respective abilities at even strength.

Last but certainly not least, another huge difference this campaign compared to their ill-timed downfall last year is goaltending. Roberto Luongo has played about a quarter of the team’s games, yet the Panthers still find themselves in the hunt thanks to the saving grace(s) of James Reimer and Harri Sateri. Kudos to these two for their excellent fill-in play during Luongo’s absence but going forth the Panthers fortunes heavily rest in their number one goaltender’s ability to sustain solid play. With a .927 SV% and 12 wins in 23 starts, should Luongo continue producing this team is going to the dance. He’s won five of six since February 20th and looks every bit ready to play his part in getting them back to the postseason.

Overall the Panthers are built for sustained success with 12 players contributing 15 points or more showing the depth to make things happen in a tightly defended postseason. A team that lost a lot of quality parts in the summer prior to this year while seeing a coaching change, I tip my hat to the organization as a whole for the immense turn-around they’ve achieved. Should the Panthers make the playoffs, Barkov will finally have his shot on the national stage to show just how dominant a player he is. Beyond him the team as a whole has gained a lot of confidence in recent time and that’s a key element in pursuit of the Stanley Cup; just ask the 2011-12 Los Angeles Kings.