- Published in Top 50 Florida Panthers
2. Aleksander Barkov
From Finland, Alexsander Barkov had lofty expectations coming in as the number two overall pick in 2013. It is safe to say that the Panthers obtained a player who came as adevrtised.
Barkov saw ample playing time as a rookie, but Florida made sure to ease the Center into action. He had a breakout of sorts in his third year, scoring 59 Points with strong two-way play. After another 50-Point-plus year, Barkov increased his production to 78 Points, and then to 96 in 2018-19. Barkov, who also had impressed people with his clean style of play, won the Lady Byng Trophy.
Barkov built on that success with a Frank J. Selke Trophy in 2020-21, and a playoff appearance. He would take them to Eastern Conference Semi-Finals last year, and is on an eight-year streak of receiving votes for the Lady Byng and Frank J. Selke. As the heart and Captain of a young strong team, Barkov is a player who will rise as long he continues to play for Florida, and could go down as the best Panther of all time.
Barkov saw ample playing time as a rookie, but Florida made sure to ease the Center into action. He had a breakout of sorts in his third year, scoring 59 Points with strong two-way play. After another 50-Point-plus year, Barkov increased his production to 78 Points, and then to 96 in 2018-19. Barkov, who also had impressed people with his clean style of play, won the Lady Byng Trophy.
Barkov built on that success with a Frank J. Selke Trophy in 2020-21, and a playoff appearance. He would take them to Eastern Conference Semi-Finals last year, and is on an eight-year streak of receiving votes for the Lady Byng and Frank J. Selke. As the heart and Captain of a young strong team, Barkov is a player who will rise as long he continues to play for Florida, and could go down as the best Panther of all time.