Pretty ridiculous article from someone not even kind of connected to the team. The last line is pure gold - 'if Tallon can make the team better he will' DUUUUH.
Yah...and frankly, it's not deniable he's MADE the team better. Yeah, there's peaks and valleys associated with the free agent choices, but let's face facts, last year's abysmal season happened because Tallon's hands were tied because the team was up for sale again, and then the new ownership came in and untied his hands. He made just one big mistake in free agency (glaring, but still...) and the team most likely dropped 7 points out of the playoff picture due to the loss of their #1 center and top scorer. But he had the guts to take a flyer on Jagr which paid off big time by salvaging Barkov and Huberdeau before their confidence took too big a hit.
I won't say Tallon's perfect or even necessarily close to it...but he's done a lot of the right things - patience with youth, but also making sure there's a coach that'll give them their chances, gathering tons of prospect depth by dealing semi-valuable veterans for draft picks the first couple of seasons, and seemingly being pretty smart in the draft (yeah, it's mainly our head scout's call, but that wasn't usually the case in the past and look at the crap players that got drafted). And the team that made the playoffs a few years ago then missed by a mile for two season after was a contender for a spot all season this year and promising - with more depth at nearly every position in the organization - to finally reach the playoffs next season.
IF...and I consider it a big IF...the Panthers don't make the playoffs next season, we have to start thinking he was the right man to build, but can't get the team over the hump. But I don't think that's going to happen. The core has another year of experience under their belts AND another year of playing together. And that's another thing Tallon's done, he's kept a sizeable core group together thus far with no knee-jerk trades when a young guy slumps a little. The way things went in the past, Huberdeau would have been dealt before January the way he was playing, and Barkov would likely have gone sometime next season. Instead, Tallon acquired a highly skilled veteran forward to play with them and help them pick up their game. Some of that decision is ownership opening the purse, some of it is Tallon being patient with guys HE selected in the draft. There'll be a little change in the veteran leadership through free agency, but the young guys from San Antonio (this coming season Portland) will have their chances to earn spots, too. The Panthers have several promising forwards and at least one promising defenseman in the minors right now that can certainly use some seasoning but seem game to give some good effort in the big league too. Goaltending's a little thin, though we saw one backup we all considered washed up making a big turnaround this season when he had to, giving the Panthers a little more depth at that position. All told, I would predict an injury to Bjugstad, for instance, would not impact the team as substantially as it did this season, and this season it impacted the team less than it would have the season before.
After years of bleak prospects, I have to admit I finally consider next season to be something to REALLY be optimistic about for the Panthers.