Florida GM Dale Tallon has been building Florida up with youth for several years now, and it needs to start to pay off soon. The Panthers have a strong core on the roster of under 25-year-old stars in Alex Barkov, Jonathan Huberdeau, Vincent Trocheck, Aaron Ekblad and Mike Matheson, as well they have a strong pipeline of prospects on the way.
But at some point, the plan of building for the future via youth – which is a good plan in today’s NHL economic structure – needs to give way to the present and the youth needs to deliver.