What Florida General Manager Dale Tallon did this season was nothing short of miraculous. A community that could not remember what it was like to host home playoff games was treated to a taste of the future that will only bring more success and excitement.

When Tallon was hired two years ago, he inherited an unmitigated mess that was residual futility created at the hands of Mike Keenan and Jacques Martin. Tallon traded away most of his assets in the likes of Keith Ballard, Bryan Allen, Radek Dvorak, and Dennis Wideman. None of the players received in return are currently with the Panthers, which obviously was part of the plan for financial flexibility. That set up a tremendous amount of cap space to create a historic turnaround.

July 1st, 2011, was the day this franchise turned around. Tallon opened his mind, and the organization's wallet, to sign ten new players that would lift this team from the abyss of the NHL to division winners. Their first playoff berth in over a decade. A 22-point turnaround from the previous season. With a new head coach in Kevin Dineen.

All these new pieces and Tallon made them fit. He shocked the world, and deserves credit for it. He sent the ultimate message earlier this season by trading fan favorite, yet struggling, David Booth to Vancouver for Marco Sturm and Mikael Samuelsson. Most around the league thought the Panthers were fleeced on the deal, yet it proved to be just another brilliant move by a man on a clear mission. No one was off limits, and sub-par play would not be tolerated.

He is up for NHL Executive of the Year along with David Armstrong (St. Louis) and Dave Poile (Nashville). All three are deserving and have had spectacular seasons. But what Tallon inherited, as well as how quickly he turned the ship around, should make him the leader to win the award.

Most naysayers, and there are plenty of them that just won't let a team that has been struggling forever have some happiness for a change, will say the numbers are skewed and the division was weak. It is certainly not the Panthers' fault that the Capitals, Lightning, Hurricanes, and Jets did not have what it took during the regular season to win the division. It should also be noted that none of those teams came close to having to assemble all the new faces and coaching philosophies/systems. But the Panthers persevered in the face of all the skeptics.

The two solid statistics the critics cite is goal differential and total points. The typical objection raised against Tallon is that he should not be considered for the award when his team was -24 in goal differential, regardless of what was achieved. Another objection is Florida's 94 points was pitifully low to win a division, much less earn a #3 seed in the playoffs. The Phoenix Coyotes had a similar season with 97 points, and it doesn't seem to be hurting them too much. The point total argument holds little weight, as all real NHL fans know that the playoffs are all about just getting in, regardless of how or why, under the rules that are in place.

Regarding goal differential, if one takes into account all the new players, a new coach, and injuries, what was achieved is even more remarkable. The Panthers suffered over 300 man games lost due to injury, which was towards the top of the league. Combine these issues with a brutal, almost nonsensical, travel schedule for the first three months of the season, obviously there is going to be ups and downs regarding stamina.

8 games out of an 82-game season tilted the goal differential in a way that the naysayers clamp onto as the end-all-be-all of why Tallon does not deserve this award. The Panthers were built to be tough to play against and to score by committee. Some games that formula failed miserably. It is understandable in light of all circumstances. These are the losses that hurt the goal differential statistic:

Nov. 26th @ Tampa 5-1
Dec. 11th @NYR 6-1
Dec. 23rd @ Boston 8-0
Feb. 4th @Tampa 6-3
Feb. 7th @ Washington 4-0
Feb. 15th vs. Ottawa 6-2
Mar. 1st @ Winnipeg 7-0
Mar. 8th @ Philadelphia 5-0

The result of these poor performances was a -40, which is all that was needed to make the Panthers look as if they limped all the way to the division title. Obviously that is not true. Their 18 overtime losses, while nothing to be proud of, shows this team was in most games and were not the pushovers they were in recent years. The Panthers were not built to blow anyone out, so they did not beat anyone the way they lost these games outside of two or three games.

People will say that is why you play the games, and that is understood. These performances, however, were not indicative of how the Panthers consistently played over the course of the year. These were aberrations amongst relative success. These were practically the only 8 games all season the Panthers were truly outplayed and/or tired. Surely there were other less than stellar efforts over a long season, but these eight are glaring.

With all that Tallon did to put this organization back on the map, should these eight games really keep him from being honored with what he rightfully earned? Most people snickered at his acquisitions last summer, yet he obviously knew better and stayed the course he believed in his heart. Should there be no acknowledgement of his savvy and clever nature in creating a true worst-to-first cinderella story?

The NHL has already continued disrespecting the Panthers by not including Kevin Dineen in the coaches up for the Jack Adams. While the Blues' Ken Hitchcock probably has the award wrapped up, and rightfully so, to nominate blowhard John Tortorella instead is laughable.

Additionally, Tomas Fleischmann was considered to be a finalist for the Masterton Trophy with all he had to overcome regarding his blood clot issue that will be with him for the rest of his life. He was inexplicably left off the list despite having the best offensive season of his career.

Would it not be good for the game for the NHL to throw a deserving bone to a team and GM that pulled off the unthinkable? Few stories in the NHL were more surprising. It is the last chance for someone, ANYONE, to appreciate the transformation this club has experienced in under two years.

Tallon proved everyone wrong, including much of his own fan base. That is worth something. He did it in Chicago. He is doing it in Sunrise. His work and understanding of what it takes to create success should be recognized...NOW.

Twitter @DanSpiegel

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