One of Florida's lost sons has returned to South Florida as Roberto Luongo suits up for the Panthers for the first time since 2006.
When he was inexplicably jettisoned for relative peanuts by Mike Keenan, fans in South Florida were irate, while Vancouver fans rejoiced. Father time can be a funny dude.
After the Canucks were pasted last night in Dallas 6-1, their fans may already be wondering if a horrible mistake was made. In Florida, the reaction is likely similar to how Vancouver felt upon Luongo's arrival 8 years ago. One of happiness and hope.
Luongo likely has 3-4 good years left in him. He's now playing where he already has a home and spent his time during the offseasons. He will certainly will enjoy not being under heavy scrutiny from game to game as a Panther. But it won't result in him losing focus on winning hockey's ultimate prize.
With the young studs coming up through the pipeline in Florida, this might be the perfect time for such a change of scenery. The Panthers should blossom over the next few years into playoff contenders, with some bite to do some damage.
But for a season that is already in the tank, a Luongo return is just what this franchise needs to keep interest now, as well as get the fan base jacked up for the near future, because it is much brighter than most know.
A big part of that future is young center Vincent Trocheck, who will play in his first NHL game tonight. He had been leading the San Antonio Rampage in points, and will finally get his taste of the big time against the Sabres.
With all the offensive skill that he has shown to this point, the focus will be on his defensive responsibilities. As with any young player, he has struggled at times with his overall responsibilities on the ice. Baptism by fire will be on tap for the next few games.
It will be interesting to see if they keep him up for 10 games and burn the first year of his NHL contract. My gut says no, but we shall see how it plays out.
Regardless, these two players alone have South Florida talking about the Panthers again. With the NHL Draft and subsequent spending spree on the horizon, much more buzz around this team will follow.
Dan Spiegel... Florida Panthers Media Follow me on Twitter Join the Florida Panthers Insiders FB Page Connect with me on Google Plus