Breaking down members of Panthers’ 2023 Draft class: A top-15 prospect in Round 2?
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The Florida Panthers sat out of the first round of the NHL Entry Draft for the second year in a row Wednesday, but has five picks in Rounds 2-7 on Thursday.
After trading four straight first-round picks from 2022 to 2025, the Panthers will need to use their second-day picks to try to bolster their farm system and find some hidden gems later in the NHL Draft.
Florida’s first pick is No. 63 overall, the penultimate pick in the second round. The Panthers also pick at No. 127 in Round 4, No. 159 in Round 5, No. 191 in Round 6 and No. 198 in Round 7. Their second-, fourth-, fifth- and sixth-round picks are their own, and their seventh-round pick is from the Coyotes.
Florida traded its first-round pick last year to get defenseman Ben Chiarot, now with the Red Wings, from the Canadiens ahead of the trade deadline. It sent its third-round pick the Flyers ahead of the trade deadline last year, too, to add forward Claude Giroux, who’s now with the Senators.
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The Panthers also don’t have a second-round pick next year, so the 2023 NHL Entry Draft could be Florida’s best chance in the near future to add a top prospect, with control of its own second-round pick and four other picks to potentially use to try to move up for a player it really wants.
The Panthers entered the 2023 NHL Draft with only two top-100 prospects, according to TheHockeyWriters.com’s midseason rankings, and none in the top 40. In the last 25 months alone, they traded first-round picks for Chiarot, Giroux and right wings Sam Reinhart and Matthew Tkachuk.
Stay tuned here throughout Day 2 of the Draft for updates on all of Florida’s picks and what to know about the organization’s newest crop of prospects.
Gracyn Sawchyn, No. 63 overall
Position: Center
Last team: WHL Seattle
Height/weight: 5-11, 155
Rankings: No. 13 by EliteProspects.com, No. 24 among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting Bureau
Key stat: The 18-year-old Canadian averaged a point per game in the Western Hockey League last year, scoring 18 goals and dishing out 40 assists in 58 games for the Seattle Thunderbirds.
Scouting report: “Sawchyn’s game is not a complex one. He sprints hard after the puck, and if he can’t outright win the race, he tries to win the ensuing battle, then, he looks for a teammate. He feathers pucks off the backhand through defenders, slips them under sticks on the forehand, and completes all sorts of crafty one- and two-touch plays to teammates moving in space. If the pass isn’t available, he drives inside without much concern for his safety.” -EliteProspects
Albert Wikman, No. 127 overall
Position: Defenseman
Last team: SHL Farjestad
Height/weight: 6-0, 191
Rankings: No. 86 by EliteProspects, No. 32 among European skaters by NHL Central Scouting
Key stat: The 18-year-old Swede spent most of the year playing junior ice hockey with Farjestad BK’s J20 Nationell team in Sweden, but played 16 games with the Farjestad senior team in the Swedish Hockey League, including five in the playoffs.
Scouting report: “The foundation of Wikman’s game is his skating. He moves his feet, reads plays, angles rush attempts wide, and is quick to draw a stick out to disrupt a play or block a lane. He gaps up early, guides plays towards the boards, pivots quickly and wins the body positioning by having superior leverage and driving through the opponent’s hands for an easy breakup. He generates a ton of defensive value by breaking up plays, both in transition and in the defensive zone.” -EliteProspects
Olof Glifford, No. 159 overall
Position: Goaltender
Last team: J20 HV71
Height/weight: 6-4, 194
Rankings: Not ranked by EliteProspects or NHL Scouting
Key stat: The 18-year-old Swede only played three games for HV71 in Sweden’s J20, but posted a .959 save percentage in those games after coming up from the lower-level J18 Nationell.
Scouting report: “Glifford plays a butterfly style and moves through the crease with the speed and accuracy often reserved for much smaller goaltenders. He comes equipped with pro-ready size and an athletic skillset. He has a tall pre-shot stance to track pucks along the perimeter of the zone and maintain sightlines beyond crease traffic.” -NHLEntryDraft.com
Luke Coughlin, No. 191 overall
Position: Defenseman
Last team: QMJHL Rimouski
Height/weight: 5-10, 170
Rankings: No. 87 by EliteProspects, No. 144 among North American skaters by NHL
Key stat: The 18-year-old Canadian scored seven points in nine playoff games for Rimouski Oceanic of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League.
Scouting report: “With his loose hips and flexibility, Coughlin can easily shift his weight to launch himself around opponents and open up his skates to walk the blue line while facing his options. He’s a fluid mover at the offensive blue line and a deceptive one, too, as he uses hip pocket handling and fake shots to keep defenders at bay and move the puck or find good lanes to fire in.” -EliteProspects
Stepan Zvyagin, No. 198 overall
Position: Left wing
Last team: KHL Minsk
Height/weight: 6-0, 161
Rankings: No. 75 among European skaters by NHL
Key stat: The 19-year-old Russian had 14 goals and 19 assists in 37 games for Dinamo-Shinnik Bobruysk of Russia’s Junior Hockey League before getting called up to play 18 games for Dinamo Minsk in Russia’s Kontinental Hockey League.
