The Florida Panthers are back-to-back Stanley Cup champions, while the Boston Bruins are left questioning their offseason strategy. What truly separates these two franchises, and what can we learn from their contrasting approaches to team building? Host Cam Stuart dives deep into the major differences, drawing insights from sharp hockey minds.
It’s not just about “getting tougher” to beat the Panthers – that’s a myth! We’ll explore how Florida systematically builds its roster by effectively paying for effective depth pieces and cultivating a relentless, skilled identity, even as some stars move on. Compare this to recent Bruins moves, which have seen controversial signings and a perceived lack of cohesive strategy, leading to questions about their direction. We’ll break down the true nature of the Panthers’ success – their player valuation, their commitment to a specific style of play, and how they extract maximum value from their roster. Discover why understanding these fundamental differences is key to any team hoping to dethrone the Panthers and for the Bruins to find their path back to contention!
#BostonBruins #FloridaPanthers #NHLAnalysis #TeamBuilding #NHLCup #HockeyStrategy #Depth #ToughnessMyth #NHL #HockeyDebate #stanleycup
0:00 Panthers vs Bruins: Contrasting team strategies
3:05 Stop wasting money on depth players
5:37 Bill Zito’s simple yet effective approach
7:40 Panthers’ organizational superiority over Bruins
9:16 Comparing team philosophies and roster spending
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43 Comments
Bruins still a dumpster fire. Sweeney already fucking up the rebuild. Only good thing he did was draft Hagens
Let the tank commence
Everyone has been taking the wrong lesson away from the Panthers winning back to back. Because the rough stuff gets so much more attention teams think they have to get meaner. The Panthers have gotten all their players to buy into a system that has their top line all the way down to their fourth line play the exact same way. Plus the players they picked up were mostly players other team's didn't want. The Florida front office is second to none in identifying players who fit their system & locker room.
sweeney shouldve been fired, not extended. it starts with the owner, who doesnt have many connections around the league so he just sticks with cam neely, and sweeney is neely's guy. its not going to look much better for the bruins for a few years, and sweeney calls it a "retool" what a joke.
The Panthers are smart and the bruins are stupid
It's hard to convince 3rd and 4th liners to take less money when you don't have super stars on the top 1/2 though
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Thank you guys SO MUCH, the channel has had HUGE growth the last few weeks talking more hockey and these comment sections have been unbelievable, let’s keep it going!!
They are getting a high salary cap next year
You are wrong as hell dude. The panthers SUCKED for 22 of the past 31 seasons. They have several top 5 overall players. Because they TANKED FOR 2 DECADES.
They missed the playoffs 9 times in the past 15 seasons!
Everyone on this team could leave and make more money. But they don’t, Because they’re stacked now and winning.
Remember Bergeron and Krejci signing for under $5 mil when the B’s were competing?? Horrible memory people.
Lundell on 3rd line makes decent money. Lusty is on a great contract too
I like the Panthers from a team makeup. They are exactly what I want the Bs to be again (like we were in 2010s era and the late 80s).
The only reason Beecher was a regular in the lineup the past 2 seasons is because they didn’t have centers that could win faceoffs. And guess what all of these new players can do.. THEY CAN WIN FACEOFFS AND SCORE MORE THAN LAUKO BEECHER AND FREDERIC. 👍🏻
Minten probably gets on the roster more than Beecher, unless he has some magical awakening with the new guys.
The Bruins forgot at some point that you need to CHASE after dumping it. At some phase they just began dumping it and…???…profit?
The Boston Bruins are 0-3 in lifetime in the playoffs vs The Florida Panthers.
Panther fan here, I agree with what you are saying, but I don't think it's simple. You are correct about Zito identifying guys that fit, but we've definitely had some failures (Mike Reilly, Adam Boqvist, etc) and he's not afraid to correct them. In fact, Nico Sturm was brought in at the deadline specifically because Nosek wasn't fitting in the way we were hoping for (replacing Stenlund's spot) until much later in the season.
The players around the league are not dumb, they saw the Cats winning the President's trophy and were on the rise. I'm positive the deadline moves back then like acquiring Giroux and Chiarot showed everyone we were serious and committed to going for it. Listen to a guy like Dylan Larkin talk about the Red Wings trade deadline, OUCH!
Free agents saw Panthers making it all the way to the Finals, but losing to Vegas that we were right on the cusp. Then they saw us raising the Cup the first time and figured we could probably repeat. All that noise, plus the year round hot weather, new practice facility, yes taxes and the great group on and off the ice will attract guys like your boy Marchy.
Bruins on the other hand, the players around the league saw how the Sway situation was handled publicly, the Marchy contract offer, firing a quality coach in Monty (who I was actually hoping the Panthers would hire before they chose Maurice) and replacing him with a new rookie head coach, it's a big unknown for free agents. The trajectory the B's were going in with their trade deadline moves was signaling retool/rebuild mode in a division that is probably the toughest to compete in. You are either playing for a paycheck, hoping to make a name for yourself for a bigger paycheck, signing short term to get traded to a contender or you absolutely ❤ the city of Boston!
In ZITO we trust. Liked your content. Subscribed. “You speak the truth “. We live in the current Not past issues years ago. New ownership change number one. New Coach. Then Zito put it all together. Well done. 👍🏻
Boston is on a rebuild, it's not going to make a run for the cup. Grabbing 4th linners is the prudent thing to do. Allow your younger players time to develop and keep drafting. A couple of years ago the Bruins went out and spent the money to make a run for it. It didn't work for them, but it did for Florida, that's the way it rolls sometimes. Sadly the Bruins in order to become legitimate contenders have to dwell in the cellar for a while. Or the other alternative is to go out as they've done for multiple years and create a team that can make the playoffs more than likely, but will more than likely get bounced the first round. I don't want to hope for the best. I want a team that has the young talent that can be built around. When you've got the core talent as the Bruin's did a few years ago, then you make your move, until then you build and the Bruins will more than likely be building for a few seasons.
Go Bruins!
I think it is about preparation or the game which includes high level coaching details like programmed eating and pre game focusing period. That is what GM Zito implied as he was referencing to details which he said can be further improved. What comes to preparation you want guys who don't for example have thendency to drink and have mental capability to appreciate the job they are doing day in day out. They understand they are extremely lucky to have the talent and position and the wealth without getting carried away with it. It is good position for life to just get better and your buddies are not making stupid comments about you being too serious about it – as they are the same. So it boils down to supporting chemistry which is very much the job of GM as he must somehow magically be able to communicate to his scouts to distinguish such available individuals. And it is very easily broken too. All it takes one a***l**h in the room and the rest of the team loses 3% of performance and that is enough for say hasta la vista for success(….and wait for next 30 yrs for next chance).
Anton Lundell is making money… he's making 5.0 mil a year. Luostarinen is making 3.0 mil a year. That 3rd line is going to be making over 13 million next year. or over 13 % of their cap.
So you are in fact wrong. They don't have the money to pay their 4th line more than 2-4 mil a year, so they go out and sign role players who are willing to take those smaller contracts for a chance to win a cup and sign somewhere else for 3x more the following year. Or they let their entry level prospects come up and play some shifts in a depth role.
You sound like a miserable Mike Felger wannabe. Doesn’t work for you.
What you describe is only a part of the Panthers' success. It's the necessary precondition, that enables the subsequent, equally important step: identify undervalued players in different franchises, and get them. Tkachuk, Reinhart, Bennet, Verhaege. That's four of their top 5 forwards!
You need to draft well, you need to avoid spending money on bottom line players, and you need to attract and sign players with upside, under their market value. The Panthers are capable of all three of these necessary steps. No other team in the NHL is.
In the end it's a game, not a fight.
Talent wins period.
You lost me at Most other teams 🤣
You made a lot of good points. Problem is if you don’t have a solid core, then you’re not going to get bottom 6 guys to take discounts on short deals. Panthers are successful because of the foundation they’ve laid the last 5 years and zito locked all of them up long term. Panthers have 10 all star type talents locked up til 2030, so players like Schmidt know they can come cash in after 1 successful year. So the winning culture builds on itself (and it helps that they legit don’t have one bad long term contract), and they have $34m in cap space next offseason.
You’re absolutely right tho about teams making the mistake of just getting “tougher.” Bruins and others tried that and they got slower and less skilled. Panthers can win games in so many ways. It’s a trap to just think u need to get tougher. Good video!
Nosek did play on our pk as a 3rd pk center. Before he got here Stenlund was our second line pk center. Our fourth line does alot more then other teams fourth liners but it's mostly because Zito picks players that can thrive in our system. They dump and chase, play hard on the body, and close gaps. We also roll our lines all the time even in the most important part of the games which usually allow for our best players to always be well rested. Whereas teams like the oilers play McDavid and Draisaitl way too much in tough situations and by the end of a loss they look absolutely gassed.
this was incredibly accurate.
i don't think the NHL has completely grasped how much better Florida is than everyone else.
Are we really using the Florida Panthers as a model NHL franchise? Should the Bruins tank the next three or four seasons to acquire high draft picks the way that the Panther did? The Bruins have been one of the best teams in the leagues for the last 15 years. They were usually drafting at the end of each round. You can't stay on top forever. It does not help the Bruins that they play in Taxachusetts while the Panthers play in tax free Florida.
Every GM in hockey should watch this. Absolute truth. Every take is spot on.
I don’t know which interview it was but Tkachuk said that every away game everyone on the team ate together, players, coach’s and staff. I think the panthers are bringing back “team”.
I am in Florida and have been a fan since day one. These guys literally love each other and don’t care about individual statistics. When your partner on the ice feels like your brother, you will run through a brick wall for him and you don’t want to disappoint. I wish the Dolphins were the same. These guys are special for the game, the fans and each other. Full accountability!!
The Panthers are the New England Patriots of the NHL ….People hate them because they ain’t them
Panthers fan here, what Sweeney and Neely have done and are continuing to do to the Bruins is absolutely disgraceful.
When your 3rd line can match any other team's 1st line is all you need to know. Go Cats!!!
Panthers are a family, a brotherhood! You will never hear a “passenger “ comment from Captain Barkov! 💯
Great 👍🏼 video
You keep saying “it’s that simple” but it’s not. If signing any cheap 4th line guy won you a Cup then everyone would gladly do that.
The Panthers win because they have a better eye for talent (70% of their roster were cast offs from other clubs) and a locker room that does not allow each other slack on the details especially defensively.
And what people miss is that the Panthers toughness isn’t manufactured. They don’t sign tough guys. They sign good hockey players that happen to be tough. Their hitting and grit comes from executing the system. Too many team kneecap their execution for sake of being “tough”.
Go watch ECF…. The Canes came out every day trying to bang with the Panthers and it just lead to a beating. The Panthers don’t lead with toughness. They lead with execution and then toughness follows.
Cats 50 goal scorer is also a runner up for the selke
The Panthers also take shots on players with high draft pedigree that may not have worked out where they were originally. They had 8 lottery picks on the roster. The top power play was all guys drafted 6th or better. This even works to a lesser extent with guys like Wennberg, Montour, Gadjovich, Adam Boqvist, Olli Juolevi, and now the next one may be Pulujarvi. This volume shooting approach with talent is the difference few are talking about.
The cats will win again. If you disagree just let me know who will beat them, please.
I can’t see them losing four playoff games to no one.
And why did they crush the Oilers? Depth…
@thecamshowshow New Subscriber here. Also live in Fort Lauderdale. I’ll tell you something that very few talk about as kids being on the pond playing. Every chance you can get in cold weather is very important but adult hockey professional hockey is played indoors and I know for a fact that the players were highly visible around here. Say the weather is one of their favorite parts of living in Fort Lauderdale after they built this new beautiful practice facility, not far from the beach Where they can drive their golf carts to practice. It’s really a hockey community. A lot of new rinks have gone up in Broward County alone. I think that’s one point that a lot of people aren’t touching on really enjoy your show Cam🐀
@thecamshowshow The fact that Bill Zito has not won General Manager the year yet is mind-boggling Gr8 show Cam 🐀