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Dustin L. Nelson
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Justin Fontaine Lands PTO With Panthers
Former Minnesota Wild winger Justin Fontaine has landed a tryout (PTO) with the Florida Panthers, the team announced Thursday. They also announced that they’ve added former Winnipeg Jets defenseman Adam Pardy to their training camp roster on a PTO.
The 28-year-old played a depth role for the Minnesota Wild since signing as an undrafted free agent out of the University of Minnesota Duluth. He just finished up a two-year contract with an AAV of $1 million and bounced between the team’s third and fourth lines over those two seasons.
Two seasons back, Fontaine posted strong possession numbers even though he saw time as a healthy scratch under head coach Mike Yeo. He posted nine goals and 31 points in 72 games, with a -0.18% adjusted CF%Rel while taking significantly more defensive zone starts than the rest of the forward group. He also posted solid WOWY numbers, with almost every forward on the team showing improved possession while on the ice with Fontaine.
RELATED: The Hockey Writers’ 2016 PTO Tracker
Last season wasn’t as strong of a year. Injuries and lower offensive production saw his role reduced. He finished the year with a -4.15% adjusted CF%Rel while getting similar zone starts to the prior season. Fontaine scored only five goals and 16 points through 60 games. There were moments when injuries thinned the team’s forward corps, creating the opportunity for Fontaine to step up into a larger role with more offensive responsibility, but he never made it stick.
Only three years into his NHL career, Fontaine has the ability to play a depth role as a defensively-minded winger. He also took on penalty kill responsibilities last season for the first time, making him more valuable as a depth addition. That could be useful for the Panthers if they want to shift some penalty kill responsibility away from the team’s top scorers.
Jussi Jokinen, Jonathan Huberdeau, Aleksander Barkov, Vincent Trocheck and Reilly Smith were five of the six forwards with the most penalty kill ice time last season. Those five forwards ranked second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth on the team in scoring, respectively. Fontaine could provide another option for the team to free up some minutes and all-around responsibility from the players who are providing the team with their offense.
RELATED: “We Believe In Each Other,” Huberdeau Excited to Have Panthers Core Locked Up
With a handful of young players on the cusp in Florida, Fontaine might be a safe addition should he earn a spot coming out of camp. He’s capable of slotting into a depth role on a line with Derek Mackenzie and if a player like Kyle Rau, Dryden Hunt or Jayce Hawryluk performs well during the season and surpasses Fontaine on the depth chart, he could be waived without serious repercussions should he get claimed. However, he may just be competition at camp with recent acquisitions like Colton Sceviour, Jared McCann and Jonathan Marchessault likely to provide more versatile options with higher upside on depth lines.
Like all players signing PTOs, Fontaine remains free to sign with any club. Of all the high-profile players agreeing to tryouts over the last few weeks, Fontaine is likely to find a role with an NHL club.
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