Vilmanis isn't scoring yet, and Maurice is right not to care
One point through six games, but the rookie's minutes haven't flinched and his line with Lundell is winning the shot battle.
Sandis Vilmanis has one point in six games, and I wouldn't move him an inch. The kid is already doing the difficult part of the job; the puck going in is the easy part, and it's just running late.
Paul Maurice said it straight this week: "Whether he scores or not will not affect his ice time, which is the single best thing for a young player." Our ice-time numbers say he means every word of it.
The Ferda number: 12.5. That's Vilmanis's average ice time through six games, per NHL data. It's up from about 10 and a half minutes during his 19-game trial last season, and he hasn't dropped below 11.4 minutes in any game.
His two heaviest nights, 13.6 minutes against Anaheim and again against Minnesota, both came while he was still hunting for his first point. That's a coach paying for the process, not the stat line.
Lineup watch:
The line is winning. Vilmanis rides with Anton Lundell and Eetu Luostarinen, the same trio that opened the season as the third line. In about 49 and a half minutes together at 5-on-5, they've out-attempted opponents 54-40, outshot them 27-17 and won the scoring chances 25-16.
He's second on the team in expected goals and tied for second in 5-on-5 scoring chances. He has seven shots in six games. A winger who keeps arriving in those dangerous areas isn't in a slump. He's standing in a queue.
His center sees the same thing. "It's just a matter of time when the puck starts to go in," Lundell said.
The first point finally came Monday, a secondary assist in the 5-3 loss in Buffalo. It's a small thing, but it still counts.
Why it matters now
This isn't optional anymore, with Aleksander Barkov out six to eight weeks and Brad Marchand out about six. Florida is 1-2-2 over its last five, and the power play is converting 9.4 percent of the time, by our count.
Somebody besides the Tkachuks and Sam Reinhart has to start contributing offensively. The Lundell line is where those goals should come from, and Vilmanis is the shooter on it.
He's got the hands for it: he put up 11 points in eight games for Latvia at the World Championship in May. He scored 17 goals for Charlotte last season. Not bad for a fifth-round pick, 157th overall in 2022.
What I like most is how he's handling it. "Play the right way, play Panthers hockey," he said. "It's understanding the game more than trying to do something."
That's exactly the right answer. Young players who squeeze the stick start cheating for offense, and then the chances disappear along with the goals. Vilmanis isn't doing that, and that's the whole point. Paciencia.
The call
Vilmanis scores a goal in the next three games, starting tonight in Columbus, where he's expected back with Lundell and Luostarinen.
Pabs' read: Maurice is giving a 22-year-old the one thing that makes a scorer, which is the freedom to miss. The goals are coming, and when they do, they'll come in bunches.
