Aaron Ekblad putting Panthers on his shoulders

DETROIT -- We all should struggle like Aaron Ekblad. He has scored six goals, tied for fourth among NHL defensemen. He has taken 77 shots, second among NHL defensemen. And he's 20 years old.
Everything is relative, and Ekblad has set the highest of bars with the Florida Panthers. He was the No. 1 pick in the 2014 NHL Draft and the winner of the Calder Trophy as NHL rookie of the year in 2014-15. After a strong second season, the Panthers signed him to an eight-year contract extension July 1 and named him an alternate captain entering this season.

But for many reasons, Ekblad got off to a tough start amid a tough start for the Panthers, who fired coach Gerard Gallant on Sunday and won for the first time under replacement Tom Rowe when they defeated the Detroit Red Wings 2-1 in overtime on Thursday.
Ekblad's point production is down -- he has one assist in 24 games -- and his possession numbers are down. His game has come along lately, but he, like his team, has to adjust to a lot of changes and take another step.
"I told him, 'Just relax. Go have some fun. Stop putting so much pressure on yourself,' " Rowe said. "Because I think that's what he was doing. He wants to be the best, and he takes a lot of responsibility wearing the 'A' and the status that he carries in the League and on our team.
"Got to remember: It's a game, and everybody makes mistakes. As long as you come to the rink every day ready to work, that's all we're going to ask."

Ekblad always has been intense. It's one of the reasons he has made so much of his talent so quickly. One night during his rookie season, when he was 18 and living with captain Willie Mitchell, he came home and fumed about a mistake.
"We lost that game," he told Mitchell. "It was my fault."
"No, it's not your fault," Mitchell said. "It was one play in the game."
Mitchell smiled as he told the story later that season.
"That's the pressure he kind of puts on himself," Mitchell said then, "because he believes he can make a difference in every game, even at 18."
Well, imagine Ekblad at 20, with two seasons under his belt and an "A" on his sweater, dealing with all this:
Mitchell, a mentor, last played Jan. 18, his career all-but-officially over because of concussions. Brian Campbell, another mentor and his usual partner, left for the Chicago Blackhawks as a free agent on July 1.
The Panthers traded Erik Gudbranson and Dmitry Kulikov; acquired Jason Demers, Jakub Kindl, Mark Pysyk and Keith Yandle; and promoted Mike Matheson from the minors, overhauling their defense.

The Panthers did not make Ekblad the captain, naming center Derek MacKenzie instead.
"We didn't want to put too much pressure on him," Rowe said. "I mean, captain's a very, very big responsibility, and when you have the veterans that we have that can teach him along the way, we thought that was the best route to take with him."
But alternate captain is a big responsibility too, especially when things aren't going well.
Ekblad sustained a concussion at the World Cup of Hockey 2016, where he played for Team North America, comprised of players age 23 and younger from Canada and the United States. Rowe said that "maybe set him back a little bit."
When Ekblad took the ice for the Panthers, he didn't have his old partners. He has bounced from Yandle to Matheson to Kindl. "Always in the early parts, if you get with new guys, it's hard to find a little bit of chemistry," Ekblad said.
He had one goal in 10 games during Florida's 4-5-1 start, two goals in 15 games with the Panthers at 7-7-1. Though he scored four goals in seven games after that, he didn't have an assist yet when Gallant was fired. His teammates hadn't been putting the puck in the net.
"I talked to him a little bit," Campbell said Tuesday, when the Panthers were in Chicago. "I know he's been kind of switched around a little bit with different guys. Sometimes that's a little bit of a challenge. … It's a little frustrating when there's a coaching change. …
"Hockey players don't like a lot of change. They like to have everything kind of set in stone and know what they're doing. ...
"I think there's a little bit more pressure on Aaron obviously now being an [alternate] captain. I'm not saying that's anything to do with it. It's just a little bit different, and I'm sure the atmosphere in that room is a little bit."

Perhaps Rowe can help. He has changed the Panthers' defensive-zone coverage from man-to-man to zone, hoping to make it more efficient and get the puck up ice quicker. The less time in the defensive zone, the better. He also has put an emphasis on pushing the pace and going to the net. Ekblad has the skill set to push the pace, and if his teammates go to the net more often, maybe the puck will go in more often and the points will follow.
"He's starting to become Ek again, and he's really adjusted nicely to having a leadership role," assistant general manager Eric Joyce said. "I mean, it's a hard thing when you're 20 years old standing in front of guys that three or four years ago you were watching on TV and telling them, 'You're not getting the job done.' It's a hard thing, but he's taken it on, and he's really starting to grow into it."
Part of growing into it is recognizing you're growing into it.
"I try not to put it on my shoulders too much," Ekblad said. "In the end, I'm a younger guy. I'm going to grow into that leadership role. … There's no point in putting that pressure on yourself, because it's only going to make you worry about different things."
Said Campbell: "I wouldn't be too worried about Aaron."