A member of the 2010 Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks -- a team built by Tallon -- Brouwer brings with him 102 games of playoff experience. In looking back at those Blackhawks, the 33-year-old said he believes Tallon has the Panthers following a similar blueprint in Florida.
"He's built this team over the past couple of years with kind of the same model as Chicago in how it looks," Brouwer said. "I remember us bringing in guys like John Madden, bringing in a few older guys in to help out with the younger guys to bring a little bit of experience and kind of push the team over the top. I'm hoping that I can be one of those guys."
After his time in Chicago came to an end in 2011, Brouwer went on to suit up in Washington (2011-2015), St. Louis (2015-2016) and Calgary (2016-2018) - a career in which he recorded 341 points (169 goals, 172 assists) in 763 regular-season games.
But after a string of successful stops, Brouwer hit a roadblock this past season with the Flames, posting career lows in goals (6), points (22) and average ice time (13:56). This dip in production prompted Calgary to buyout his contract in early August, making him an unrestricted free agent.
Still, Brouwer believes last season isn't a fair indication of what he'll bring to the Panthers.
"I feel like I bring some depth," Brouwer said. "My numbers in Calgary over the past two years were not how I feel reflect the player that I am… I feel like I'm a versatile player. I can sit in and fill a lot of different roles. I know this team is a really young and talented team. For me, it's just to support and help out in situations that I excel in."
When asked what situations he'd like to be placed in, Brouwer joked that although "everybody would love to be on the power play" he's more interested in being the type of player that can slot in anywhere in the lineup on any given night, a piece of a larger championship puzzle.
"When the opportunity arrived to come to Florida and play for the Panthers, we were really excited about it," Brouwer said. "It's a phenomenal young team, a great place to live and something my family is really looking forward to."
Having played against Florida throughout his career, Brouwer described the Panthers as being a team that is "extremely hard to play against," and added that he is excited to play in coach Bob Boughner's up-tempo system, especially alongside budding superstars like Aleksander Barkov, Vincent Trocheck and Jonathan Huberdeau.
"I see something special in the making," Brouwer said.
