This week, our Season Rewind series continued looking back at the 2018-19 campaigns of Vincent Trocheck and Josh Brown.
In the time Trocheck was out of the lineup with a fractured ankle he suffered on Nov. 19, the Panthers struggled to string together wins, amassing a 9-13-5 record while scoring an average of 2.85 goals per game. Upon his return, however, the team improved, finishing the season 19-12-6 while averaging a whopping 3.43 goals per game.
Upon his return to the lineup, the ice time of Panthers star captain Aleksander Barkov was reduced, allowing Barkov's torrid scoring touch to light up the league in the second half of the season.
"When Troch came back, I was a little fresher on the ice," said Barkov, who posted 52 points (18 goals, 34 assists) in 37 games following Trocheck's return to the ice. "I didn't have to play those big minutes. I think I was playing three or four minutes less than I played before that."
But for Trocheck, the future is the focus now, as he plans to take this offseason to fully prepare and train to help the Cats get back into the playoff picture next season.
"Missing the playoffs is unacceptable, especially with the team that we have and the talent that we have," Trocheck said. "Going forward, I think now it's on us to realize what a talented team we do have, start maturing mentally as a team, take it to the next level and go on a run."
To read more on Trocheck's 2018-19 season, click HERE.
