# 2007–08 Florida Panthers season

The 2007–08 Florida Panthers season began on October 4, 2007, with a game at Madison Square Garden against the New York Rangers. It was the Panthers' 14th season in the National Hockey League (NHL).
The 2007 NHL Entry Draft took place in Columbus, Ohio, on June 22–23. For a complete list of Panthers' draft picks, see below.

## Regular season

The Panthers tied the Montreal Canadiens for the fewest shorthanded goals allowed with just three.

### Divisional standings

Southeast Division :
| | | GP | W | L | OTL | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | y – Washington Capitals | 82 | 43 | 31 | 8 | 242 | 231 | 94 |
| 2 | Carolina Hurricanes | 82 | 43 | 33 | 6 | 252 | 249 | 92 |
| 3 | Florida Panthers | 82 | 38 | 35 | 9 | 216 | 226 | 85 |
| 4 | Atlanta Thrashers | 82 | 34 | 40 | 8 | 216 | 272 | 76 |
| 5 | Tampa Bay Lightning | 82 | 31 | 42 | 9 | 223 | 267 | 71 |

### Conference standings

Eastern Conference :
| R | | Div | GP | W | L | OTL | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | z – Montreal Canadiens | NE | 82 | 47 | 25 | 10 | 262 | 222 | 104 |
| 2 | y – Pittsburgh Penguins | AT | 82 | 47 | 27 | 8 | 247 | 216 | 102 |
| 3 | y – Washington Capitals | SE | 82 | 43 | 31 | 8 | 242 | 231 | 94 |
| 4 | New Jersey Devils | AT | 82 | 46 | 29 | 7 | 206 | 197 | 99 |
| 5 | New York Rangers | AT | 82 | 42 | 27 | 13 | 213 | 199 | 97 |
| 6 | Philadelphia Flyers | AT | 82 | 42 | 29 | 11 | 248 | 233 | 95 |
| 7 | Ottawa Senators | NE | 82 | 43 | 31 | 8 | 261 | 247 | 94 |
| 8 | Boston Bruins | NE | 82 | 41 | 29 | 12 | 212 | 222 | 94 |
| 8.5 ||||||||||
| 9 | Carolina Hurricanes | SE | 82 | 43 | 33 | 6 | 252 | 249 | 92 |
| 10 | Buffalo Sabres | NE | 82 | 39 | 31 | 12 | 255 | 242 | 90 |
| 11 | Florida Panthers | SE | 82 | 38 | 35 | 9 | 216 | 226 | 85 |
| 12 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NE | 82 | 36 | 35 | 11 | 231 | 260 | 83 |
| 13 | New York Islanders | AT | 82 | 35 | 38 | 9 | 194 | 243 | 79 |
| 14 | Atlanta Thrashers | SE | 82 | 34 | 40 | 8 | 216 | 272 | 76 |
| 15 | Tampa Bay Lightning | SE | 82 | 31 | 42 | 9 | 223 | 267 | 71 |
Divisions: AT – Atlantic, NE – Northeast, SE – Southeast
bold – qualified for playoffs, y – division winner, z – placed first in conference (and division)

## Schedule and results
### October

Record: 5–7–0; Home: 4–2–0; Road: 1–5–0
| # | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | OT | Decision | Attendance | Record | Pts |
| 1 | October 4 | Florida | 2 – 5 | NY Rangers | | Vokoun | 18,200 | 0–1–0 | 0 |
| 2 | October 6 | New Jersey | 4 – 1 | Florida | | Vokoun | 19,250 | 0–2–0 | 0 |
| 3 | October 10 | Florida | 1 – 2 | Tampa Bay | | Anderson | 18,540 | 0–3–0 | 0 |
| 4 | October 11 | New Jersey | 0 – 3 | Florida | | Vokoun | 10,847 | 1–3–0 | 2 |
| 5 | October 13 | Tampa Bay | 4 – 6 | Florida | | Vokoun | 15,801 | 2–3–0 | 4 |
| 6 | October 16 | Florida | 2 – 1 | Montreal | SO | Vokoun | 21,273 | 3–3–0 | 6 |
| 7 | October 18 | Florida | 2 – 3 | Toronto | | Anderson | 19,349 | 3–4–0 | 6 |
| 8 | October 20 | Florida | 1 – 4 | Ottawa | | Vokoun | 19,904 | 3–5–0 | 6 |
| 9 | October 24 | Philadelphia | 3 – 4 | Florida | | Vokoun | 12,856 | 4–5–0 | 8 |
| 10 | October 26 | Buffalo | 4 – 2 | Florida | | Vokoun | 15,842 | 4–6–0 | 8 |
| 11 | October 27 | Florida | 3 – 4 | Nashville | | Vokoun | 15,767 | 4–7–0 | 8 |
| 12 | October 31 | Carolina | 2 – 4 | Florida | | Vokoun | 10,063 | 5–7–0 | 10 |

### November

Record: 7–6–1; Home: 3–3–0; Road: 4–3–1
| # | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | OT | Decision | Attendance | Record | Pts |
| 13 | November 2 | Florida | 4 – 2 | Buffalo | | Vokoun | 18,690 | 6–7–0 | 12 |
| 14 | November 3 | Florida | 2 – 4 | Carolina | | Vokoun | 17,547 | 6–8–0 | 12 |
| 15 | November 5 | Tampa Bay | 3 – 4 | Florida | | Vokoun | 10,149 | 7–8–0 | 14 |
| 16 | November 7 | Florida | 1 – 3 | Tampa Bay | | Vokoun | 16,526 | 7–9–0 | 14 |
| 17 | November 9 | Atlanta | 4 – 1 | Florida | | Vokoun | 14,268 | 7–10–0 | 14 |
| 18 | November 12 | Carolina | 4 – 3 | Florida | | Vokoun | 12,715 | 7–11–0 | 14 |
| 19 | November 13 | Florida | 2 – 3 | Atlanta | OT | Anderson | 12,599 | 7–11–1 | 15 |
| 20 | November 15 | Washington | 1 – 2 | Florida | | Vokoun | 12,101 | 8–11–1 | 17 |
| 21 | November 17 | Florida | 1 – 2 | Carolina | | Vokoun | 16,962 | 8–12–1 | 17 |
| 22 | November 19 | Florida | 4 – 3 | Washington | | Vokoun | 13,411 | 9–12–1 | 19 |
| 23 | November 21 | Florida | 5 – 2 | Columbus | | Vokoun | 13,326 | 10–12–1 | 21 |
| 24 | November 23 | NY Rangers | 2 – 3 | Florida | SO | Vokoun | 19,250 | 11–12–1 | 23 |
| 25 | November 28 | Florida | 2 – 1 | Washington | SO | Vokoun | 10,526 | 12–12–1 | 25 |
| 26 | November 29 | Boston | 4 – 3 | Florida | | Anderson | 14,926 | 12–13–1 | 25 |

### December

Record: 6–5–2; Home: 2–4–2; Road: 4–1–0
| # | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | OT | Decision | Attendance | Record | Pts |
| 27 | December 1 | Washington | 2 – 1 | Florida | | Vokoun | 14,333 | 12–14–1 | 25 |
| 28 | December 5 | Ottawa | 5 – 4 | Florida | | Anderson | 11,289 | 12–15–1 | 25 |
| 29 | December 7 | NY Islanders | 0 – 3 | Florida | | Vokoun | 14,502 | 13–15–1 | 27 |
| 30 | December 11 | Calgary | 2 – 1 | Florida | SO | Vokoun | 12,499 | 13–15–2 | 28 |
| 31 | December 13 | Florida | 1 – 0 | St. Louis | | Vokoun | 14,088 | 14–15–2 | 30 |
| 32 | December 15 | Florida | 2 – 5 | Detroit | | Vokoun | 20,066 | 14–16–2 | 30 |
| 33 | December 16 | Florida | 3 – 1 | Chicago | | Vokoun | 12,926 | 15–16–2 | 32 |
| 34 | December 18 | Florida | 3 – 2 | Montreal | | Vokoun | 21,273 | 16–16–2 | 34 |
| 35 | December 20 | Carolina | 4 – 5 | Florida | | Vokoun | 15,061 | 17–16–2 | 36 |
| 36 | December 22 | Toronto | 2 – 1 | Florida | OT | Vokoun | 18,500 | 17–16–3 | 37 |
| 37 | December 27 | Florida | 5 – 3 | Atlanta | | Vokoun | 16,080 | 18–16–3 | 39 |
| 38 | December 28 | Montreal | 5 – 1 | Florida | | Vokoun | 19,838 | 18–17–3 | 39 |
| 39 | December 30 | Philadelphia | 1 – 0 | Florida | | Vokoun | 18,767 | 18–18–3 | 39 |

### January

Record: 4–7–2; Home: 1–3–2; Road: 3–4–0
| # | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | OT | Decision | Attendance | Record | Pts |
| 40 | January 2 | Florida | 2 – 3 | New Jersey | | Vokoun | 14,124 | 18–19–3 | 39 |
| 41 | January 3 | Florida | 4 – 3 | NY Islanders | OT | Anderson | 11,428 | 19–19–3 | 41 |
| 42 | January 5 | Florida | 0 – 3 | Pittsburgh | | Vokoun | 17,090 | 19–20–3 | 41 |
| 43 | January 8 | Pittsburgh | 3 – 1 | Florida | | Vokoun | 17,086 | 19–21–3 | 41 |
| 44 | January 10 | Florida | 3 – 2 | Atlanta | SO | Vokoun | 14,805 | 20–21–3 | 43 |
| 45 | January 12 | Tampa Bay | 5 – 3 | Florida | | Vokoun | 16,578 | 20–22–3 | 43 |
| 46 | January 13 | Colorado | 4 – 3 | Florida | SO | Vokoun | 13,854 | 20–22–4 | 44 |
| 47 | January 16 | Florida | 3 – 5 | Philadelphia | | Vokoun | 19,207 | 20–23–4 | 44 |
| 48 | January 18 | Florida | 2 – 1 | New Jersey | | Anderson | 15,203 | 21–23–4 | 46 |
| 49 | January 19 | Florida | 3 – 5 | Washington | | Vokoun | 16,973 | 21–24–4 | 46 |
| 50 | January 22 | Ottawa | 3 – 5 | Florida | | Vokoun | 12,794 | 22–24–4 | 48 |
| 51 | January 24 | Edmonton | 4 – 3 | Florida | SO | Vokoun | 12,322 | 22–24–5 | 49 |
| 52 | January 30 | Buffalo | 1 – 0 | Florida | | Vokoun | 14,024 | 22–25–5 | 49 |

### February

Record:6–6–3; Home:2–1–3; Road:4–5–0
| # | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | OT | Decision | Attendance | Record | Pts |
| 53 | February 1 | Vancouver | 3 – 4 | Florida | SO | Vokoun | 17,523 | 23–25–5 | 51 |
| 54 | February 2 | Florida | 3 – 2 | Tampa Bay | | Vokoun | 19,977 | 24–25–5 | 53 |
| 55 | February 5 | Florida | 8 – 0 | Toronto | | Vokoun | 19,430 | 25–25–5 | 55 |
| 56 | February 7 | Florida | 4 – 5 | Ottawa | | Vokoun | 19,435 | 25–26–5 | 55 |
| 57 | February 9 | Florida | 6 – 3 | Boston | | Vokoun | 19,893 | 26–26–5 | 57 |
| 58 | February 10 | Florida | 3 – 5 | Buffalo | | Anderson | 18,690 | 26–27–5 | 57 |
| 59 | February 13 | Montreal | 2 – 1 | Florida | OT | Vokoun | 17,100 | 26–27–6 | 58 |
| 60 | February 15 | Washington | 2 – 4 | Florida | | Vokoun | 16,202 | 27–27–6 | 60 |
| 61 | February 16 | Florida | 4 – 5 | Carolina | | Vokoun | 17,737 | 27–28–6 | 60 |
| 62 | February 19 | Florida | 2 – 2 | Pittsburgh | | Vokoun | 17,075 | 27–29–6 | 60 |
| 63 | February 21 | Boston | 5 – 4 | Florida | SO | Vokoun | 14,992 | 27–29–7 | 61 |
| 64 | February 23 | Florida | 2 – 1 | Philadelphia | OT | Anderson | 19,629 | 28–29–7 | 63 |
| 65 | February 24 | Florida | 0 – 5 | NY Rangers | | Anderson | 17,645 | 28–30–7 | 63 |
| 66 | February 27 | Toronto | 4 – 3 | Florida | SO | Vokoun | 14,457 | 28–30–8 | 64 |
| 67 | February 29 | Minnesota | 3 – 2 | Florida | | Vokoun | 17,897 | 28–31–8 | 64 |

### March

Record: 8–3–1; Home: 6–2–1; Road: 2–1–0
| # | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | OT | Decision | Attendance | Record | Pts |
| 68 | March 2 | Florida | 1 – 0 | NY Islanders | | Anderson | 15,314 | 29–31–8 | 66 |
| 69 | March 4 | Florida | 1 – 0 | Boston | OT | Anderson | 16,478 | 30–31–8 | 68 |
| 70 | March 6 | Pittsburgh | 2 – 5 | Florida | | Anderson | 17,012 | 31–31–8 | 70 |
| 71 | March 8 | Atlanta | 2 – 3 | Florida | OT | Vokoun | 16,614 | 32–31–8 | 72 |
| 72 | March 12 | NY Islanders | 2 – 4 | Florida | | Vokoun | 15,233 | 33–31–8 | 74 |
| 73 | March 14 | NY Rangers | 2 – 3 | Florida | | Vokoun | 19,321 | 34–31–8 | 76 |
| 74 | March 16 | Atlanta | 1 – 3 | Florida | | Vokoun | 15,704 | 35–31–8 | 78 |
| 75 | March 20 | Carolina | 2 – 1 | Florida | SO | Vokoun | 18,546 | 35–31–9 | 79 |
| 76 | March 22 | Tampa Bay | 2 – 4 | Florida | | Vokoun | 18,502 | 36–31–9 | 81 |
| 77 | March 25 | Florida | 1 – 3 | Tampa Bay | | Vokoun | 16,110 | 36–32–9 | 81 |
| 78 | March 27 | Atlanta | 3 – 2 | Florida | | Vokoun | 17,301 | 36–33–9 | 81 |
| 79 | March 29 | Washington | 3 – 2 | Florida | | Vokoun | 17,832 | 36–34–9 | 81 |

### April

Record: 2–1–0; Home: 0–0–0; Road: 2–1–0
| # | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | Decision | Attendance | Record | Pts |
| 80 | April 1 | Florida | 3 – 2 | Atlanta | Anderson | 15,453 | 37–34–9 | 83 |
| 81 | April 4 | Florida | 4 – 3 | Carolina | Anderson | 18,680 | 38–34–9 | 85 |
| 82 | April 5 | Florida | 1 – 3 | Washington | Anderson | 18,277 | 38–35–9 | 85 |

## Playoffs

The Panthers failed to qualify for the playoffs for the seventh consecutive season. They last made the playoffs in 2000.

## Player statistics
### Skaters

| | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season |
| Player | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| Olli Jokinen | 82 | 34 | 37 | 71 | 67 |
| Nathan Horton | 82 | 27 | 35 | 62 | 85 |
| Stephen Weiss | 74 | 13 | 29 | 42 | 40 |
| David Booth | 73 | 22 | 18 | 40 | 40 |
| Jay Bouwmeester | 82 | 15 | 22 | 37 | 72 |
| Richard Zednik | 54 | 15 | 11 | 26 | 43 |
| Rostislav Olesz | 56 | 14 | 12 | 26 | 16 |
| Kamil Kreps | 76 | 8 | 17 | 25 | 29 |
| Steve Montador | 73 | 8 | 15 | 23 | 73 |
| Jozef Stumpel | 52 | 7 | 13 | 20 | 10 |

### Goaltenders

| | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season |
| Player | GP | Min | W | L | OT | GA | SO | SV% | GAA |
| Tomas Vokoun | 69 | 4031 | 30 | 29 | 8 | 180 | 4 | .919 | 2.63 |
| Craig Anderson | 17 | 935 | 8 | 6 | 1 | 35 | 2 | .935 | 2.25 |
    Pos = Position; GPI = Games played in; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes; +/- = Plus/minus; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals
    Min, TOI = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T,T/OT = Ties; OTL = Overtime losses; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts; SA = Shots against; SV = Shots saved; SV% = Save percentage;

## Awards and records
### Records

* On October 24, Olli Jokinen scored two goals against the Philadelphia Flyers to surpass Scott Mellanby on the franchise's all-time goal-scoring (158) and points (355) lists.

### Milestones

Regular Season :
| Player | Milestone | Reached |
| Cory Murphy | 1st NHL Game | October 4, 2007 |
| Cory Murphy | 1st NHL Goal 1st NHL Point | October 6, 2007 |
| Bryan Allen | 300th NHL Game | October 6, 2007 |
| Cory Murphy | 1st NHL Assist | October 11, 2007 |
| Stefan Meyer | 1st NHL Game | October 24, 2007 |
| Ville Peltonen | 100th NHL Point | October 26, 2007 |
| Olli Jokinen | 400th NHL Point | October 27, 2007 |
| Radek Dvorak | 300th NHL PIM | November 2, 2007 |
| Tanner Glass | 1st NHL Game | November 12, 2007 |

## Transactions

The Panthers have been involved in the following transactions during the 2007–08 season.

### Trades

| June 13, 2007 | To Florida Panthers 2nd-round pick in either 2007 or 2008 – Jacob Markstrom | To Tampa Bay Lightning Chris Gratton |
| June 22, 2007 | To Florida Panthers Tomas Vokoun | To Nashville Predators 1st-round pick in 2008 – Josh Bailey 2nd-round pick in 2007 – Nick Spaling conditional 2nd-round pick – Aaron Ness |
| February 26, 2008 | To Florida Panthers Wade Belak | To Toronto Maple Leafs 5th-round pick in 2008 – Jerome Flaake |
| February 26, 2008 | To Florida Panthers Karlis Skrastins 3rd-round pick in 2008 – Adam Comrie | To Colorado Avalanche Ruslan Salei |
| February 26, 2008 | To Florida Panthers Chad Kilger | To Toronto Maple Leafs 3rd-round pick in 2008 – James Livingston |

### Free agents

| Player | Former team | Contract Terms |
| Richard Zednik | New York Islanders | 2 years, $3.25 million |
| Brett McLean | Colorado Avalanche | 3 years, $5.1 million |
| Radek Dvorak | St. Louis Blues | 2 years, $3.1 million |
| Player | New team |
| Martin Gelinas | Nashville Predators |
| Alexei Semenov | San Jose Sharks |
| Alex Auld | Phoenix Coyotes |

## Draft picks

Florida's picks at the 2007 NHL Entry Draft in Columbus, Ohio. The Panthers had the 10th overall pick.
| Round | # | Player | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team (League) |
| 1 | 10 | Keaton Ellerby (D) | Canada | Kamloops Blazers (WHL) |
| 2 | 40 | Michal Repik (RW) | Czech Republic | Vancouver Giants (WHL) |
| 3 | 71 | Evgeny Dadonov (RW) | Russia | Traktor Chelyabinsk (RSL) |
| 4 | 101 | Matt Rust (C) | United States | U.S. National Team Development Program (NAHL) |
| 5 | 131 | John Lee (D) | United States | Moorhead High School (USHS-MN) |
| 6 | 181 | Corey Syvret (D) | Canada | Guelph Storm (OHL) |
| 7 | 191 | Ryan Wilson (LW) | Canada | Cambridge Winterhawks (MWJHL) |
| 7 | 202 | Sergei Gaiduchenko (G) | Ukraine | Lokomotiv Yaroslavl (RSL) |

## Farm teams
### American Hockey League

Florida has an affiliation agreement with the Rochester Americans for this season.

### ECHL

The Florida Everblades remained the Panthers' ECHL affiliate that season.