Colton Sceviour Q&A: Excited for Opportunity to Shine with Panthers

The Florida Panthers believe that Colton Sceviour’s best years are still ahead of him. A fourth-round pick (112th overall) of the Stars in the 2007 NHL Draft, the 27-year-old forward spent the past two seasons with Dallas, recording a total of 49 points (20-29—49) while playing in 71 games during each of those two campaigns. Sceviour, who signed a two-year deal with Florida on July 1, was considered by many to be one of the better depth forwards available on the free agent market this summer, but could potentially prove to be much more than that for the Panthers during the upcoming season. A hard-working player with an underrated shot, Sceviour surpassed the 50-point plateau three times during his tenure in the American Hockey League, and at least one of his new Panthers teammates believes that a lot of that offensive magic is still there, waiting to be unleashed. “Colton is an all-around player who was definitely — if not the best — one of the best players on the Texas Stars. He could be put in any situation and succeed,” said Panthers forward Reilly Smith, who played with Sceviour on the Dallas Stars’ AHL affiliate in 2012-13. “He can score goals, that’s for sure, and is also a good defensive player. It sounds like he’s probably put more hours on his defensive game with Dallas. He hasn’t really been given an opportunity [offensively] from what I’ve seen or heard in the NHL. Once he does get that opportunity, he’ll start to thrive.” Following an introductory press conference at the BB&T Center in July, Sceviour sat down with FloridaPanthers.com’s Jameson Olive to discuss everything from fighting for a roster spot to sharing a locker room with future Hall of Famer Jaromir Jagr.OLIVE: How exciting is it to be joining the Panthers at a time when it looks as if hockey is really beginning to take off in Florida?SCEVIOUR: Tampa made some runs the last couple years, and now you see (the Panthers) making some moves and making a lot of strides. We’ve made a lot of offseason moves to keep going in the right direction. It’s an exciting time to be a hockey fan in Florida, for sure. I’m excited for it.OLIVE: You scored 20-plus goals in three consecutive seasons during your time in the AHL. What do you believe, if anything, is holding you back from finding that same offensive success at the NHL level? SCEVIOUR: I’ve always thought that I can produce offensively at the NHL level, which is easier to …

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