Panthers GM Tallon 'proud' to continue working with coach Gallant
The Florida Panthers appear to be in good hands for the for foreseeable future.
The club held a press conference Saturday to formally announce extensions for general manager Dale Tallon and head coach Gerard Gallant, both of whom are set to remain on board for the next three seasons.
Tallon, for one, could not help but gush over his partnership with his coach.
"Gerard and I have been together now, this is our second season, and I couldn't be more proud of an affiliation," he said. "I'm very honored to be part of the Florida Panthers, and I want to thank Vinnie Viola and Doug Cifu for not only extending myself but to extend Gerard, so Gerard and I will be concurrent the next three years working side-by-side.
"I can't think of a better person to work with, to be associated with in all my years, in 50 years in the NHL and hockey, I don't think I've met a better person than Gerard Gallant," Tallon continued. "His passion for the game, his professionalism, his character are impeccable and he's done a marvelous job for us. We're 18 games over .500 in less than 120 games in his coaching career here with us and with a young team."
The Panthers are coming off their best month in franchise history, but the extensions had been in the works for months, co-owner Doug Cifu admitted.
"Vinnie (Viola) and I don't make snap decisions," Cifu said. "We like to run organizations with people that we care a great deal about and have a great deal of confidence in, and that's what we have with each of the four guys up here."
Since Tallon took over the job in 2010, every single player on the roster has been replaced, save for defenseman Dmitry Kulikov, while the Panthers recorded only 66 points in the season prior to Gallant taking over as head coach.
Florida now boasts a pair of building blocks that would likely be the envy of 29 other clubs - Aleksander Barkov and Aaron Ekblad - and sat second in the Atlantic Division heading into Saturday's action thanks to a mix of youthful exuberance and veteran leadership.
While there's still some work to be done for the Panthers to become a consistent playoff team, let alone a bona fide contender, Tallon and Gallant clearly have the confidence from ownership that will allow them an unhindered opportunity to lead the team into the future.