The Florida Panthers are taking a chance on first-time head coach Bob Boughner, but he's hopeful that history has him lined up for a successful tenure in South Florida.

Boughner is coming off two seasons as an assistant with the San Jose Sharks, a situation he views as quite similar to the one he's entering.

"The year before I got there they missed the playoffs. Then we came in and it was an immediate boost," Boughner told Jameson Olive of the team's website, referring to the fact San Jose advanced to the Stanley Cup Final in the first season under head coach Pete DeBoer.

"That's the same thing we're looking for here. I think the players are going to respond to it. They're going to have a little new life. It's a clean slate for a lot of guys. They have a lot of guys, from what I know, that are already hungry to forget about last year and bounce back."

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General manager Dale Tallon certainly believes Boughner is the right person for the job.

In order for the Panthers to return to the playoffs, honing team defense will be key, and that's something Boughner's taken pride in over the years.

"I love that challenge," he said. "It's what I've done my whole coaching career. I've developed guys at the junior level and then I went to San Jose and had my hands on guys like Brent Burns and Brenden Dillon, the younger D. That's what I love to do.

"We're going to jump right in, dig right in with that group. I'd like to see a huge bounce back from the whole group, but it starts back there, for sure."

Along those lines, it certainly helps to have a star player like Aaron Ekblad - a family friend of Boughner's - on the back end to build around.

"I know he's a proud kid and he's a face of this organization," Boughner said of Ekblad. "We need him to stay healthy and get back to what made him tick the first year. I think he's excited. I've talked to him already and I know he's excited about the change. It's going to be good."

Prior to his stint with the Sharks, Boughner spent several seasons as part-owner and coach of the OHL's Windsor Spitfires, and one season as an assistant with the Columbus Blue Jackets.

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