Catching Up With Two Ex-Panthers

Every offseason, it seemed, brought more drama from changes in management and coaching, to star players being shipped out. Bouwmeester had seen enough.

``The biggest part of it was all the changes and turnover,’’ Bouwmeester said. ``It’s hard to build something and be consistent when that is always going on. I know Pete [DeBoer] is a real good coach, and he did a good job last year and will continue to do so. . . . I was there for six, seven years and had four head coaches and just as many GMs. It’s hard to build something when someone new wants to come in and start over.’’

Bouwmeester, who is from nearby Edmonton, is back in his element. The players’ parking lot in Calgary has its share of fancy sports cars, but a good number of players share Bouwmeester’s style and drive Chevy or Ford trucks.

Olli Jokinen isn’t one of those players. And unlike Bouwmeester, Jokinen didn’t want out of South Florida.