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***Whitecap*** · 08-23-2024, 11:49 AM

Being one of the oldest franchises in the SHL, with a history dating all the way back to S5, the Los Angeles Panthers have had their share of legendary players don the teal and orange. One such player was Phillip Winters, who had made his debut with LA in S45 and had his impressive career stretch to S62. Throughout this lengthy career, Winters played a franchise record 996 games for the club, and put up a total of 835 points, also a record. That is, until now.

Before I continue with that thought, let me take you all the way back to the S65 draft. Coincidentally, the draft actually happened to be my first draft after being named co-GM of the Panthers alongside Fuzz. We held the 15th overall pick at the time and there was a list of players we were looking at grabbing at that position. Things changed quickly when the draft progressed, and I still remember how shocked Fuzz was when a certain user named Toivo kept slipping in the first round. Eventually we pulled the trigger on a trade with Calgary to swap our 1st rounder with theirs, thus allowing us to select Toivo’s player Reed Kobo at 11th overall. Since I didn’t know him too well myself I trusted that it would turn out to be a good pick, and boy did it.

Doing some looking around, I learned that Toivo actually had two previous players suit up for the Panthers at some point in their careers, one of which being LAP’s 1st overall pick back in S49. It felt only right to bring him back to a place he had called home in the past already, and this decision turned out to be a historic one for both the player and the team. When Kobo was called up in S67, LA was on the verge of going through a rather tough rebuild. This propelled him to an important role with the team pretty much right away. While his +/- rating in those initial seasons took a bit of a hit, reflecting the team’s poor performance on the whole, he still managed to hit the ground running offensively. He put up a respectable 54 points in his rookie season before exploding for 31 goals and 78 points in S68.

After a few more seasons in the league’s basement, the Panthers started really turning a corner around S73 thanks in large part due to Kobo’s continued impressive performances. By the time LA was competitive again, Kobo had turned into a true star that the team could consistently rely upon for their offense. In the stretch from S68 to S74, Kobo was one of the team’s top 3 point scorers in all but one season. This stretch included a career high total of 92 points in S74, and culminated in a Challenge Cup win in S75 where he put up 22 points in 18 games in those playoffs.

Kobo has continued to be a player LA could rely upon time and time again, including in the current season, S78. Despite slowly becoming one of the older players on the team, he is still scoring at over a point per game pace as he looks to be a key piece to another run at the cup. This week, Kobo’s incredible career provided him with another achievement. With his assist on a goal in the final moments of a thrilling 4-3 victory over the San Francisco Pride, Kobo has become the all-time leading point scorer in franchise history. On a team with so much history, with so many players coming and going, Kobo can proudly say he’s scored the most points of all of them while wearing the Panthers sweater. He has since expanded his total after putting up another 4 points performance in the following game against Atlanta. Needless to say, he’s not done yet.

Congratulations to @Toivo on his incredible career so far. I for one cannot wait to see what else he can achieve in his time here. Regardless of what happens, he will always remain a legend in LA and he has deservedly etched his name in the Panthers history book forever.

[Image: 0PEazmi.jpeg]

Full credit to @enigmatic for the excellent graphic

**_Blitz_** · 08-23-2024, 11:55 AM

Congratulations, @Toivo!

Panthers

vbottas17 · 08-23-2024, 12:14 PM

Mennään pojat!

Congrats Toivo!

From being a little known Finnish defenseman prospect who joined the league on a whim (always good by the way), to being Halifax captain, a SHL GM, SHL first overall pick, to now being the all-time leading scorer of my favorite SHL franchise, you're the best Toivo!

Cheers

:erik:

Toivo · 08-23-2024, 12:56 PM

Aww, I appreciate this post so much. Thank you for the recognition, it's been great calling Los Angeles home. I'm so proud Kobo has reached this milestone and the things we have accomplished recently. None of it would have been possible without the great members of the Los Angeles locker room (current and former teammates), the great foundation laid out by Fuzz, Whitecap, and the other important figures behind the scenes. Appreciate you all.

Love the graphic @enigmatic!

It's always a great day to be Panther Panthers

*Zerg* · 08-23-2024, 01:04 PM

TOIVO! Save that puck! Next stop the 1k club!

***Frenchie*** · 08-23-2024, 01:11 PM

Always been an absolute class act, never complained about the gutter years, never complained about lower production some years, always answered the call when needed, always took an important role without hesitation. Its been an absolute pleasure to share the ice and the LR with you @Toivo, let's get a couple more cups for the shelf! Panthers