Last year he only played the fifth most even strength minutes for Panthers defensemen, and he was still the most consistent defensively, by a fair margin too. With a new coach, MacKenzie Weegar had an opportunity to earn more ice time and a more significant role, and not only has he done that, he’s playing like a first pair defender through the Florida Panthers‘ first six games.
Joel Quenneville called his performance against the Devils “noticeable”, which is not something you often want to say about a defenseman, certainly ones that have suited up for the Panthers.