Claude Giroux's fun new world with the Florida Panthers

Claude Giroux was asked whether playing for the Florida Panthers is as fun as it looks.

«Well, we're winning,» he said. «So, yeah.»

Giroux, 34, had a classic NHL trade deadline glow-up, going from the draft lottery-bound Philadelphia Flyers to the Panthers, who won the Presidents' Trophy for the regular season's best record. He went from near the basement to the penthouse, from moroseness to merriment.

He also went from a team that was 31st in goals per game to a team that had the best scoring average (4.11) for any team since the 1995-96 season. Watching a Panthers game can be equal parts exhilarating and exhausting, as they push the pace and constantly create offensively.

«You kinda learn how to manage your ice time. When to go and when to rest,» Giroux told ESPN recently. «It definitely took me a couple of games. It's a high pace. It's about supporting each other, knowing where your teammates are. When you get used to it, your job becomes a little easier. But it was definitely an adjustment.»

There have been other adjustments for Giroux since joining the Panthers, having now played 18 regular-season games and three playoff games with them. Like adjusting to a new climate, shipping down to Sunrise, Florida, when Philadelphia was still in a wintery chill.

«It's nice and hot on the beach, so that's different,» he said, admitting that he still has shopping to do for a South Florida wardrobe.

But perhaps the biggest adjustment for Giroux: Going from being the face of his franchise to just one of many for the Panthers.

What's it like to welcome Claude Giroux to your team at the trade deadline?

«For someone that's been in Philly for as long as he had, being kind of the face of the franchise for a while, we all understood