NEWARK, NJ - JUNE 30: Aleksander Barkov puts on his hat with Director of Scouting Scott Luce (R) and Assistant General Manager Michael Santos (L) after being selected number two over all in the first round by the Florida Panthers during the 2013 NHL Draft at the Prudential Center on June 30, 2013 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

NEWARK, NJ - JUNE 30: Aleksander Barkov puts on his hat with Director of Scouting Scott Luce (R) and Assistant General Manager Michael Santos (L) after being selected number two over all in the first round by the Florida Panthers during the 2013 NHL Draft at the Prudential Center on June 30, 2013 in Newark, New Jersey. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)

On June 30, 2013 Florida Panthers general manager Dale Tallon faced a choice on the draft floor of the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey.

After the Colorado Avalanche took Nathan MacKinnon with the No. 1 pick in the NHL Draft, it came down to two prospects at No. 2: do-it-all center Aleksander Barkov from Finland or slick defenseman Seth Jones of Texas.

“We had some young defensemen already in the mix, we thought our biggest need was – it was close. It came down to Barkov and Jones,” Tallon said.

Almost the entire year, Jones had been the No. 1 rated prospect, but doubts started before the draft, for Tallon and the rest of the teams picking high in the draft. There was a belief that defensemen took longer to develop and teams looked at forwards as a surer bet in the top-5 of the draft.

Tallon had seen Jones and knew what the defenseman offered. His European scouts, especially Finnish scout Jari Kekalainen, were bullish on Barkov – a talented player but someone who wasn’t as known in North America.

The pitch was simple to Tallon.

“They felt that for his age he was one of the most well-rounded players both offensively and defensively,” he said. “He was a more complete player than a lot of other players in that draft.”

This report sounded familiar to Tallon. He had snatched up a well-rounded centerman before as a general manager in a draft, and understood the importance to such a position.

Tallon selected Jonathan Toews with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2006 Draft. So when the time came to pick in 2013, he had to take the potential franchise center over the possible franchise blueliner.

"I’m a big center ice man and I’m big on centers, and I think you build your team through the middle with goaltending and centers and we already had Nick Bjugstad coming who we had just signed and this was a chance to give us two big men down the middle who were good players, one a righty and one a lefty," former assistant general manager Mike Santos said.

The decision has paid off quicker and better than a lot of expected. Barkov has turned into arguably the best two-way player from that draft year, and possibly the top overall player. This season he’s notched 23 points in 29 games, won 49.1 percent of his faceoffs while averaging 19:38 of ice-time per-game – 1:19 of which being shorthanded. His CF% is at 49.86 percent this season and his CF% Rel is a plus-3.21 according to War on Ice.

This means the the team also holds onto the puck more relative to the rest of the group during Barkov’s shifts.

“He’s confident. He’s big and strong and that’s the thing. He’s more experienced. His game is hitting another level because he’s more experienced now and he’s a big, strong kid,” Panthers coach Gerard Gallant said. “His confidence is second-to-none. That’s what we expect. He’s a high draft pick. The last two years have been pretty good years for young player development, now he’s at a different level and he brings it every night in a consistent game.”

Barkov’s game was forged through his own defensive nature along with the teachings of his father – Aleksander Sr. a former pro player in Russia, Italy and Finland.

His dad gave him pro-style advice at a young age, and still does to this day.

“I don’t know how he gets to watch my every game on TV and texts me after every game on what I can do better,” Barkov said.

View photos SUNRISE, FL - NOVEMBER 25: Goaltender Steve Mason #35 of the Philadelphia Flyers stops a shot by Aleksander Barkov #16 of the Florida Panthers at the BB&T Center on November 25, 2013 in Sunrise, Florida. The Panthers defeated the Flyers 3-1. (Photo by Joel Auerbach/Getty Images) More

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