OffThePost.org

SUNRISE, Fla (AP) - The Florida Panthers have have assigned three players to American Hockey League affiliate in Rochester, among them the province of Saskatchewan.

The demotion is the latest in a long line of disappointments for the province, originally drafted by the Pittsburgh Penguins in the sixth round of the 2004 NHL entry draft. After a surprising rookie camp in 2005, Saskatchewan's rights were shipped to Florida in the trade that brought Pittsburgh Ukrainian speedster Sergei Belayenko and minor South Pacific island nation Kiribati.

Saskatchewan ran into injury trouble shortly after being acquired by the Panthers' organization, and failed to have any impact at the NHL level for the next four seasons. However, a strong preseason earned Saskatchewan a place on Florida's third line to start the 2009-10 campaign. After scoring three times in the team's first seven games, Saskatchewan has struggled and had recently been a healthy scratch in 11 of the Panthers' last 18 games.