The final three games of the Panthers' season will be about making lasting impressions.

The team will have more than $30 million to spend on salaries in the offseason, and that should mean an influx of new faces in the fall. But coach Pete DeBoer said the Panthers will first look to the future within the organization.

Right wing Evgeny Dadonov is a young player who could find a role on one of the top two lines, DeBoer said. Dadonov, 22, has four goals in eight games since returning from a broken finger, and eight goals and 15 points in 33 games this season.

"We're looking for top-six forwards that can do some things in the organization. The reality is you're not going to go out and sign four or five of those guys, they're just not out there," DeBoer said. "[Dadonov] is a guy that has that type of potential, I think. But he's got to continue to develop."

DeBoer also cited center Ryan Carter among the late-season arrivals who has distinguished himself with effort and effective play. Carter has two goals and three points in 11 games since coming in the Cory Stillman trade.

The Panthers are hoping for that sort of response from forward Tim Kennedy, who has been summoned from Rochester for his second tour with the team. Kennedy will play Wednesday in Washington after a technicality in clearing re-entry waivers kept him out of Saturday's 4-2 loss to Pittsburgh. Kennedy had nondescript appearances in three games after being acquired in the Feb. 26 trade that sent Bryan McCabe to Buffalo.

"I knew he wasn't a big guy. I expected that we would see speed and energy and a guy tenacious all over the ice. We saw a little bit of that," DeBoer said. "He's going to get another chance." ...

Forward Patrick Rissmiller was reassigned to Rochester to make room for Kennedy. ... David Booth became the 18th player to appear in 300 games with the Panthers on Saturday.