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Panthers Repeat As Stanley Cup Champs, Bennett Wins Conn Smythe

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Aided by Sam Reinhart’s four goals, the Florida Panthers have repeated as Stanley Cup Champions, defeating Edmonton in Game 6 by a score of 5-1. For his efforts, pending free agent Sam Bennett won the Conn Smythe after posting 15 goals throughout the playoffs.

Florida’s stars shone bright throughout the playoffs, including fantastic efforts by the likes of Reinhart, Aleksander Barkov, Carter Verhaeghe, Brad Marchand, Matthew Tkachuk, and, of course, solid play between the pipes from star netminder Sergei Bobrovsky. Remarkably, the Panthers had nine players record at least 15 points throughout the playoffs, with six recording at least 20 points. However, Bennett led the way with his incredible finishing ability. His knack for elevating his game in the playoffs culminated in a well-deserved Conn Smythe win, and he’s now poised to cash in on his next contract.

For Edmonton, it’s another season that has ended in heartbreak. Despite another postseason of heroics from Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl, the Oilers were once again undone by their defensive flaws and inconsistent goaltending. For his part, McDavid has amassed an absurd 75 points over the last two playoffs, including last season’s Conn Smythe win, while Draisaitl added an incredible 65 points in that time. However, both stars will have to wait for their shot at hoisting the Stanley Cup.

Bobrovsky turned aside 28 of Edmonton’s 29 shots. “Bob” was particularly strong in the second period, turning aside 10 shots, including several high-danger chances. A key moment came midway through the second period when McDavid and Corey Perry broke out on a two-on-one. However, Perry couldn’t get solid contact on McDavid’s pass through the crease. Just a few minutes later, Reinhart potted his second of the game, giving Florida a commanding 3-0 lead and essentially putting the game out of reach. He scored his third and fourth goals on empty-netters late in the third period.

With the Stanley Cup Finals concluded, another NHL season comes to a close. Attention now turns to a busy offseason schedule, which includes the NHL Draft and the start of free agency in the next few weeks.

Sam Bennett’s Next Contract Expected To Exceed Teammate Verhaeghe’s

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Forward Sam Bennett is having a phenomenal postseason run for the Panthers, and it’s coming at an opportune time for the pending free agent. The soon-to-be 29-year-old is set to land a hefty contract, and Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman shared on radio show SN590 that while the Panthers have reportedly offered Bennett a deal similar to Carter Verhaeghe’s recent extension, he believes it won’t be enough to keep him in Florida.

The Panthers and Verhaeghe agreed to an eight-year extension in October. He will earn $7MM each year of the deal, with $46MM of the $56MM being paid out in bonuses. Florida also gave Verhaeghe a six-year no-move clause that began this past season and will last the first five years of his new deal. However, Friedman believes Bennett has priced himself out of a similar deal.

“I think they tried to sign Bennett to the Verhaeghe deal, which was eight years times $7MM with bonus structure. That’s not going to get it done,” he said.

While Verhaeghe and Bennett posted similar regular-season numbers (Verhaeghe recorded 53 points to Bennett’s 51 this past season), Bennett has elevated his game in the postseason. While playing with his usual physicality, Bennett has taken his game to another level ahead of free agency with an impressive 15 goals in 22 postseason games. Add in that he and Mitch Marner are poised to set the market for free agents as the top two names available, and Bennett is poised for a big payday. Even if he takes a hometown discount to remain in Florida, he’ll command much more than his expiring deal, which came with a $4.425MM AAV. To keep Bennett in the fold, the Panthers may need to offer a deal closer to the eight-year, $69MM extension that kept star Sam Reinhart off the market last summer. That deal came with a cap hit of $8.625MM per season.

However, as Friedman points out, the Panthers have some other key pending free agents to consider, including franchise staple Aaron Ekblad and veteran Brad Marchand, who is having his own heroic postseason run. With $19MM in cap space, per PuckPedia, Panthers GM Bill Zito will need to get creative if he hopes to retain all three players next season. And while hometown discounts are always possible—especially for a team as successful as Florida—Friedman cautions that those can’t be relied upon.

“I think people can always take a little less, and that’s fine. Do what makes you happy. But while you’re always willing to take a little bit less, the question is how much? I think for every person that’s different. And I think there are some teams out there that are really prepared to make Marchand some big, short-term offers. And nothing in the playoffs has changed my opinion on that. In fact, it’s only grown. So, I think the biggest question for Florida is what they can do against what some other teams are going to be able to do,” he said.

Updates On Sam Bennett, Aaron Ekblad

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Although the organization’s main sights are on winning its second Stanley Cup championship in as many years, the Florida Panthers have a few key pending unrestricted free agents to worry about. In an interview on NHL Network, David Pagnotta believes negotiations are going much better with one than they are with the other.

A few days ago, James Mirtle of The Athletic reported that virtually no teams are expecting Sam Bennett to reach free agency, and Pagnotta believes that’s the case. In the interview, Pagnotta shared that Bennett and the Panthers are negotiating a new deal that would pay him approximately $64MM over eight years.

Bennett’s value largely comes from his postseason performances and the intangibles. AFP Analytics projected Bennett’s next deal around the six-year, $40MM range, which is reasonable given he’s only scored more than 50 points in one season. Still, he’s an extremely physical forward, has responded well to Florida’s possession-heavy scheme, and has a unique ability to get under the skin of opponents.

He’s been an instrumental part of the Panthers’ run to three consecutive Stanley Cup Finals. Since the start of the 2022-23 postseason, Bennett has scored 26 goals and 50 points in 60 games, and is leading this year’s playoffs in goals. Outside of putting pucks in the net, Bennett has made headlines this postseason for his extracurricular activity, particularly his somewhat egregious physicality toward opposing teams’ netminders.

Unfortunately, negotiations aren’t going as smoothly with defenseman Aaron Ekblad, according to Pagnotta. Despite Ekblad’s public desire to remain with the only organization he’s known, Ekblad and his representation are asking for a similar or increased salary on his current $7.5MM AAV, but the Panthers only feel comfortable paying him in the $6MM range.

In Florida’s defense, Ekblad has had significant injury issues throughout his entire career, only playing in a full campaign in three seasons out of his 11-year career. Still, offering him a 20% pay decrease as the salary cap rises projects as an unbridgeable gap.

Ekblad is only a few weeks away from reaching unrestricted free agency for the first time in his career, and he could become more amenable to a lower salary if his comfortability in Florida outweighs his salary demands. Still, as a capable top-four right-handed defenseman, Ekblad should be able to match or increase his salary on the open market.

Marchand Prioritizing Earning Maximization On Next Deal

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Much has already been made of Brad Marchand’s upcoming trip through unrestricted free agency, with recent reports indicating he could earn as much as $8MM a year given his durability and impressive postseason performance with the Florida Panthers. Piggybacking off that report, TSN’s Chris Johnston shared today on TSN 1050 that Marchand will prioritize earning maximization on his next contract, rather than term.

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A.J. Greer Set To Rejoin Panthers Lineup For Game 3

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As Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final looms, the defending champion Florida Panthers are getting a boost as forward A.J. Greer is set to return to the lineup, per Amalie Benjamin of NHL.com. Greer had been sidelined with an injury he sustained in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Final against the Hurricanes.

Greer’s physicality will be something the Panthers will benefit from for the remainder of the series. In his first season with Florida, Greer led the team with 222 regular-season hits in 81 games. The 6’3″, 205-pound forward also made his presence felt in the playoffs before going down, racking up three points and dishing out 45 hits over 12 hard-fought games.

Discussing his return, Greer said, “I really hated watching from up top and not being with the guys and not being on the bench and not being able to play. But I had to make a decision that was going to be helpful to the team and helpful to what we’re trying to accomplish, and if I can’t be 100 percent, I’m not playing the right way.”

With Greer ready to rejoin the action, winger Jesper Boqvist will be the odd man out of the lineup. Greer will skate on the fourth line alongside Jonah Gadjovich and Tomas Nosek. Despite Game 1 stretching into deep overtime, Boqvist saw limited action, logging just 7:58 of ice time, which was nearly five minutes below his regular-season average over 78 games. He followed that with 8:41 in Game 2.

Greer’s return doesn’t come as a major surprise, as head coach Paul Maurice mentioned before Game 2 that the 28-year-old was trending in the right direction and had a chance to return.

“He’s on track but he won’t go tonight. But we think if he tracks out, he could be available for Game 3,” he said at the time.

Teams Not Expecting Sam Bennett To Reach Free Agency

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While there wasn’t as much transaction activity at the draft combine as some expected, there was still a chance for many to get a sense of what NHL executives are thinking ahead of the draft and free agency. Regarding Panthers pivot Sam Bennett, arguably the top UFA center available on the heels of a spectacular postseason showing, “no one I spoke to around the league expects [him] to be available,” writes James Mirtle of The Athletic.

It wouldn’t be a surprising outcome. The Panthers have had a strong track record of success regarding keeping pending UFAs in the fold in recent years, particularly forwards. They got business out of the way early with winger Carter Verhaeghe, who could have been a UFA this summer but signed an eight-year, $56MM extension back in October, and kept star Sam Reinhart off the market on the eve of free agency last year with an eight-year, $69MM deal worth $8.625MM per season that came in a fair bit under his market value.

Both of those players took less money per season in exchange for the eighth year of security that only the Panthers can offer, plus the opportunity to continue spending their primes with a perennial championship contender in South Florida. Bennett should be expected to take some form of discount on what will presumably be an eight-year contract as well, but with how much his stock has risen amid a year where he leads the postseason with 13 goals in 19 games, that “discount” might even be more than he could have landed as a free agent last summer.

As such, a Bennett extension in Florida is still likely to cost at least $8MM per season, Mirtle said. That indicates there could be some smoke to the fire that erupted when Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic speculated there could be a handful of teams willing to offer Bennett close to $10MM per season if he decided to test free agency.

Even with a rising cap, though, $8MM is quite a lot of money for Florida to tie up in a center at his peak coming off a career-high of just 51 points in the regular season. With the much younger Anton Lundell signed at a much more cost-effective $5MM figure through 2030 and posting similar offensive production to Bennett in lesser minutes this past season, many speculated Florida would give him the keys to the 2C slot. Nonetheless, it appears their one-two-three punch of Aleksander Barkov, Bennett, and Lundell will be in place for at least the next five years, after which Barkov’s and Lundell’s contracts are set to expire.

Brad Marchand Discussed Future With Panthers

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Just days after veteran defenseman Aaron Ekblad spoke about his future with the Florida Panthers, veteran forward and pending unrestricted free agent Brad Marchand has also addressed his future with the team.

Per ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski, Marchand will consider re-signing with the Panthers, but the veteran of 1,100 career games is currently focused solely on the Stanley Cup Final.

“Yeah, I’ve thought about it. But we’ll deal with that in the future,” Marchand said.

In 10 regular season games with the Panthers after being acquired from Boston at the trade deadline, Marchand put up two goals and four points. However, Marchand was also shaking off some rust after sustaining an upper-body injury just a week before the trade. Marchand has hit his stride in the playoffs, recording 17 points in 19 games, highlighted by his overtime winner in Game 2.

While Marchand has appeared to be a perfect fit in head coach Paul Maurice’s system, the team has big decisions to make with their pending free agents. With a projected $19 million in cap space (per PuckPedia), the Panthers need to be strategic with where they allocate those funds, as Marchand, Ekblad, Sam Bennett, and Tomas Nosek all set for free agency. While those four carried a combined cap hit of just under $19 million last season, each is expected to command a similar or higher salary on their next contracts. Marchand’s expiring deal came with a $6.125MM AAV.

Despite his age (37), Marchand is expected to draw significant attention on the open market, especially after proving he can still deliver under the bright lights of the playoffs. Marchand, however, did acknowledge that Florida’s chances of retaining him are helped by the fact that it’s one of six U.S.-based teams that come with no income tax.

“There are teams where that absolutely matters. It doesn’t matter for every player, but when you’re dealing with guys that have a choice between multiple teams, it absolutely plays a part. If you have two teams that are offering the same contract, you’re going to pick the team with less tax,” he said.

Although Marchand and Bruins GM Don Sweeney engaged in negotiations and were publicly optimistic about reaching an extension, the two sides ultimately failed to come to terms. That said, following the trade, Marchand noted he wouldn’t close the door on a potential reunion with the Bruins.

Johnston: Marchand Will Make $8MM On Next Deal

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  • Being the only team that can offer Mitch Marner an eight-year term before July 1st, Cam Robinson of EliteProspects has indicated the Toronto Maple Leafs could entertain a sign-and-trade scenario with Marner this offseason. The motivation behind the idea would be for Toronto to recoup some trade assets for Marner, rather than seeing him leave for nothing. However, a sign-and-trade at that level hasn’t been recorded since the Calgary Flames signed and traded Matthew Tkachuk to the Florida Panthers in 2022 for Jonathan Huberdeau and MacKenzie Weegar. Given that any interested team could sign Marner to a seven-year deal, without having to give up any prized players, means this scenario is highly unlikely to play out this summer.
  • A few days ago on The Chris Johnston Show, TSN’s Chris Johnston shared his belief that Panther Brad Marchand will get a raise this summer. Aside from the lockout-shortened 2012-13 season, and the COVID-shortened 2020-21 season, Marchand has played fewer than 70 games in one season since his sophomore campaign, showing a quality level of longevity entering his age-38 season. Coupled with his impressive run to the Stanley Cup Final with the Panthers that’s seen Marchand score seven goals and 17 points in 19 contests, Johnston believes Marchand will earn an AAV of $8MM on his next contract, albeit on a shorter-term deal.

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Aaron Ekblad Hoping To Stay With Panthers

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While Aaron Ekblad and the Florida Panthers are in the midst of their second consecutive Stanley Cup run, the star defenseman isn’t shying away from thinking about his future with the franchise.

According to Michael Russo of The Athletic, the pending unrestricted free agent has expressed strong interest in resigning with the Panthers.

“I live and breathe for the Florida Panthers. I bleed for the Florida Panthers. I’ve given my body and everything to this team, and I want to keep doing it… forever, for as long as they’ll let me come to the rink,” he said.

Ekblad has spent his entire 11-year career in Florida after being selected first overall by the team in the 2014 draft. As an 18-year-old, Ekblad burst onto the scene in his rookie season, posting 12 goals and 29 points on his way to the Calder Memorial Trophy. In the years since, he has established himself among the elite defenders in the league. Through 732 career games, Ekblad has posted 380 points, 793 blocked shots, and 839 hits.

He is second all-time in games played for the franchise (behind teammate Aleksander Barkov), 10th in goals, third in assists, fifth in points, third in plus/minus rating, third in shots on goal, and first in defensive point shares.

While Ekblad is coming off of an odd season that included injuries and a 20-game suspension for testing positive for a banned performance-enhancing substance (that he said he unknowingly took while recovering from his injuries), Ekblad still posted 33 points in 56 games.

With a projected $19 million in cap space (per PuckPedia), the Panthers should have the flexibility to bring their alternate captain back into the fold. However, they must also address the futures of several other key pending free agents, including Brad Marchand, Sam Bennett, and Tomas Nosek. Ekblad’s expiring eight-year contract carried a $7.5 million AAV.

 

A.J. Greer Out For Panthers In Game 2

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As the Florida Panthers look to even the Stanley Cup Final in Game 2 against the Edmonton Oilers, they’ll have to do so without forward A.J. Greer. According to team reporter Jameson Olive, coach Paul Maurice announced today that Greer will continue to be sidelined with an injury he sustained in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Final against the Hurricanes.

In his first season with the team, Greer has made an impact despite averaging just 9:36 of ice time per game. He appeared in 81 regular-season games, posting 17 points while leading the team with 222 hits. The physical forward has added two goals and three points during the playoffs. Maurice did, however, note that Greer is trending in the right direction and could be available for Game 3 back in Florida, according to Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald.

“He’s on track but he won’t go tonight. But we think if he tracks out, he could be available for Game 3,” he said.

Maurice noted there would be no lineup changes for Game 2, meaning wingers Jesper Boqvist and Jonah Gadjovich will slot in alongside center Tomas Nosek. Despite Game 1 going deep into overtime, Boqvist logged just 7:58 of ice time, nearly five minutes below his regular-season average over 78 games. In 12 playoff games, Boqvist has posted five points to go along with 38 hits.

After briefly exiting Game 1, Gadjovich returned to the ice, and Maurice confirmed yesterday that he’ll be available going forward. Through 11 playoff games, he has recorded two goals and three points.

 

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