The Florida Panthers announced Friday evening that the team has agreed to a maximum eight year extension with Conn Smythe award winning forward Sam Bennett.
The deal comes in at eight years, $64 million, or $8 million AAV. This mean’s that the new 29-year-old winger will be making nearly twice as much per year as he did in his previous four year stint in Paradise.
The back-to-back Stanley Cup Champion has been hinting at a reunion with Florida since the beginning of the cup parade, when he quoted The Wolf Of Wall Street on stage with the words “eight more years” behind him.
“I ain’t f****** leaving!” he yelled.
Now under contract until 2033, it appears the super star wasn’t lying.
The super star has averaged 22 goals a year since joining the Panthers after his rookie four-year stint with the Calgary Flames. He absolutely lit the world on fire this post season scoring 15 goals and assisting on seven more on his way to earning the Stanley Cup Finals MVP trophy.
Bennett joins Sidney Crosby, Alex Ovechkin, and Zach Hymann on the short list of active players with 15 goals in a single Stanley Cup Playoff run.
Panthers Cap Remaining
With $8 million AAV now allocated to Bennett in the 2025-26 season, the Panthers currently have just $11 million in cap space remaining. According to Spotrac, Bennett joins six other Panthers players making more than $7 million next season.
This comes as the contract extensions for other star players, like Brad Marchand and Aaron Ekblad, hang over the heads of the back to back champions.
Also worth noting that the contract of the player who some call “the best goaltender in the world”, Andrei Bobrovsky, will be entering a contract year next season. Bob is currently making $10 million per year. He will be off the books after next season, but if they want to retain the other wordly tender, they are going to have to be smart with their cash over the next 12 months.
$11 million to spend, two super stars to sign, and the rest of NHL roster to fill out. It will be interesting to see how the mastermind Bill Zito will get the NHL’s more dominative force back to the finals.
Can The Team Afford Aaron Ekblad?
Aaron Ekblad is a 29-year-old defenseman who is among the top blue line talents in the National Hockey League. He was drafted by Florida in 2014 and has not left the state since.
But now, after back to back seasons with injury concerns, it appears as though his time with the team may be coming to an end.
“Aaron Ekblad, I think, is the pending UFA that ends up going to market,” NHL insider Pierre LeBrun said. “I’m not saying that 100%, but that’s where signs are right now. Terms has been an issue there. Potential landing spots in Utah and Dallas, depending on what those teams do on the trade market.”
Ekblad’s last deal with the team brought $7.5 million AAV. It is likely that it will take a number either at or around that to retain the homegrown talent.
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