Bye-Bye, Bob? What Knight’s Extension Means for Bobrovsky
Sergei Bobrovsky may not be wearing a Florida Panthers uniform for much longer.
The Cats gave goaltender Spencer Knight a three-year contract extension on Tuesday that will pay him $4.5 million per season when it kicks in next year. While the 21-year-old has limited NHL experience, the deal makes Florida’s long-term plan in goal obvious.
As a result, the future for the 34-year-old Bobrovsky is unclear. A two-time Vezina Trophy winner, “Bob” joined the Panthers ahead of the 2019-2020 season and is under contract through the 2025-2026 campaign.
The issue for Bobrovsky and the Panthers is that he will carry a $10 million cap hit for the remainder of his deal. It seems unlikely after the Knight extension that Bobrovsky factors into Florida’s future plans, so what happens now for the Russian netminder?
Bobrovsky will be out of Florida by the trade deadline.
The Cats will pay Knight less than $1 million this season, so when it comes to goaltending, Florida wouldn’t have to make a move immediately (though CapFriendly projects the Panthers to be over the cap coming into this season).
If Florida wants its goaltending tandem intact this season to give it its best chance to win the Stanley Cup, Bobrovsky may not be on his way out of town just yet.
However, the Panthers’ intentions are clear, and it could be worth trading the veteran goaltender sooner rather than later.
The Panthers will be in a much more urgent situation next year at this time (assuming they don’t plan to pay $14.5 million for just their goalies), so making a move at the trade deadline could yield more options and a more favorable return.
Plus, we know that the goaltending class in free agency was not exactly plentiful this past summer, so by the time the trade deadline rolls around, there will likely be a handful of teams looking to make an upgrade in net.
Bobrovsky played in 54 games last season, winning 39 of them while posting a .913 save percentage and a 2.67 goals against average (GAA). In his 12-year career, he has posted a 336-187-48 record with a .916 save percentage and a 2.57 GAA.
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Bobrovsky has spent his career with the Philadelphia Flyers, Columbus Blue Jackets, and Panthers, and now we will wait to see which team he plays for next.