The Florida Panthers are moving on to a second straight Stanley Cup Final after eliminating the Carolina Hurricanes. Every player on the Panthers roster has contributed in some way, and they look even hungrier than last season when they won the Stanley Cup.
However, some of these players could be playing their last game with Florida, as there may be a some big changes to the roster taking the ice for Florida next season. What moves could we see?
General manager Bill Zito has done an amazing job since taking the position in September of 2020. He has made numerous trades to improve the roster and key signings to keep the group competitive. This offseason, however, he may have his work cut out for him.
Florida has several key unrestricted free agents on the board and there have been rumors that up to three key players could be leaving for more money. If they win the Stanley Cup this season, these players might have priced their way off of the Panthers roster.
Panthers unrestricted free agents
The players on the list have played important roles this season but at the end of the day, money talks. It will be hard for Zito to retain them all, so we should expect changes to the roster. It would not be a surprise if he retools with some of these players in new places for the 2025-26 season.
The forwards whose contracts are expiring include Brad Marchand, Sam Bennett, Tomas Nosek, and Nico Sturm. The defensemen who will be pending UFAs are Jaycob Megna, Nate Schmidt, and Aaron Ekblad. The only goaltender on this list is Vitek Vanecek.
Some of these players are depth pieces and could be replaced. But players like Marchand, Bennett, and Ekblad will be hard to replace if they do decide to leave. Bennett will likely be looking for a significant raise as his consistency and winning the Stanley Cup puts him as one of the more coveted free agents. With only $19 million in projected cap space, Zito's job of retaining them all is extremely difficult. As of May 28th, the Panthers have 16 of 23 players signed for next season.
Zito has lost players before and went out and grabbed other skaters who filled those roles. He is a smart businessman who has run over this scenario at some point this season. Zito is fully prepared to lost a piece or two, but he has to act promptly if he loses Marchand, Bennett, and/or Ekblad.
These players are critical to the success of the Panthers but if the asking price is too high, he has to move on. All of their contracts for next season likely depend on whether they win the Stanley Cup or not. Zito has made difficult secisions before so this would be nothing new.