Opening the silly season with eleven unrestricted free agents, the Florida Panthers took the expected big hit to its depth yesterday with Brandon Montour signing a seven-year, $50 million contract with the Seattle Kraken; towering fourth line center Kevin Stenlund also headed west, inking a two-year, $4 million deal with the “new” Utah Hockey Club; fan favorite Ryan Lomberg rejoined the Calgary Flames, more than doubling his salary in the process; and defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson and backup goaltender Anthony Stolarz stayed in the Atlantic Division, joining the rival Toronto Maple Leafs.
Vladimir Tarasenko, Nick Cousins, and Steven Lorentz are still seeking new deals while Kyle Okposo is mulling retirement.
All was not lost, however, as the Cats returned two players from its Stanley Cup-winning roster to the fold and inked three new forwards to help fortify the bottom-six. On the back end, goaltender Chris Driedger has returned to join Sergei Bobrovsky and Spencer Knight.
Florida biggest move was re-signing leading goal-scorer Sam Reinhart to an eight-year, $69 million contract. Reinhart posted career-highs with 57 goals and 94 points during the 2023-24 season. He added ten more markers in the playoffs, including the winning goal in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final against the Edmonton Oilers. The $8.625 million AAV of Reinhart’s new deal came in lower than many expected. Another win for general manager Bill Zito.
Also coming back is defenseman Dmitry Kulikov, who had the secondary assist on Reinhart’s Cup-winner. After playing his first seven seasons with the Cats, Kulikov returned to South Florida and appeared in 76 regular season games, producing one goal and 20 points. He suited up in all 24 postseason games and his gritty play helped the Panthers stifle the opposition on most nights. The 33-year-old inked a four-year pact worth $4.6 million.
The Panthers first newcomer was veteran Tomas Nosek, who signed a one-year contract worth $775K. Nosek 31, appeared in 36 games with the New Jersey Devils in 2023-24, scoring twice and adding four assists. He averaged the third-highest shorthanded time on ice among the Devils forwards. It looks like he fill the large shoes of the departed Stenlund by anchoring the fourth line.
To replace Lomberg, the Cats added forward A.J. Greer, who spent last season with the Flames. Greer suited up in 59 games and potted a career-high six goals while matching the 12 points he put up in 61 games with the New Jersey Devils in 2022-23. The 27-year-old signed on for two years with an AAV of $850K.
Florida added another forward to the mix by inking Jesper Boqvist to a one-year contract worth $775K. Boqvist, 25, made 47 appearances with the Boston Bruins in 2023-24, totaling six goals and 14 points. Boqvist suited up in eight of Boston’s 13 postseason games, collecting an assist in Game 1 of the first round series against the Maple Leafs.
Driedger, who has spent the last two seasons with the Seattle Kraken after being chosen in the 2021 Expansion Draft, has signed a one-year deal. The 30-year-old just backstopped the Coachella Valley Firebirds to the Calder Cup Final, where they lost to the Hershey Bears. He started two NHL games with the Kraken and went 1-1.
Minor-league forward Rasmus Asplund also re-upped with the organization for one more year ($775K) after spending last season with the Charlotte Checkers. Asplund, 26, appeared in 67 games with the Checkers and put up a team-high 35 assists. His 44 points was second-best behind rookie Mackie Samoskevich’s 54 points.
The Panthers have put together a heavy, nasty new fourth line for the upcoming campaign. They need to re-sign restricted free agent center Anton Lundell and add a top-four defenseman, and perhaps another forward, with whatever salary cap space remains after that.