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Sam Bennett was otherworldly for the Florida Panthers in the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs, scoring a postseason-best 15 goals and adding seven assists for good measure. The 28-year-old was well-deserving of the Conn Smythe Trophy after the Cats won their second consecutive championship on Tuesday night — but he gave all the credit to his team.
“Yeah, I haven’t really thought about it too much,” Bennett said of capturing playoff MVP honors for the first time in Panthers history, per The Athletic's Pierre LeBrun. “My whole focus was on winning the Stanley Cup. It’s obviously such a huge honor to be the MVP. But it’s really our 25 MVPs on this team. It really could have went to anyone. I’m very grateful, but I really could not have done it without this whole group.”
The Holland Landing, Ontario native got 11 first-place votes out of the 18 voters selected by the Professional Hockey Writers Association, per LeBrun. He helped form the best second line in the playoffs along with Matthew Tkachuk, and was a key reason why Florida was able to defend the title in 2024-25.
“It’s incredible, it was even harder to win this year than last year,” Bennett said, per LeBrun. “I’m just so proud of this group. It’s the best feeling in the world and I’ve got to feel it twice now. I’m going to enjoy this one even more than the first. This whole team, we have superstars that are willing to do whatever it takes to win. There’s a big difference between doing whatever it takes to win and just playing hockey. There are a lot of dawgs on this team.”
Bennett was brought to Sunrise by general manager Bill Zito back in April of 2021, and all the former Calgary Flame cost was a second-round pick and Emil Heineman. That's a cheap price to pay for someone who is now immortalized in the annals of the NHL.
Sam Bennett needs a new contract
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Although the future is probably the last thing on Bennett's mind right now — especially after the celebrations on Tuesday night — the star forward is set to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1.
Bennett's value has shot through the roof after his Conn Smythe win, and he could command as much as $10 million AAV on the open market. Despite that, Zito believes he can keep the proven playoff performer in Florida for the long haul.
“This is the team I like to play for, these are my brothers on this team,” Bennett said. “It’s remarkable what we’ve done and we can do.”
It doesn't sound like Bennett wants to go anywhere, but despite that, he has to make one of the biggest decisions of his professional career — if not the biggest — in just under two weeks.
If Zito can find a way to convince the star Canadian to sign at just under market value, he could be part of a Panthers dynasty that should be competing for a Stanley Cup again next June.
