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The Florida Panthers took some significant hits to their Stanley Cup-winning roster this past offseason. They lost Brandon Montour to the Seattle Kraken, and their reliable backup goaltender Anthony Stolarz to the Toronto Maple Leafs. The team let them walk due to the pending signing of Sam Reinhart. However, they are still over the salary cap ceiling and have more unrestricted free agents coming this offseason. The Panthers overhaul may not be over yet, as there is a last-minute trade they can pull off before the 2024-25 season.
Should the Panthers gather assets for Carter Verhaeghe or Sam Bennett?
The Panthers, minus Carter Verhaeghe or Sam Bennett, would severely hurt their repeat chances in 2024-25. However, there's a good chance that Florida will lose one of them in the offseason. The Panthers' cost of winning a Stanley Cup is an unsustainable salary cap situation. They currently need to shed $158,334 before the regular season begins to get under the ceiling. Looking ahead to the future, the Panthers will have Bennett, Verhaeghe, and Aaron Ekblad going to unrestricted free agency.
The potential movement of Ekblad was the talk of the hockey world this past offseason. The Panthers' issue is their blueline is already thin, and the loss of Ekblad would be disastrous. He isn't the same defenseman as he used to be, but losing Ekblad, Brandon Montour, and Oliver Ekman-Larsson in the same offseason would pose trouble. Florida's prospect pool for defensemen (via The Hockey News) makes this possibility even more of an issue.
The Panthers are better off keeping Ekblad around, which makes a trade for Verhaeghe or Bennett the best choice. They'd leave massive holes in the lineup, but Florida has the depth to make up for it. The same can't be said for losing a defenseman of Ekblad's caliber.
Nothing could stop Bill Zito from holding on to both forwards and losing one for nothing in the offseason. If the Panthers repeat as Stanley Cup Champions, the decision would be the cost of doing business. The problem is that it's not easy to win the championship two years in a row, and their future success takes a hit if they don't start gathering some assets.
The Panthers have no draft picks in the first three rounds of this year's draft. Could Zito make a bold decision and get some picks back for one of these players?
Potential teams to target
Some Western Conference teams could use Bennett's tenacity if looking to contend. The West is notoriously a heavier, physical playoff bracket, and Bennett has shown success there in the past. Bennett was a thorn in the side of the Edmonton Oilers during his time with the Calgary Flames, which would make him a hot commodity for teams competing with last year's Western Conference finalists.
We also can't overlook that Bennett is the type of player the Oilers could target to get them over the hump. They were one win away from stealing the championship ring off Bennett's finger last season but fell short in Game 7. Bennett is the younger version of their Corey Perry acquisition from last season and will offer much more production.
The question is whether Florida would help upgrade their Stanley Cup Final opponent from last season. The Panthers would be wise to listen to trade offers for the right price. Another team could knock off the Oilers on the way to the finals, and it'd make much more sense than upgrading an Eastern Conference who they could face earlier in the postseason.
