The Florida Panthers are back in Fort Lauderdale.
This week, the two-time defending Stanley Cup Champions will kick off their annual training camp at the Baptist Health IcePlex.
Excitement couldn’t be higher as many experts are looking at the Panthers a possibility to be the league’s first back-to-back-to-back champs in over 40 years.
As the players prepare to hit the ice, THN Florida is going to through Florida’s roster and give you one word for each player as they prepare to open the 2025-26 season.
We’ll start with the forwards.
Sasha Barkov: Legacy
The first Finnish NHL captain to hoist Lord Stanley’s Cup has carved out quite a spot for himself in hockey lore over the past several seasons. The Stanley Cup’s and Selke Trophies are starting to stack up. If he stays on this path, Barkov could soon be leading the conversation of greatest Finnish hockey players of all time.
Sam Reinhart: Special
Teams, that is. I mean, yeah, Reinhart is an exceptionally special hockey player. Since arriving in South Florida during the summer of 2021, Reinhart has racked up 160 goals and 324 points. It probably wouldn’t surprise you to hear that more than half of his goals (82) and about one-third of his assists (56) have come on special teams. Reinhart has become an integral part of Florida’s power play and penalty kill, which in turn are big keys to their continued postseason success.
Matthew Tkachuk: Wolverine
Tkachuk is going to miss the first several months of the season while recovering from surgery after he played through a torn hip abductor and sports hernia during Florida’s latest Stanley Cup run. Hopefully, he can channel his inner-Wolverine (the X-Men member whose mutant power is superhuman healing) and get himself back to 100% in time for the winter Olympics in February and the run to the playoffs that will follow. Tkachuk very much wants to play for his country in Milan, so the sooner he’s healed, the easier the transition back to high-level hockey and lesser chance of any kind of setback.
Sam Bennett: Moderation
Bennett has proved over the past few years that his style of play within the Panthers systems is perfect for playoff hockey. However, playing at that kind of physically intense level for 82 regular season games just doesn’t make sense if he wants to be at 100%, or as close to it as possible, for Florida’s next playoff run.
Carter Verhaeghe: Precision
One of the most clutch players in the NHL saw his shooting percentage drop significantly last season, resulting in a decrease in goal-scoring. The rest of Verhaeghe’s game remained the same as the guy with the endless motor continued to provide quality minutes inside Florida’s top six. Once he starts picking those corners again, expect the goal total to pop right back up to the 30-40 range.
Anton Lundell: Twenty
Lundell is going to turn 24 years old a few days before Opening Night. This will already be his fifth season in the NHL, and it’s going to be his first where he cracks the 20-goal mark. The growth in his game has been apparent, but expect that to go up a notch this season.
Evan Rodrigues: Unsung
Rodrigues plays all over the lineup, wherever he’s asked, and bring the same consistency regardless of his linemates or ice time. His name was also the first to come up when trade rumors began swirling due to Matthew Tkachuk going on LTIR. To his credit, Rodrigues just keeps smiling and plugging away, and his coaching staff adores him for it.
Brad Marchand: Twilight
No longer feeling the pressures of being the face of an Original 6 franchise, Marchand can now enjoy the rest of his career much as he did Florida’s playoff run from last season. He’s still playing at an elite level, and his tenacious brand of hockey fits in quite well with the Panthers’ style of play.
Mackie Samoskevich: Experienced
I know, I know, Samoskevich is still just 22 years old with all of two pro seasons under his belt. But he’s also now been to two NHL training camps and played a full season with the Panthers that included a Stanley Cup victory. Samoskevich should have an excellent understanding of what it takes to succeed at the game’s highest level, and that knowledge should help him prepare for, endure and ultimately thrive in his sophomore season with the Cats.
Tomas Nosek: Steady
Centering Florida’s fourth line can be tricky because you never quite know what group you’ll be matched up against or when your number will be called. A defensive zone draw against a top six group could happen just as easily as an o-zone start after an icing against a tired checking line. Nosek proved that he can remain stable and sturdy regardless of the situation, a trait that endeared him to Paul Maurice and co.
Jonah Gadjovich: Established
Between the second half of last season and the playoffs, Gadjovich found himself playing regular minutes on Florida’s line. It was a unit that Paul Maurice praised multiple times and utilized in crucial situations during their latest Stanley Cup run. We’ll see if that can translate to Gadjovich establishing himself as an everyday player for an entire season.
A.J. Greer: Fun
The spotlight isn’t on Greer very often, but if you just zero in on him during a shift, get ready to see a guy who looks like he’s having the time of his life while giving 110% every second he’s out there. It’s just plain fun watching Greer do his thing, especially on a team like Florida, where combining skill and muscle will go a long way.
Jesper Boqvist: Build
That’s exactly what Boqvist needs to do following a strong first season with the Panthers. A career high in goals and games played led to Boqvist earning a two-year extension from Florida that carries a higher AAV than he was given on any of his previous deals. It will be very interesting to see how Florida’s lineup shakes out if Boqvist continues to impress the coaching staff, as he did last year.
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Photo caption: Apr 14, 2025; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers center Carter Verhaeghe (23) celebrates with center Aleksander Barkov (16) and defenseman Dmitry Kulikov (7) after scoring against the New York Rangers during the second period at Amerant Bank Arena. (Sam Navarro-Imagn Images)
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