He’s a new dad and still Panthers’ No. 1 goalie. Now Bobrovsky’s ready for a fresh start.
Sergei Bobrovsky really does feel a “new energy” these days. The Florida Panthers are getting ready to start one of the most hyped seasons in franchise history. Bobrovsky has been in a particular groove in the final days of the preseason, consistently drawing oohs and ahhs for his goaltending antics at the Florida Panthers IceDen. He’ll even be in goal Thursday when the Panthers open their season against the Pittsburgh Penguins, earning the starting nod over Spencer Knight for opening day after Knight took his job in the 2021 Stanley Cup playoffs.
None of this is the real reason, though. Last week, Bobrovsky’s daughter was born. He’s a parent for the first time.
“It’s a different level of responsibility, for sure,” Bobrovsky said with a smile.
A particularly momentous week for the goaltender will culminate Thursday when Florida begins its season against the Penguins (1-0-0) at 7 p.m. at FLA Live Arena in Sunrise. Bobrovsky, who’s still the second-highest-paid goalie in the NHL, will get the starting nod for Game 1, coach Joel Quenneville announced Wednesday.
Despite Bobrovsky’s $10 million annual salary and his past Vezina Trophies, it was no guarantee he would land at the top of the depth chart. Knight, 20, is a potential Calder Memorial Trophy contender and wound up being the Panthers’ best option in goal during the 2021 Cup playoffs, starting the final two games after both Bobrovsky and fellow goaltender Chris Driedger faltered. Still, Quenneville is sticking with the veteran to start the new season.
“How he looks in the net — he looks bigger. It seems like he’s tracking pucks. He’s more efficient,” Quenneville said. “The attitude’s fine. He’s been in a pretty good place the last week or two. I think he’s just looking forward to just getting back and being himself like he’s been in the past, and recapturing what it’s like to be one of the top goalies in the game.”
After two underwhelming seasons, Bobrovsky is looking at the new year as “a new opportunity for everybody.”
It really wasn’t so long ago that he was a legitimate superstar. He won the Vezina in 2013 and again in 2017. In 2019, he anchored the Columbus Blue Jackets as they stunned the top-seeded Tampa Bay Lightning for a first-round upset in the Stanley Cup playoffs, then he turned around and signed a seven-year, $70 million contract with Florida.
He joined the Panthers in the same season as Quenneville — part of a massive investment to try to transform Florida into a winner — but he has allowed 3.10 goals per game with a meager .902 save percentage in 81 games since.
In of Bobrovsky’s first two seasons with the Panthers, Driedger pushed him for playing time and last year Knight did, too. Driedger is now gone — the Seattle Kraken picked him in the 2021 NHL Expansion Draft — but Knight is Florida’s goalie of the future. Those two will once again split time, and Quenneville said he could give Knight his first start as early as Saturday.
Bobrovsky, though, will get the first chance to prove he can still be the player the Panthers hoped they were getting in 2019.
“Every season brings new energy, new excitement,” Bobrovsky said. “Everybody starts from zero, and I think all the guys in the locker room are excited and we’re looking forward to tomorrow’s game.”
