Evan Rodrigues finds a fit (and finally a home) with Florida Panthers in free agency
After four straight seasons of playing on one-year deals, Evan Rodrigues wanted to finally find a place to call home this summer and he knew it wasn’t going to be easy. He waited out the first day of free agency Saturday and watched as just about everyone — proven veterans and unproven talents alike — settled for short-term contracts. After about 24 hours of Rodriguez biding his time, the Florida Panthers finally stepped up with the opportunity he wanted.
On the second day of free agency, the Panthers made their biggest commitment of the offseason so far. A day after trading away Anthony Duclair to open up some more cap space, Florida inked Rodrigues to a four-year, $12 million deal Sunday. He’s one of only two players to get a multiyear deal with an annual commitment greater than $1 million from the Panthers so far this summer and one of only 13 skaters across the entire NHL to receive a contract worth at least $10 million total since free agency began last week.
The Panthers believe in Rodrigues, 29, and Rodrigues believes in them.
“We had good conversations together and it was a place I thought fit perfectly for me,” the versatile forward said Monday. “There was other teams interested, but I just thought that Florida checked a lot of the boxes.”
Already, Rodrigues is the Panther with the third most time left on his contract, behind only All-Star forwards Aleksander Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk. Florida so heavily valued Rodrigues, it dumped Duclair, a true fan favorite and former All-Star, for a late-round pick and fringe NHL forward to clear the space to sign him. The Panthers believe in the Canadian forward not just to help them once again contend for a Stanley Cup next year, but also to be a foundational piece of their long-term vision to contend every single year.
Even though Rodrigues has never scored more than 43 points in a single season, Florida believes he fits in perfectly to the team’s systems and the holes it has in its roster.
Rodrigues, who scored 16 goals and had 23 assists in 63 games last season for the Avalanche, fits with the Panthers because of his speed and willingness to be aggressive on the forecheck — two hallmarks of Florida’s run through the 2023 Stanley Cup playoffs. He’s also versatile enough to play any of the three forward spots, meaning he’ll help round out Florida’s top nine, and his 11 power-play points last year would’ve ranked seventh on the Panthers — after it went 0 of 14 on the power play in the 2023 Stanley Cup Final, Florida needs help on special teams.
“That’s kind of exactly who I am. I’m a guy who likes to play fast, kind of be first on the forecheck,” Rodrigues said. “A big part of my game is just my compete level. It’s something I’ve done since I’ve got to the NHL. It’s something that, if things aren’t going well, I rely on. As long as I put the work in and compete, things will kind of take care of themselves. I think that’s kind of the M.O. of this group.”
Even though eight of the forwards the Panthers had in their top nine at the start of the Stanley Cup Final are back, Florida’s lineup could have a much different look with Rodrigues now in it. Duclair was the first-line right wing through most of the Stanley Cup playoffs and Nick Cousins, really more of a bottom-six forward, spent most of the postseason playing left wing opposite Tkachuk on the second line. Rodrigues will give the Panthers some flexibility to move around pieces, either as someone who can drive play on the third line or as a high-level complementary piece in the top six.
It’s not flashy, but it’s valuable to Florida, especially after the Golden Knights overwhelmed the Panthers with superior depth in the Cup Final.
“Obviously, they got really close last year,” Rodrigues said. “I’m just trying to come and help the team try to get over that hump.”
The Rodrigues deal, although one of the biggest given out in the last week, keeps flexibility for Florida, too. Forwards Sam Reinhart, Anton Lundell, Eetu Luostarinen and Cousins are all set to become free agents after the 2023-24 NHL season, as are key defensemen Gustav Forsling and Brandon Montour, and the Panthers will have about $30.7 million in cap space available next season to try to bring them back.
Whatever the core looks like this time next year, Rodrigues will be one of the role players around it.
“It’s nice, confidence-wise, and it’s also a really good feeling when someone believes in you and wants to give you that term, and values you as a hockey player,” Rodrigues said. “That was really important, and helped me make my decision and come to Florida.”
This story was originally published July 7, 2023 at 12:30 PM.
