Joining the Panthers ‘completely changed’ Sam Bennett. Now, he isn’t leaving
Sam Bennett came to the Florida Panthers at the trade deadline in 2021 and saw his career take off.
Now, he isn’t leaving.
Bennett and the Panthers on Friday agreed to an eight-year contract extension that will keep the center with the team through the 2032-33 season. The deal has an average annual value of $8 million, a massive pay raise from Bennett’s previous deal that paid him an average of $4.425 million per year.
“Being in South Florida has just completely changed my life,” Bennett, who turned 29 on June 20, said Saturday. “And I love playing hockey there, I love living there. I love the team, the staff, the owners, just everything about it is really a dream situation. So I couldn’t pass up the chance to be back here for another eight years.”
It’s a feeling Bennett hoped would come after a rough start to his NHL career.
He has been a stabilizer for the Panthers since coming to Florida at the 2021 trade deadline from the Calgary Flames. The center has a perfect blend of physicality and scoring touch that has allowed him to thrive in Florida’s system under coach Paul Maurice and a key reason why the Panthers have won back-to-back Stanley Cups. Maurice on multiple occasions has called Bennett an identity player for the franchise.
In 289 regular-season games with the Panthers, Bennett has produced 196 points (95 goals, 101 assists) while also laying out 616 hits and winning 46.4 percent of his faceoffs.
He had a career-year in 2024-25, setting single-season highs in points (51) and assists (26) while also scoring 25 goals.
For comparison, Bennett had just 140 points (67 goals, 73 assists) in 402 games with Calgary.
“As soon as I got here, I think I exploded into this player that I always knew that I could be one day,” Bennett said. “I didn’t really know how much success we would have, but I knew I loved the opportunity I was getting.”
He didn’t want that opportunity to end.
Bennett probably could have made more money had he hit the open market. He knew that.
But things are good in Florida — both for the team as a whole and his life personally. The team has won consecutive Stanley Cups and are in a position to keep winning.
“You got to weigh a bunch of things, and I think how much we enjoy our life here is a huge factor,” Bennett said. “Obviously, you’ve got to get the number that you feel comfortable with. But really just how much we enjoy our life, how much I enjoy coming to the rink every day — there were some times earlier in my career where I didn’t enjoy it as much — and I certainly don’t take it for granted now, coming to the rink every day with a smile and just being happy to be here.
“I love playing for this team,” Bennett added. “The coaches, I love them. I’m pretty sure that they like me. They put me in great situations. I love playing with my linemates. I’ve had so much success that I believe that I could have had success elsewhere, but why even take that chance? Things are so good here.”
A successful past year
Signing his extension put a bow on a pretty successful past year for Bennett.
He has won the Stanley Cup twice. He earned the Conn Smythe Trophy this year as playoffs MVP after leading the league with 15 goals in the postseason — including an NHL record 13 on the road. He played for Team Canada in the 4 Nations Face-Off and scored the game-tying goal in the championship.
“I feel like I still haven’t really taken a step back and looked at it and appreciated how amazing this year has been,” Bennett said. “But, yeah, I’m really just just grateful. It’s been everything I’ve always dreamed of, this last year of hockey. If you would have asked me that five years ago, I would have been thrilled with just a little bit of success. I haven’t had time to really process how amazing this year has been, but it’s incredible, and I truly believe that we’re not done yet.”
Core continued to be signed long-term
Bennett is now one of eight Panthers players under contract through at least the 2029-30 season.
Forwards Aleksander Barkov, Matthew Tkachuk and Anton Lundell plus defenseman Seth Jones are signed for the next five years. Forward Sam Reinhart and defenseman Gustav Forsling are signed for another seven years, through 2031-32. And Carter Verhaeghe and Bennett are inked through the 2032-33 season.
And with the salary cap rising significantly over the next few years, these deals will give Panthers president of hockey operations and general manager Bill Zito a lot of flexibility down the road.
These eight contracts, which cover Florida’s top three centers, top three wingers and two of their top defensemen, account for a combined annual cap hit of $60.875 million. The salary cap for the 2025-26 season is $95.5 million and then increases to $104 million in 2026-27 and $113.5 million in 2027-28.
That means that these eight contract will account for less than 60 percent of Florida’s total salary beginning in the 2026-27 season.
“I think we have a lot more success in our future,” Bennett said. “This is the core that’s been here for the last three, four years, and we’ve had so much success, I don’t see why we can’t continue it. These guys, we’re all so committed to the same goal of winning and doing whatever it takes and putting in the hard hours to do what it takes to win. This is the core that I want to be with.”
.JPG)