‘Size does matter’: Panthers go big with their six picks in the 2026 NHL draft
The Florida Panthers went big in the 2026 NHL Draft.
Literally.
All six of Florida’s selections — two in the second round, one in the fourth, two in the sixth and one in the seventh — are at least 6-1.
“Size does matter,” Panthers president of hockey operations and general manager Bill Zito said after the draft concluded Saturday. “It certainly matters in our system.”
They kept that in mind each time they went on the clock.
It started with forwards Simas Ignatavicius and Ryder Cali in the second round. Ignatavicius is a 6-3, 201-pound winger from Lithuania who is playing in Switzerland; Cali is a 6-2, 218-pound center who put up 36 points in 47 games in the Ontario Hockey League last season and is set to play at Providence College next season.
Defenseman Jonas Kemps — a towering presence at 6-6 and 195 — came next in the fourth round. Zito compared him to Niko Mikkola, who has thrived in Florida’s system.
Next were forwards Vilho Vanhatalo and Cole Zurawski in the sixth round. Vanhatalo, who plays for Tappara (the team in Finland part-owned by Panthers captain Aleksander Barkov) and Cole Zurawski. Vanhatalo is 6-3 and 194 pounds, while Zurawski is the small guy of the draft class at only 6-1 and 188 pounds.
And then there’s 6-8 goalie Louis-Antoine Denault, who the Panthers took in the seventh round and have experience with. Denault took part in the team’s development camp last year.
“Each of these players, in our minds, fits the mold that they could plug in with our team,” Zito said. “When it comes time for them to sign their contracts, and these are players we can fit in. This a style that fits us.”
And the prospects who were on site in Buffalo for the draft are certainly thrilled to join the Panthers, a team that reached three consecutive Stanley Cup Finals and won it all in 2024 and 2025 before missing the playoffs last season after an injury-ravaged campaign.
While they are likely a few years away from actually contributing at the NHL level with the Panthers, they will get their first taste of how the team operates next week during the team’s development camp at the Baptist Health IcePlex, which is scheduled to take place from Monday to Thursday.
“A dream come true,” Ignatavicius said. “Coming from a non-traditional hockey country … if someone would have told me a couple of years ago that I would get called up by Florida, I would not have believed it. I am grateful for this chance, this opportunity. It means a lot to my family, to my country. It shows little kids that whatever you dream for is possible. You just have to work for it and get your chance. When you get it, you have to take it.’’
Added Cali: “It didn’t feel real for a second. I had to make sure that they actually said my name, but when everyone else stood up, I knew it was true. It’s pretty cool. Florida is like the best place, ever, to get drafted to. I could not be more happy and excited.”
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