The Florida Panthers Free Agency: July 1st Recap

Things got started early for the Panthers as the official announcement of Marchand’s extension was posted to Florida’s team socials. With Florida’s big-name UFAs signed, Tuesday was mostly made of depth moves to replace outgoing pieces. It had been rumored Monday that the Cats were in talks with Tomas Nosek about a deal as well. That rumor was confirmed Tuesday morning as Nosek got a one-year extension at 775k. The Panthers had traded for Daniil Tarasov last week; they gave him a qualifying offer before getting him signed to a one-year, $1.05M contract. Zito was asked Tuesday morning how he got the three big UFAs signed, and he said, “I didn’t. It was those guys. There’s no gray area whatsoever…It’s those guys wanting to be part of something they created.” With Schmidt going to FA, the Panthers signed Jeff Petry on a one-year deal at 775k.

Nosek was an underrated part of Florida’s success this past season. The 4th-line center played most of the regular season until the Panthers brought in Nico Sturm at the deadline. While he didn’t start the playoffs, he was brought in midway through the Toronto series and helped shift the tide. A rough start to the Finals, where his delay of game penalty ultimately won the game for Edmonton, HC Paul Maurice said that the team would rally around him and make sure he wasn’t alone. After that first game, Nosek and his line were rock solid for the rest of the series. When interviewed after winning the Cup, he said that he wanted to return and that being able to lift the Cup was a dream come true. He also said, “It is just an amazing feeling. You keep dreaming of it. I lost in one Final, and I did not know whether I would ever get this chance again. It is amazing. Just amazing.” On coming in midway through the Toronto series, Nosek said, “Yeah, I didn’t start in the playoffs, and it was a little tough. But we helped change the course of the Toronto series a little bit, tried to help the team. It is a great feeling.” Tomas also spoke about how special the team is and how well he was treated in the locker room, something most of the players have shared similar sentiments about.

The Cats brought in Daniil Tarasov to be their backup for this season. “Daniil is an athletic sized goaltender with National Hockey League experience and carries a tremendous pedigree from his junior career,” said GM Bill Zito. He also mentioned that the goalie staff was pretty high on him. A nice connection between Tarasov and Bobrovsky is that they’re from the same hometown of Novokuznetsk, and Bob’s idol was Tarasov’s dad, Vadim Tarasov. At 6’5, he’s roughly the same height as Anthony Stolarz but five years younger. He’s had experience playing in the KHL, the AHL, and has played 65 games in the NHL. His NHL SV% is just under .900 with a 3.44 GAA; however, I expect those numbers to improve with the loaded Panthers team in front of him.

It seems like the Cats now have a routine for their 6th d-man, an older defenseman looking to rebound or improve his game, and then goes and gets paid after one year. Schmidt signed a 3×3.5 deal with the Utah Mammoth, and now the Panthers are bringing in Jeff Petry. A depth RHD player, he’ll likely be on the third pairing with Kulikov, and we may see Balinskis compete for playing time as well. Like Schmidt and OEL before him, he hasn’t won a Stanley Cup in his long tenured NHL career, and he’s near the 1,000 game mark with 982 NHL games played. His contract is for league minimum and includes performance bonuses that would hit in the ‘26-’27 season. Zito had this to say about the signing, “Jeff is a skilled, puck-moving defenseman who can contribute quality veteran leadership to our lineup. We are excited that he will join us to supplement our exciting core.”

Depth signings include goalies Kirill Gerasimyuk & Brandon Bussi, center Jack Studnicka, and left wing Nolan Foote. Gerasimyuk was signed to a two-year entry-level contract. Bussi, Studnicka, and Foote are all signed to one-year, two-way contracts.