Playoff MVP Sam Bennett agrees on 8-year, $64 million contract to stay with Florida Panthers

Sam Bennett News

Playoff MVP Sam Bennett agrees on 8-year, $64 million contract to stay with Florida Panthers
Florida PanthersGustav ForslingAaron Ekblad
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Sam Bennett walked to the front of the stage at the Florida Panthers’ latest Stanley Cup championship parade, and before he could even speak the crowd began serenading him with their request. “Eight more years! Eight more years!” they chanted, over and over. They got their wish.

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Here's what he's done as health secretaryWhat to know about online age verification lawsPut chickpeas at the center of the plate with citrus and honeyFamilia Trump elimina etiqueta"Hecho en EEUU" de sus nuevos teléfonosBuque que trasladaba vehículos de China a México se hunde en el Pacífico tras semanas en llamasSportsFlorida Panthers’ Sam Bennett holds up the Conn Smythe Trophy during the NHL hockey team’s Stanley Cup championship celebration, Sunday, June 22, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Florida Panthers’ Sam Bennett raises the Stanley Cup after defeating the Edmonton Oilers in Game 6 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Final in Sunrise, Fla., Tuesday, June 17, 2025. Florida Panthers center Sam Bennett lifts the Stanley Cup after defeating the Edmonton Oilers in Game 6 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Final Tuesday, June 17, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. NHL commissioner Gary Bettman presents the Conn Smythe Trophy to Sam Bennett after defeating the Edmonton Oilers in Game 6 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Final Tuesday, June 17, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. Edmonton Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner stops Florida Panthers’ Sam Bennett during the second period in Game 6 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Final in Sunrise, Fla., Tuesday, June 17, 2025. Florida Panthers’ Sam Bennett holds up the Conn Smythe Trophy during the NHL hockey team’s Stanley Cup championship celebration, Sunday, June 22, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Florida Panthers’ Sam Bennett holds up the Conn Smythe Trophy during the NHL hockey team’s Stanley Cup championship celebration, Sunday, June 22, 2025, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Florida Panthers’ Sam Bennett raises the Stanley Cup after defeating the Edmonton Oilers in Game 6 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Final in Sunrise, Fla., Tuesday, June 17, 2025. Florida Panthers’ Sam Bennett raises the Stanley Cup after defeating the Edmonton Oilers in Game 6 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Final in Sunrise, Fla., Tuesday, June 17, 2025. Florida Panthers center Sam Bennett lifts the Stanley Cup after defeating the Edmonton Oilers in Game 6 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Final Tuesday, June 17, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. Florida Panthers center Sam Bennett lifts the Stanley Cup after defeating the Edmonton Oilers in Game 6 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Final Tuesday, June 17, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. NHL commissioner Gary Bettman presents the Conn Smythe Trophy to Sam Bennett after defeating the Edmonton Oilers in Game 6 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Final Tuesday, June 17, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. NHL commissioner Gary Bettman presents the Conn Smythe Trophy to Sam Bennett after defeating the Edmonton Oilers in Game 6 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Final Tuesday, June 17, 2025, in Sunrise, Fla. Edmonton Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner stops Florida Panthers’ Sam Bennett during the second period in Game 6 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Final in Sunrise, Fla., Tuesday, June 17, 2025. Edmonton Oilers goalie Stuart Skinner stops Florida Panthers’ Sam Bennett during the second period in Game 6 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup Final in Sunrise, Fla., Tuesday, June 17, 2025. SUNRISE, Fla. — Sam Bennett walked to the front of the stage at the Florida Panthers’ latest Stanley Cup championship parade, and before he could even speak the crowd began serenading him with their request.Bennett — who led the NHL with 15 goals in this year’s playoffs and became the first Panthers player ever to score that many in a single postseason — is staying with the back-to-back Stanley Cup champions. He and Florida agreed Friday to a new eight-year contract worth $64 million, or $8 million per season. “Sam is a special player who has mastered a unique blend of skill and physicality in his game, becoming one of the most impactful postseason performers of his generation,” Panthers general manager and hockey operations president Bill Zito said. “He played an integral role in our two Stanley Cup championships, earning the franchise’s first Conn Smythe trophy and is a dedicated contributor to our South Florida community off the ice. We are thrilled that he will continue his career with the Panthers.” Bennett was the Conn Smythe Trophy winner as MVP of the playoffs, the first Florida player to ever win that award. The last time a Conn Smythe winner didn’t open the following season with the same team he had that playoff run with was 1997, when goaltender Mike Vernon helped Detroit win that year’s Cup — and then the Red Wings traded him to San Jose that summer.Maple Leafs re-sign Tavares, Oilers keep Frederic around long term and NHL trades get rollingIt is the first of three big decisions that the Panthers have been waiting on heading into free agency, the others being what forward Brad Marchand — a trade deadline pickup who became an enormous part of the run to this Cup — and defenseman Aaron Ekblad will do going forward. The Bennett signing is another huge move by Zito, who now has eight players — all of them key parts of the team — under contract with the Panthers through at least the 2029-30 season. Bennett joins Aleksander Barkov, Matthew Tkachuk, Sam Reinhart, Carter Verhaeghe, Anton Lundell, Seth Jones and Gustav Forsling on that list. The raise is a massive one for Bennett, who just finished the final year of a four-year contract that paid him just under $18 million. He had a postseason like almost none other; the only other player to have at least 15 goals and 48 penalty minutes in the same playoff run was Pittsburgh’s Kevin Stevens in 1991. He had given indications throughout this offseason process — including at a nightclub during the Panthers’ days-long initial Cup celebration — that he intended to remain in Florida, but nothing got officially done until Friday. Bennett is coming off perhaps his finest season, with 25 goals and 26 assists in the regular season for a career-best 51 points. As it happened: Trump said he’ll advance policies blocked by judges, including birthright citizenshipIran’s Khamenei resurfaces to warn against future US attacks in first statement since ceasefire

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Florida Panthers Gustav Forsling Aaron Ekblad Sam Reinhart Brad Marchand Matthew Tkachuk Anton Lundell Aleksander Barkov Florida FL State Wire Stanley Cup NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs Mike Vernon Seth Jones Kevin Stevens Sports NHL Hockey Bill Zito Carter Verhaeghe Stanley Cup Finals

 

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