“I think we had a real learning experience this year,” the Florida Panthers’ head coach, Paul Maurice, said about how the team is prepared for the worst ahead of the 2025 playoffs. However, he also admitted that losing some of the key players during the campaign has been a significant blow to deal with. Thankfully, while many stars had to be sidelined for considerable periods of time, there were others who were able to shoulder the extra burden, and the squad hopes for the same in the coming days.
Can the defending champs hold the fort? With the 2025 playoffs around the corner, that’s the only question on everyone’s mind. Seeing the Florida Panthers, the 2024 Stanley Cup champs, finishing the 2024-25 campaign in the third spot in their division has only added to the skepticism. Moreover, their first-round opponents are going to be the fierce in-state rivals, the Tampa Bay Lightning. With that in mind, the Panthers clan couldn’t be more thankful about the impromptu decisions that helped save the campaign.
The Florida Panthers lost a major defensive pillar, only for a transfer to step up
For any Florida fan, March has been a month filled with highs and lows. One of the worst moments was undoubtedly defenseman Aaron Ekblad being handed a 20-match suspension for using performance-enhancing substances (PEDs). This meant that the 29-year-old Canadian was out for the remainder of the regular season. Luckily, the Panthers soon acquired right-shot Seth Jones from the Blackhawks in a massive deal to keep the blue line intact. In an upload by Locked On Panthers (Florida) on YouTube from 18, the hosts talked about exactly how Jones’ arrival has been a blessing for the Miami team.
“I think that’s a very important advantage that the Panthers have…not handcuffing themselves from $14 million in goalie money to bring in Seth Jones,” host Armando Velez said, praising the Panthers’ call to bring in an experienced defenseman instead of investing in another goalie. In fact, it was the goalie Spencer Knight and a 2026 conditional first-round pick whom they sent to the Blackhawks for Seth Jones and a 2026 fourth-round draft pick. Knight has a 3-year $13.5 million contract, while Seth Jones came with an AAV of $9.5 million, 26% of which is being footed by the Hawks.
“How impactful was he when it came to uh the suspension of Ekblad? Imagine if they never made that trade for him, how screwed would that Panthers blue line truly be?” Velez joked about how the Panthers’ defensive lineup could be a shambolic exhibition had Jones not been roped in. Indeed, at 6-foot-4 and 213 pounds, the right-shot defenseman is almost a like-for-like replacement. And his average TOI of 24:55 over 21 games for the Panthers shows how much the team trusts him. However, while Jones lacing up the Florida Panthers was a brilliant sight for the fans, they also couldn’t help but be stunned by how Aaron’s 2024-25 season turned out to be.
Ekblad was the first NHL player since Nate Schmidt to receive a suspension for violating the NHLPA’s guidelines on PEDs. After the verdict, the Florida Panthers star took to social media to note his “shock” about the test result. Before his suspension, Ekblad was on a roll, racking up an impressive +/- of +11 over 56 games. However, while he has been out of the squad since the NHL’s decision was made public, Seth Jones has also been able to lend his skills incredibly well. And yet, in hindsight, one couldn’t help but wonder, did the people higher up know about such a blow to the guts that was incoming?
How Round 1 is shaping up for the Panthers
On March 11, Daily Faceoff’s Frank Seravalli took to X to note his thoughts about how the Florida Panthers managed to sign Jones just days before Ekblad’s suspension. “I’d love to know, really, the dates when the Florida Panthers first found out about the possibility of the suspension,” the NHL pundit said. Although he acknowledged that there is a lot of “back and forth between parties once the positive test is confirmed, then there’s a B sample that also needs to be examined,” he had one question: “…when did the Panthers know, and did they make this Seth Jones trade before that happened?” However, irrespective of how things were handled, the Panthers are where they are. But can the momentum continue against the arch-rivals too?
For the second-straight year, the Florida Panthers will start their playoff journey by crossing paths with the Tampa Bay Lightning in Round 1. In three of the last four years, the two Eastern Conference giants have met in the postseason. What’s more, whoever won the series has also gone all the way to the Stanley Cup finals. Naturally, both teams know what’s at stake here.
“I think it’s great for hockey in Florida because there’s two elite teams. Either one of them could win the whole thing. And certainly the eyes in Florida and the fans in both cities will be wired right into it,” the Florida Panthers’ head coach said about the upcoming seven-game thriller that awaits to commence. Both Florida and Tampa Bay have won two games apiece against each other in the 2024-25 season, and will be looking to gain the advantage in the playoffs.
After the Panthers won their first Stanley Cup in franchise history last year, general manager Bill Zito said, “What we want to do is keep going, keep evolving.” And that’s exactly what they did. While the squad lost some of its biggest stars ahead of the 2024-25 season, including Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Vladimir Tarasenko, and Brandon Montour, they also added new names like Nate Schmidt and Jesper Boqvist to the roster, while locking down their core players like Gustav Forsling, Sam Reinhart, and Anton Lundell in the past year alone. Moreover, Florida also acquired the Bruins’ long-time captain Brad Marchand in a stunning trade in late March. Will that make any significant impact in the days that are imminent?
While fans aren’t entirely happy about the schedule for the upcoming Florida Panthers vs. Tampa Bay Lightning postseason matches, it’s safe to say that the eyes of everyone in the state will be firmly on the TV screens nonetheless. Who will you be rooting for in the Battle For Florida? Tell us below!
The post Florida Panthers $14 Million Move Saves Them From Handcuffing Stanley Cup Chances Amidst Suspension of Big Player appeared first on EssentiallySports.
