SUNRISE, Fla. (AP) — Sam Bennett could have gone to free agency and picked his landing spot, plus probably could have signed for much more money than the Florida Panthers were able to offer.
Instead, he chose winning.
Bennett, the reigning Conn Smythe Award winner as playoff MVP of Florida’s most recent run to the Stanley Cup, spoke out Saturday about his decision to sign an eight-year, $64 million deal with the Panthers. His reasoning was actually quite simple.
“I think we have a lot more success in our future,” Bennett said.
It’s not hard to envision that, given how the back-to-back Stanley Cup champions now have eight core players — Bennett, Aleksander Barkov, Matthew Tkachuk, Sam Reinhart, Carter Verhaeghe, Gustav Forsling, Anton Lundell and Seth Jones — under contract through at least 2030.
Bennett’s status, especially after winning the Conn Smythe following a 15-goal performance in the playoffs, might have seemed to be in some question a couple weeks ago. He announced at a Miami nightclub last week that he was staying — there was no deal at the time, and his agent wasn’t happy that he did that — but it was clear that Bennett was hoping something would get done in Florida.
Teammates were evidently thrilled when the news broke Friday night.
“I got like three FaceTimes right away from the boys,” Bennett said. “A couple of them were together and they were so fired up. The group chat was going nuts. I’ve said it a million times, this group is so tight. So many guys that really care about each other. I was definitely feeling the love last night.”
Bennett is critical to the Panthers at both ends. He was one of three players in the NHL this season — Ottawa’s Brady Tkachuk, Matthew Tkachuk’s brother, and Washington’s Tom Wilson were the other two — with at least 50 points and 90 penalty minutes.
He said his decision came down to not seeing a need to take risks. He loves playing in Florida, loves being part of the Panthers, loves who he goes to work with every day. More money or a new role wasn’t going to outweigh all of that.
“I think we really have the chance to truly make this team a dynasty,” Bennett said. “I’m really just grateful that I get the chance to be a part of it. There are so many pieces in this puzzle that create this team and the success that this team has. And just to be a small piece of that is an honor. Looking forward to growing this legacy for the next eight years, for sure.”