{"id":542365,"date":"2026-04-05T16:58:42","date_gmt":"2026-04-05T16:58:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/542365\/"},"modified":"2026-04-05T16:58:42","modified_gmt":"2026-04-05T16:58:42","slug":"florida-panthers-react-as-stanley-cup-reign-ends","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nhl\/542365\/","title":{"rendered":"Florida Panthers react as Stanley Cup reign ends"},"content":{"rendered":"

They knew it was coming, but the Florida Panthers<\/a> experienced the official end of their two-year reign as the NHL\u2019s<\/a> Stanley Cup champions on Saturday, April 4.<\/p>\n

A 9-4 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins sealed the Panthers\u2019 fate. Florida is in last place in the Eastern Conference\u2019s Atlantic Division with six games remaining.<\/p>\n

The Panthers, who defeated the Edmonton Oilers in the past two Stanley Cup Finals, will miss the postseason for the first time since 2018-19.<\/p>\n

MORE: Tampa Bay Lightning salute unlikely star\u2019s franchise record<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cObviously, no one\u2019s happy about the situation,\u201d Panthers forward Sam Bennett said, per ESPN<\/a>. \u201cBut it\u2019s about really just sticking together as a team and going through this as a team. We\u2019re all sticking together. It\u2019s not fun sometimes. But we\u2019re just trying to make the best of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

On Sunday, NHL.com<\/a> senior writer Amalie Benjamin recapped the Panthers\u2019 season and looked into the future.<\/p>\n

After back-to-back #StanleyCup<\/a> championships, the Florida Panthers failed to make the postseason for the first time since 2018-19. <\/p>\n

More on their season and next year’s outlook \u2935\ufe0fhttps:\/\/t.co\/npM316m7fR<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 NHL Media (@NHLMedia) April 5, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Injuries<\/p>\n

Florida lost center and captain Aleksander Barkov to a knee injury in training camp that cost him the entire season. Then, forward Matthew Tkachuk missed the first 47 games after surgery to repair a sports hernia. Defenseman Seth Jones played just 50 games, and prominent players Sam Reinhart, Brad Marchand, Evan Rodrigues and Anton Lundell missed time as well.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a factor,\u201d Panthers head coach Paul Maurice said. \u201cWe\u2019re going to be over 500-man games [lost], and that\u2019s pretty hard to sustain.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky (72) makes a save against the Boston Bruins. | Sam Navarro-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

Goaltending<\/p>\n

Goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky\u2019s play dipped during his 16th NHL season. His .878 save percentage is the lowest of his career, and his 3.05 goals-against average is the third worst of his career.<\/p>\n

During the Stanley Cup seasons of 2023-24 and 2024-25, Bobrovsky turned in save percentages of .915 and .905, respectively, and GAAs of 2.37 and 2.44.<\/p>\n

Bobrovsky, who will be 38 when the 2026-27 season begins, becomes an unrestricted free agent this offseason.<\/p>\n

Workload<\/p>\n

According to Benjamin, Florida played an NHL-record 314 games during the three seasons leading into 2025-26. The Panthers made three consecutive trips to the Stanley Cup Final, falling to the Vegas Golden Knights before the two title runs.<\/p>\n

That workload may have led to mental exhaustion and could be a reason for all the injuries.<\/p>\n

Reasons for optimism<\/p>\n

Barkov is expected to be ready to go for the start of the 2026-27 season. Additionally, Tkachuk, Reinhart, Marchand and Lundell are signed and should be healthy.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe players will rebound from this year because we look at the group coming back and say, \u2018OK, we think we\u2019re still in our prime here,\u2019\u201d Maurice said.<\/p>\n

Plus, Florida likely will get an unexpected bonus. While the Panthers traded their first-round pick to the Chicago Blackhawks in 2025 trade for Jones, that pick was top-10 protected. Florida is in a position to retain that pick.<\/p>\n

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