The Panthers are on the doorstep of a dynasty.

After falling in five games to the Vegas Golden Knights in the 2023 Stanley Cup Final, the Panthers returned to the Final in 2024, blew a 3-0 lead to the Edmonton Oilers, then buckled down in Game 7, winning 2-1 and lifting the first Stanley Cup in franchise history.

Florida came into 2024-25 as a popular bet to advance out of the Eastern Conference for a third consecutive season. Due to injuries and a suspension, the Panthers limped into the postseason, finishing 47-31-4, good for 98 points and third in the Atlantic Conference. Before the trade deadline, the Panthers added right-shot defenceman Seth Jones and Brad Marchand, two key pieces heading into the postseason.

So where did the Panthers get all this extra money? They placed Matthew Tkachuk on Long-Term Injured Reserve and, despite being suspended for PEDs, Aaron Ekblad’s contract did not count toward their cap hit, allowing them to add over $6 million in cap space.

As you can imagine, the Panthers were well above the cap limit, which does not matter in the postseason. Tkachuk returned for Game 1 in the first round, and they steamrolled the Tampa Bay Lightning to move to the second round. It looked as if the Panthers had finally met their match, as the Toronto Maple Leafs took a 2-0 series lead and had a 3-1 lead in Game 3, but the Panthers stormed back and eventually throttled the Leafs at home in Game 7. The Carolina Hurricanes did not stand a chance, losing in five games, which set up a rematch of the 2024 Stanley Cup Finals.

On top of questionable refereeing and the Panthers being well over the cap, the Oilers entered the finals without Zach Hyman, while Ryan Nugent-Hopkins had a broken wrist. The two teams split the first four games, but the Panthers took control of the series and won in six games.

No, I’m still not over it.

The question coming into the 2025-26 season is whether the Panthers can win their third consecutive Stanley Cup, something that hasn’t been done since the early 1980s New York Islanders.

They’re off to a good start, as the core that won them two Stanley Cups is still intact. Sam Reinhart led the team with 39 goals and 81 points, while captain Aleksander Barkov scored 20 goals and 71 points in 67 games. Matthew Tkachuk will miss the start of the season with the lingering injury, but he scored 22 goals and 57 points in 52 games last season.

They also had plenty of players who were not quite point-per-game but still contributed mightily to the offence. Last season, Carter Verhaeghe scored 20 goals and 53 points in 81 games. Sam Bennett scored 25 goals and 51 points in 76 games. Anton Lundell continued to impress with 17 goals and 45 points in 79 games, on top of a good postseason.

After the trade, Marchand scored just two goals and four points in 10 games, but exploded for 10 goals and 20 points in 23 games during their postseason run. Filling out the depth are Evan Rodrigues, Mackie Samoskevich, Eetu Luostarinen, Jesper Boqvist, and A.J. Greer.

The Panthers’ defence remains relatively the same. Aaron Ekblad scored three goals and 33 points in 56 games last season, Gustav Forsling scored 11 goals and 31 points in 80 games, and Niko Mikkola scored six goals and 22 points in 76 games. Acquired before the trade deadline, Jones scored two goals and nine points in 21 games, then scored four times during their Stanley Cup run.

In net, expect Sergei Bobrovsky to start most games. Last season, he had a .906 save percentage and a 2.44 goals-against average in 54 games, and he had a much better postseason.

The big question entering this off-season was whether the Panthers would be able to re-sign Marchand, Bennett, and Ekblad. The answer is yes.

Bennett agreed to an eight-year deal worth $8 million annually. Ekblad also agreed to an eight-year deal with a $6.1 million cap hit, and Marchand agreed to a six-year deal worth $5.25 million annually. These contracts were all well below what each of the three players was projected to earn on the open market.

They also made a handful of depth moves. Nate Schmidt departed for the Utah Mammoth, with the Panthers replacing him with former Oiler Jeff Petry. They also brought in Luke Kunin, a solid penalty killer who is a right-shot centre.

Backing up Bobrovsky in 2024-25 will be fellow Russian Daniil Tarasov. They acquired his rights from the Columbus Blue Jackets and agreed to a one-year deal worth $1.05 million. Samoskevich also signed a deal, agreeing to a one-year contract worth the league minimum ($775,000).

Also departing were Nico Sturm, Vítek Vaněček, and Jaycob Megna.

The Panthers have a core that won’t just compete for the 2026 Stanley Cup, but the next three or four Stanley Cups. In fact, the bigger question is for the league: How is anyone going to stop the Panthers?

Tkachuk will start the season on Long-Term Injured Reserve, but the Panthers have plenty of depth to overcome that. It should give the team some added salary cap flexibility to make in-season additions.