Florida Panthers 2026-27 Roster

     The Florida Panthers announced their roster to start the 2026-27 National Hockey League season. The Cats listed the maximum amount of 23 players that they can carry on their roster. 

     The Panthers have 14 forwards that include Aleksander Barkov, Matthew Tkachuk, Brady Tkachuk, Sam Bennett, Sam Reinhart, Brad Marchand, Carter Verhaeghe, Anton Lundell, Eetu Luostarinen, Jonah Gadjovich, Lars Eller, Garnet Hathaway, Sandis Vilmanis and Bokondji Imana. 

     The seven defensemen consists of Aaron Ekblad, Seth Jones, Gustav Forsling, Niko Mikkola, Dmitry Kulikov, Radko Gudas and Uvis Balinskis. The club has two goalies with Jacob Markstrom and Akira Schmid. 

Steven Lorentz Dealt To Blue Jackets

     Former Florida Panthers forward Steven Lorentz was traded by the Toronto Maple Leafs along with Matthew Knies to the Columbus Blue Jackets for Kirill Marchenko in a six-player deal. Lorentz played 151 games with the Maple Leafs for the past two seasons. 

     Lorentz was with the Panthers for one season in 2023-24 and helped them capture their first Stanley Cup title in franchise history. He finished with one goal and two assists for three points in 38 regular season contests. Lorentz participated in 16 postseason games during their championship run compiling two goals and one assist for three points. 

Panthers At Hurricanes in Season Opener

     The Florida Panthers opened up their 2026-27 regular season campaign with a x-x xxxxx the Carolina Hurricanes at Lenovo Center in Raleigh on Tuesday. It was the first game played in the National Hockey League this season. In addition, it was the earliest day that a regular season has ever began in NHL history. 

     The Hurricanes raised their 2026 Stanley Cup championship banner to the rafters prior to the start of the contest. It was the third straight season that the Panthers organization was involved in a Stanley Cup banner ceremony. The Cats raised two Stanley Cup title banners at Amerant Bank Arena in Sunrise for the season opener prior to the 2024-25 season and 2025-26 season. 

     The number of regular season games increased from 82 to 84 in 2026-27. It was agreed to with the new NHL collective bargaining agreement between the owners and the players. The adjustment of the number of contests during this campaign will have the Panthers play every divisional foe in the Atlantic Division four times this season. 

     Florida(0-0-0)

     Carolina(0-0-0)

Canucks Release Chris Driedger

     The Vancouver Canucks have released goalie Chris Driedger. He signed a professional tryout offer with the club last month. 

     Driedger was with the Florida Panthers for two seasons in 2019-20 and 2020-21. He compiled a 21-8-4 record, .931 save percentage and a 2.07 goals-against average in 35 contests with the Cats. 

Nathan Bastian Signs With Panthers

     The Florida Panthers have signed right wing Nathan Bastian one-year, two-way contract worth $850,000. He agreed to a professional tryout offer with the team earlier this month. 

     Bastian has played in the National Hockey League since the 2018-19 season. He had two previous stints with the New Jersey Devils. 

The Hometeam On WMEN

     Fox Sports 640 South Florida WMEN-AM has announced that they have rebranded their one-hour afternoon show. It was JC & Ken and now it will be known as Josh Cohen and The Hometeam With KLV. 

     Ken LaVicka and Cohen launched the program on WMEN in January. Both previously worked together on The Hometown at ESPN West Palm 106.3 WUUB-FM from January 2015 until April 2021. LaVicka joined the show as a sports anchor and on-air sidekick. He was later elevated to co-host of the program. 

Florida Panthers 2026-27 Announcers

     The Florida Panthers 2026-27 National Hockey League regular season will begin tomorrow at the Carolina Hurricanes. The Panthers telecasts will be carried by Scripps Sports for the third consecutive season. 

     The television personnel on Florida broadcasts will remain unchanged for the third straight season. It consists of play-by-play announcer Steve Goldstein, game analyst Randy Moller and rinkside reporter Katie Engleson. Jessica Blaylock is back as studio host while Ed Jovanovski returns as studio analyst. Goldstein and Moller have been paired together in the television booth now for 12 seasons. Engleson begins her fifth season at that post. 

     Panthers radio broadcasts will air on 104.3 Sports WQAM-FM for the second straight campaign. 560 WQAM-AM will be used as a secondary frequency again. Radio play-by-play announcer Doug Plagens, radio game analyst Bill Lindsay (for home games) and radio studio host Kevin Rogers returns to the airwaves. Plagens and Lindsay will be in the radio broadcast booth for the 12th consecutive season.