“Eight more years! Eight more years!” The Florida Panthers fans did not let Sam Bennett speak a word when the Stanley Cup hero walked to the front of the stage during their championship parade. Well, they got their wish. The Panthers have just announced an 8-year, $64 million contract extension for the Stanley Cup MVP.

Talking to the media, the Panthers’ GM and President, Bill Zito, was all praise for the 29-year-old when announcing Bennett’s extension. “He played an integral role in our two Stanley Cup championships, earning the franchise’s first Conn Smythe trophy, and is a dedicated contributor to our South Florida community off the ice. We are thrilled that he will continue his career with the Panthers,” Zito said this Friday.

While it’s understandable as to why the Panthers wanted to secure this year’s Stanley Cup Finals MVP for the next few years, it just might have also created a financial headache for the South Florida heavyweights, as The Hockey News‘ Armando Velez noted in a post on X from June 27.

“Panthers now have $11M in cap space to fill out 6 roster spots,” Velez highlighted in his social media update. Those are two polar opposite figures right there! Especially when you consider that the Panthers would still want to hold on to Brad Marchand, whose last contract with the Bruins came with a $6.13 million AAV. Obviously, after a standout performance through the 2025 playoffs, you’d imagine the Canadian would warrant a beefier contract, and at this point, it’s hard to tell if the Cats got a pocket deep enough to pull that off after splurging on Bennett.

But hey, you can’t argue that Sam Bennett’s contract extension wasn’t entirely unexpected. Scoring 15 goals in the 2025 postseason, the Canadian became the all-time highest goalscorer for the Panthers in the playoffs. With that in mind, it’s absolutely justified that the Panthers didn’t want to put a dent in the team’s attacking prowess with possibilities for a three-peat on the table.

With the new contract signed, Sam now joins Aleksander Barkov, Matthew Tkachuk, Sam Reinhart, Anton Lundell, Carter Verhaeghe, Seth Jones, and Gustav Forsling as stars who will stay with Florida till at least 2030. And as for Marchand, it might not be the end of the world for the Buins’ legend right now, either.

In his rookie year with the Bruins, Brad won his first Stanley Cup back in 2011. And that same scene unfolded on his first stint with the Cats. But even hours before the trade deadline, coach Paul Maurice didn’t have a clue that he would get to work with one of the most emphatic stars in the league. Before the series-deciding Game 6 against the Oilers, the coach revealed how he was taken aback when Bill Zito came up to the former and put forth Marchand’s name as a possible new Panthers signee.

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via Imago

And the Canadian didn’t hold back on reciprocating with thrilling performances on the ice. In the Finals series, too, Marchand bagged several NHL records, making Zito admit that the winger is a “big moment guy“. Both Zito and Maurice have also noted previously that the ex-Bruins captain has completely changed the aura inside the Panthers’ locker room with his mere presence.

After the Panthers won the Cup last week, Marchand even shared a cryptic hint, claiming that returning to Florida could still be on the table. However, it looks like the top brass decided that Sam Bennett should have gotten the chance before Marchy. Not too surprising, given how Bennett ravaged the blue lines of all of Florida’s foes throughout all the playoff rounds.

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But will that be the very same reason that sees the reigning champs having to forego one of their fiercest attacking stars? Or would Marchand and the Cats find a way to make things work for another tenure with each other? Share your thoughts below!