Panthers headed to 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs

The Florida Panthers will have an opportunity to shoot for a second-straight championship as the club has punched its ticket to the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Despite a 3-0 loss to the Ottawa Senators on Saturday, the Panthers earned a berth in the upcoming postseason after the Atlantic Division rival Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Columbus Blue Jackets in regulation.

For the Panthers, on the season the club sits 44-28-4 and behind both the Maple Leafs and state rival Tampa Bay Lightning in the Atlantic Division.

This season, the Panthers have been headlined by forward Sam Reinhart who following a career-high 94-point finish a year ago has notched 37 goals and 41 assists for 78 points through 76 appearances in 2024-25. Also up front, the Panthers bring two-time Selke Trophy recipient Aleksander Barkov who through 64 outings has scored north of a point per game with 19 goals and 48 assists. The Panthers continue to await the return of power forward Matthew Tkachuk who sustained a groin injury while competing with Team USA at the 4 Nations Face-Off.

With their sights set on another a Stanley Cup championship, the Panthers bulked up ahead of this year’s trade deadline, adding former Boston Bruins captain Brad Marchand. Despite a delayed start with his new club due to injury, Marchand has since skated in five games with the Panthers in which he has recorded one assist. The Panthers also added big-time blue-liner Seth Jones from the Chicago Blackhawks. Through 15 showings with Florida, the former fourth-overall pick has scored twice and added four assists for six points.

The Panthers have advanced to the Stanley Cup Final in each of the past two seasons, first losing to the Vegas Golden Knights in five games in 2023 before defeating the Edmonton Oilers in a seven-game set last spring. This year marks the 11th time that the Panthers have advanced to the playoffs since their 1993 inaugural season.