Florida Panthers sign Sandis Vilmanis to three-year, entry-level contract

The Florida Panthers have signed forward Sandis Vilmanis to a three-year, entry-level contract, starting with the 2024-25 NHL season.

The 20-year-old has 28 goals and 53 points in the OHL this season, splitting time between the Sarnia Sting and North Bay Battalion.

Drafted 157th overall by the Panthers in 2022, the Latvian forward has spent the past two years in the OHL. He has 98 points in 122 career games after getting selected 14th overall by Sarnia during the 2022 CHL Import Draft.

Vilmanis is an accomplished Latvian national team member who helped his country win silver at the Division IA World Juniors in 2022. That proved to be vital, as Belarus’ ban prevented them from moving up to the summer world junior tournament, with Latvia ultimately taking Russia’s place. Vilmanis has played in four U-20 tournaments, highlighted by his four-point effort this most recent year.

Prior to heading to North America, Vilmanis spent most of his time playing with Lulea’s junior program in Sweden. He also had a 22-game spell with HK Riga in the Russian junior league during the 2020-21 season.

Vilmanis will likely spend most of the season with one of Florida’s farm teams, either with the AHL’s Charlotte Checkers or with the ECHL’s Florida Everblades. Vilmanis projects as a bottom-six forward that grinds hard, but also has the ability to pull off a strong shot release.

The Panthers will face the Detroit Red Wings at 3:00 PM ET today before heading to the Big Apple to challenge the Rangers on Monday. Florida is tied with Boston for first in the NHL, but the Rangers and Vancouver Canucks are both sitting just one point behind. The Panthers are riding a three-game winning streak and are 9-1-0 over the past 10 games.