Florida general manager Bill Zito brought back several former Panthers for the upcoming season.
Jacob Markstrom, Radko Gudas, and Alexander Petrovic all had their moments in Sunrise before moving on.
They are back for more.
Other former Panthers players remain out on the market looking for a gig.
As players age, they frequently become short-term hired guns for a team in need of depth and experience, often with a succession of one-year deals.
A perfect example would be Corey Perry who starred for Anaheim for 14 seasons and was a Hart Trophy and Maurice Richard Trophy winner.
He has played for six different teams in the past seven seasons with one two-year contract and six one-year contracts.
It appears as if Zito’s roster is close to being complete, and the Panthers have plenty of depth.
There may be a few more additions before camp opens next month, but per PuckPedia, the Panthers have very little cap space to work with.
Although they have been able to find room in the past.
Of the former Panthers still looking for a place to play, Vladimir Tarasenko is probably the biggest name out there.
Tarasenko, who still maintains a home in South Florida, was a superstar with St. Louis for 11 seasons until forcing a late season trade to the Rangers in 2023.
He won a Stanley Cup with the Blues in 2019.
In 2024 he turned out to be one of the best late-season rentals the Panthers ever had and was a valuable member of the team during the first Stanley Cup run.
Cap space prevented his re-signing.
Tarasenko since moved on to Detroit and Minnesota. Unlike many other lingering free agents, he will likely command a salary far above the league minimum.
He is 34 and came off a bounce back 23-goal season with the Wild — so, he will likely find a home.
Reilly Smith spent two seasons with the Panthers and in 2015-16, his 20 goals were then a career high.
Smith was traded to Vegas at the 2017 expansion draft and ended up having a lot of success in Vegas, recording a career high of 26 goals in 2022-23 and being part of the Knights’ Cup championship team.
In the past three seasons, Smith bounced from Vegas to Pittsburgh to the Rangers and back to Vegas.
Smith was a healthy scratch in all but seven of the Knights’ 22 playoff games. At 35, he doesn’t have too many options open, but he scored 16 goals in the regular season and can provide value to an NHL team.
James Reimer spent three seasons in Sunrise as backup goalie to Roberto Luongo.
He posted creditable numbers while playing more games than the typical second stringer. His friendly nature made him popular with media and fans.
He has since been a true journeyman, toiling for Carolina, San Jose, Detroit, Buffalo, Anaheim and Ottawa. He was unemployed last year until Ottawa signed him in January.
At age 38 it may be the end of the line for Reimer who has 539 NHL games to his credit.
Jeff Petry was signed to a one-year contract by the Panthers last season.
The hope was that he would be another successful reclamation project like Oliver Ekman-Larsson or Nate Schmidt.
It just did not work out. Once an offensive threat during his prime with Montreal, things never clicked in Florida and was dealt at the deadline to Minnesota, renewing his chances at a Cup.
With the Wild, Petry went without a goal and was frequently a healthy scratch during the remaining regular season and the playoffs.
If it’s the end of the line, there should be no regrets. He had an illustrious 16-year career.
Defenseman Mike Reilly never got much of a real chance with the Panthers. Signed by Zito as a depth defender for the 2023-24 season, he was picked up by the Islanders on waivers when the Panthers tried to ship him to the AHL.
Reilly performed well for the Islanders, recording a career high 24 points in 59 games.
The following season he was diagnosed with a heart condition and played only 18 games, registering two assists. The Islanders did not re-sign him.
Last season he caught on with Carolina and played enough games to get his name on the Stanley Cup.
Reilly is 33 and has played for seven NHL teams. A classic definition of a journeyman.
Luke Kunin was a valuable fourth line fill-in for the much-injured Panthers last season. The Panthers were the 28-year-old Kunin’s fifth NHL team. He was signed by Zito to a one-year NHL minimum two-way contract.
He produced four goals in 62 games. His best season was 2019-20 when he scored 15 goals for Minnesota. He was rewarded with successive multi-year contracts.
Kunin has proven himself as a valuable depth player and will likely get at least a PTO before the season starts.
Evgenii Dadonov was drafted by Florida in 2007. He did two stints with the Panthers sandwiched around five KHL seasons.
He produced as high as 28 goals, twice for Florida. After leaving Florida he played for Ottawa, Vegas, Montreal, Dallas and New Jersey.
Dadonov earned only $1 million with New Jersey last season. Injuries and healthy scratches limited him to 24 games and only one goal. He earned $5 million during his peak years.
His NHL future is uncertain. Rumors have him headed back to the KHL.
Adam Boqvist has also not caught on with another team after spending parts of the past two seasons with the Islanders. For a brief period in 2024-25 he and his brother Jesper were Panthers’ teammates.
At the NHL minimum, he should catch on somewhere as a depth defenseman.
ON DECK: FLORIDA PANTHERS OFFSEASON