The Florida Panthers’ celebration extends into July. For the first time in team history, they enter the offseason as Stanley Cup champions, with the parade taking place last Sunday, June 30.
During their celebration, free agency finally began, affecting Florida on both sides of the coin. They were able to keep the forward who scored the Stanley Cup-winning goal, Sam Reinhart, for the next eight years. However, they lost Brandon Montour, Ryan Lomberg, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, and Vladimir Tarasenko.
They were able to hang onto another piece. That was forward Anton Lundell. He has emerged as an important player of the squad in both the regular season and the playoffs over the last three years. However, he entered the free agency period as a restricted free agent. Earlier this week, he inked a new contract extension for the next six seasons worth an average of $5 million per season. With everything he’s done for the organization, the deal demonstrates that both parties are dedicated to maintaining the winning culture in South Florida.
Lundell Has Been A Monster Since He Was Drafted.
Bill Zito’s first pick as general manager was Lundell 12th overall in the 2020 draft. Since then, the choice has paid off handsomely for the squad. In 213 regular-season games with the Panthers, he has 43 goals and 69 assists. He’s been prolific in the playoffs, scoring six goals and assisting on 22 others in 54 games.
Furthermore, he’s been a tremendous two-way forward, with primary responsibilities on the penalty kill. Last season, he averaged 1:15 on the kill and had a shorthanded assist. This is a significant decline from his rookie season, when he averaged 2:20 a game down a man. In his career, he has three shorthanded goals and seven shorthanded points combined.
He performed admirably in his Cup Run this past summer. Through 24 games, he has three goals and 14 assists. He also honed his plus-8 rating. He’s emerged as a vital postseason player for head coach Paul Maurice and crew.
Lundell Is Barkov 2.0?
As previously stated, his two-way game is excellent. But it’s simple to see where he honed his skills in that atmosphere.
That can be ascribed to his captain, Aleksander Barkov, with whom he has played penalty kill minutes since joining Sunrise. And, like him, he can list “Stanley Cup Champion” on his resume. At only 22, he has a lot of room to grow.
Finally, he was drafted for this job. He’s performed admirably in his three seasons, and his deal was well deserved. However, he could be given a more major position much sooner than expected. He should have no trouble handling such responsibilities.
