Panthers heap praise on Bennett: 'Everything you want in a player'
The Florida Panthers consider themselves lucky to have pesky forward Sam Bennett on their side for yet another deep playoff run.
"He's everything you want in a player," forward Carter Verhaeghe said, according to NHL.com's Dan Rosen. "When it's the most important time for your team, when you're chasing a championship, that's when you want to be at your best and be able to perform at your best. He's one of those guys."
Bennett has been on a heater this postseason, quietly leading all players with 10 goals while tying for second in points among all Panthers with 16 in 17 games. Both are new career highs for the center in the playoffs, surpassing the seven tallies he mustered in 2024 and the 15 points he amassed in 2023.
By all counts, Bennett is a more effective player come springtime. He owns a career 0.49 points-per-game rate and 0.23 goals-per-game clip in the regular season, but those rates jump to 0.71 and 0.35, respectively, in the playoffs.
"The definition of a playoff player," Panthers star Matthew Tkachuk said.
Bennett has also never been one to shy away from physical play. He ranks second in the league with 85 hits this postseason, and his 256 hits in 56 games over the past three playoff runs pace the Panthers by an incredible margin; Eetu Luostarinen is the closest with 172.
"He just does everything," Brad Marchand said.
The veteran forward added, "He brings a physical aspect to the game that especially this time of year is, I mean, you can't have enough of it. ... At the same time, I mean, he comes up big in those big moments. Just a player you love to have on your team and one you hate (to) play against."
The Panthers acquired Bennett and a 2022 sixth-round pick from the Calgary Flames in April 2021 in exchange for forward Emil Heineman plus a 2022 second-rounder.
Bennett's best season in Calgary came in 2015-16, when he totaled 18 goals and 36 points in 77 games. Bennett has since hit the 20-goal mark three times with Florida, and he's reached the 40-point plateau in each of the last four campaigns, including his first 50-point effort this year.
Though Bennett seems to elevate his game when it matters the most, Panthers head coach Paul Maurice largely sees the same player year-round.
"In the playoffs, all the elements of our game are intensified," he said. "They're all present, so the best guys can do all things. ... They are excited about the opportunity, and thus, they don't wilt under the pressure or the moment.
"A lot of those guys play a version of that in the regular season. Sam is not far off. He plays pretty similar to that game all year. He plays pretty darn hard. So, it's not a major shift for him."
Bennett can become an unrestricted free agent this offseason.