Panthers Won’t Quit as Season Winds Down

Florida is stringing together wins despite the playoffs being out of reach

Feb 26, 2026; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky (72) defends his net against the Toronto Maple Leafs during the second period at Amerant Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images / Sam Navarro-Imagn Images

SUNRISE, Fla. — A playoff berth for the defending back-to-back Stanley Cup champions seems improbable with less than 20 games to play. Knowing it would take a miracle, the Panthers have taken a cautious approach as the season comes to its final stages.

Top players have started to rotate in and out of the lineup without injury; Sam Reinhart didn’t play in Tuesday night’s win against Detroit, Anton Lundell and Carter Verhaeghe were the two prominent omissions from Thursday night’s roster against the visiting Columbus Blue Jackets. 

Florida isn’t fielding a Stanley Cup caliber roster, but they really haven’t for a majority of the season, as was the case again on Thursday night.

24-year-old defenseman Mike Benning made his NHL debut, in place of the injured Uvis Balinskis. Cole Reinhardt made his Panthers debut, filling in on the third line with Tomas Nosek and Mackie Samoskevich. 

Despite their notable omissions, Florida “upset” a post-season hungry Blue Jackets squad 2-1 in overtime on Thursday, and it was because of their goaltender.

In his 799th career game, Sergei Bobrovsky looked like the goalie who led his team to back-to-back Stanley Cups on Thursday night. 

Columbus threw everything they could at Bobrovsky, sending 31 shots at the former Blue Jacket, but they could only sneak one by him off an odd-man rush. 

“It was a good game,” Bobrovsky said following his 30-save night.” I saw the puck well. There was lots of action and with this team you might not see that very often, so it’s one of those nights when I had a little extra work than usual. It was a great game and I’m happy with the win.”

Backstopped by a vintage Bobrovsky outing, the Panthers took the game in overtime thanks to a Sam Reinhart power-play goal. 

Panthers win in OT

Sam Reinhart GWG

FINAL: Panthers 2 Blue Jackets 1

If Rodrigues didn’t get a stick on that pass, it’ll be Mike Benning getting his first career NHL point with the secondary assist

— Alex Baumgartner (@ABaumgartner91) March 13, 2026

In the extra period, head coach Paul Maurice entrusted Benning to quarterback the 4-on-3 power-play unit, and it paid off. The rookie blueliner picked up his first career point on Reinhart’s game winner, getting a secondary assist on the goal.

“It was awesome,” Benning said postgame. “Everyone made me feel welcome. A lot of emotion out there. It was a dream come true. Family, friends, and coaches along the way helped me get to that point.”

Florida is nine points out of the final wild-card spot with 17 games left in the NHL season.

Amid the fatigue, the injuries, the hole they’ve dug themselves into, Florida has started to turn back the clock. The Cardiac Cats are on a three-game win streak, all of those coming against teams fighting for their playoff p.

A chance to three-peat is still nearly nonexistent, but the fight hasn’t disappeared for a team who knows they’ll be back to where they belong come next season.

“Winning is fun, it’s why we come to the rink every day,” Sam Bennett said Thursday night. “This team is really close so we’re sticking together. We’re just going to keep playing together and keep trying to win.”