Aaron Ekblad Contract Testing Panthers Priorities

The Florida Panthers have a difficult choice to make with defenseman Aaron Ekblad.

Mar 28, 2024; Sunrise, Florida, USA; Florida Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad (5) moves the puck against the New York Islanders during the first period at Amerant Bank Arena. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports / Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports

The Florida Panthers are still in celebration mode following their recent Stanley Cup victory. The team's first championship was hard-fought and well-earned, and the team has been enjoying their summer with Lord Stanley.

When the team returns for action in 2024, the roster will look incredibly different and there is potential for even more changes. Keeping the band together in the salary cap era is nearly impossible, but there could be a huge moving coming.

Before free agency began, it was reported by David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period that defenseman Aaron Ekblad was available for trade. In the time since, the speculation has continued, but there have been no concrete reports or movement made by the Panthers.

Ekblad enters the final season of his current contract, only complicating the matter further. He currently makes $7.5 million per season and is the highest paid defenseman on the team. He's been a pillar on the team's back-end since being drafted first overall in the 2014 NHL Draft. Over 676 NHL games with the Panthers, he's scored 347 points with seven seasons of 35 points or more.

But it hasn't been the easiest decade in the NHL for Ekblad. He's suffered several traumatic injuries during his career. From concussions, oblique tears, a broken foot, and a gruesome broken leg, the NHL's rigor has taken a toll on Ekblad. At 28 years-old, there is legitimate concern to how much longer the wheels will hold up.

Now, the Panthers must choose. Do they keep their franchise defenseman around for another five to seven years and pay him a huge salary or do they sever ties with a player they have a deep relationship and history with? Not only is he the longest tenured defenseman on the team, he's still their number one right-side defender, averaging 23 minutes of ice-time per game.

For general manager Bill Zito, it's an impossible choice. He's shown that he can make the tough decision before, trading away beloved players like Jonathan Huberdeau and MacKenzie Weegar for Matthew Tkachuk. It was a shocking trade, but two years later it's paid off and then some. But does he want to do that again with Ekblad? Zito must decide soon, and his choice could again send the Panthers in a drastically different direction.

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