Sam Bennett (Sergei Belski-Imagn Images)Should you need a primer on how to win a playoff series these days, taking a look at the Florida Panthers is a pretty good place to start.
No team has played in as many series as the Cats have over the past two post-seasons, as they went from finalists to champions year over year. And when you play against the Panthers, you do not expect an easy series. They are big. They are hard. They are skilled. And they work.
And if his contributions at the 4 Nations Face-Off are any indication, Bennett continues to play every shift as if the fate of the world is hanging in the balance.
“He’s what everyone wants on their team and hates to play against,” said teammate Sam Reinhart. “He’s always a threat, and he’s so lethal with the puck on his stick. And there’s that scare factor he has. When he’s on the forecheck, you know he’s out there. The bigger the game, the more he gives, and the more he rises to the occasion.”
Bennett’s versatility was on display at the 4 Nations when he suited up for Canada, as he fought Brady Tkachuk in the round-robin against Team USA, then punctured America’s resolve in the championship game with a highlight-reel goal against two-time Vezina Trophy winner Connor Hellebuyck.
Bennett didn’t even play in the first game of the tournament against Sweden, but he was more than ready when his name was called. And having played in so many crucial post-season games with Florida recently, he at least had some idea of what the intensity level was going to be like at the international showdown.
“Especially playing in that Game 7 (against Edmonton to win the 2024 Stanley Cup), this is like four Game 7s,” Bennett said. “All those games in the final the past two years is really the only thing close to the level in these games.”
Bennett ramps up his game – both offensively and physically – in the playoffs. (Sam Navarro-Imagn Images)And when it comes to the playoffs, Bennett elevates. Across the 2022-23 and 2023-24 regular seasons, the powerful center averaged 0.61 points per game, just under the clip he’s producing at this year. But in the playoffs, that number shot up to 0.74 points per game – just when the Panthers needed him most.
Though he was a high draft pick, going fourth overall to Calgary in 2014, it took a while for Bennett to find himself. In six-plus seasons with the Flames, he never had more than the 36 points he posted as a rookie, and he never hit 20 goals. The rough-and-tumble aspect of his game was there, but he struggled to find an identity.
“When I first got to there, I wasn’t really sure of my role,” Bennett said. “I didn’t know if I was a center or a winger, but that role was given to me, and I was able to run with it. It really did change my whole perspective of who I was as a player. I always knew I had the ability. It was just a matter of getting the opportunity and taking advantage of that. It really changed my career.”
With the Cats, Bennett has delivered his third season of 20-plus goals, and he has never produced fewer than 40 points, despite random injuries that have prevented him from playing a complete 82-game schedule in any of his four full seasons with the team.
While the offense is nice, the other half of his game is that nasty physical edge he brings to the proceedings, something that tends to get amplified in the playoffs when everyone is trying to win the ultimate prize.
“I’ve learned how important that style is to winning,” Bennett said. “You need guys on your team who are willing to do that to win, and it’s not always the easiest thing to do, but it’s important. Everyone needs to be more intense in the playoffs, and it was even more a part of my game in Calgary, but it has also helped me now.”
The funny thing about Bennett becoming such a beast is that his NHL journey got off to a bit of a rough start.
At the 2014 NHL draft combine, he failed to complete a single rep at the pull-up station, causing social media to inflame: This kid’s supposed to be a top pick and he can’t do a single pull-up?
Obviously, it didn’t matter – it never did, truly – but it’s amusing to think that this trip was laid on a player who has become tougher than the steel pull-up bar itself. In truth, Bennett had an injured shoulder at the combine that required surgery a few months later.
“I don’t really think about it, to be honest,” he said. “It’s something that happened and is part of my life now, I guess. It’s unfortunate that I didn’t test out if I could do pull-ups before that, but it is what it is. It was tough in the moment, but I’ve never let it affect me.”
Playing in the past two Cup finals helped Bennett prepare for the 4 Nations intensity. (Eric Bolte-Imagn Images)Where Bennett has had a dramatic effect is in Florida. The Panthers have an enviable core led by the likes of Aleksander Barkov, Matthew Tkachuk, Sergei Bobrovsky and a handful of others. And if you ask the Cats’ captain, you’ll find that Bennett is right up there with the others in terms of importance.
“He’s the player everybody wants to play like,” Barkov said. “He plays physical, skilled hockey, and that’s the way we want to play in Florida. We want to keep it simple and play the right way, and that’s how he plays. He carries the puck really well, he scores a lot of goals, and he’s an intimidating player. It’s great to watch close up. Luckily, I’m on the same team as him.”
The feeling is mutual, and it’s not hard to see why the Panthers have had so much success lately. They don’t depend on one superstar, and when the core is augmented by players such as Carter Verhaeghe and Gustav Forsling stepping up whenever necessary, it means the team can come at you in waves. Plus, they all have the experience of long playoff runs.
“It’s really important,” Bennett said. “We’re all so close as a team. We’re all around the same age and get along really well. That core is all such good pros who take care of themselves and work hard on and off the ice. We definitely learn from each other, and we’ve been through so much the past three or four years. We have that experience and that friendship.”
At this point, the Panthers are in that zone where it really doesn’t matter where they finished in the regular season – they’re a “get in and win” kind of franchise. The die has been cast by the past two runs to the Cup final, and there’s already one banner hanging at Amerant Bank Arena.
Bennett had a chance to play with Atlantic Division rivals such as Tampa Bay’s Brayden Point and Toronto’s Mitch Marner on Team Canada, and he’s not only facing one of them in the playoffs but could face the other in the next round. If so, any past allegiances will be put on hold. Because when it’s game time, Bennett is steadfast.
“Anything that happens on the ice with me, it’s never personal,” he said. “I’m just doing whatever it takes to win.”
This article appeared in our 2025 Playoff Special issue. Our cover story focuses on Edmonton Oilers star Leon Draisaitl, who looks primed for another deep playoff run. We also include features on other Cup contenders, including the Dallas Stars, Washington Capitals, Florida Panthers and more. In addition, we give our power ranking of the top playoff teams heading into the 2025 post-season.
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