Lyle Richardson revisits Aaron Ekblad's future with the Florida Panthers and what the Pittsburgh Penguins could do with their cap space. Aaron Ekblad and Sidney Crosby [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjA4MTIzNDAyNzEwNDI3MDc3/usatsi_20145289_168400847_lowres.jpg] Aaron Ekblad and Sidney Crosby Salary cap constraints forced the Stanley Cup-champion Florida Panthers to part ways with Brandon Montour, Oliver Ekman-Larsson, Anthony Stolarz, Ryan Lomberg and Kevin Stenlund when the NHL's free-agent market opened on July 1. Florida Hockey Now's Alan Greenberg observed [https://floridahockeynow.com/more-florida-panthers-salary-cap-problems-coming-in-2025/] they'll face a similar issue next summer. PuckPedia shows [https://puckpedia.com/team/florida-panthers] the Panthers carrying a projected cap hit of $65.5 million for 2025-26, with $22.5 million available if the cap remains at $88 million. Assuming it rises another $4.5 million as it did for 2024-25, they'll have $27 million in cap space. Core players Aaron Ekblad, Carter Verhaeghe and Sam Bennett are eligible to become UFAs next July 1. Greenberg doubts the Panthers can sign all three unless they shed some salary. Ekblad's current average annual value is $7.5 million, but Greenberg suggests that's now too high because his value has leveled recently. The 28-year-old defenseman had a career-high 57 points in 61 games in 2021-22, which dropped to 38 points in 71 games in 2022-23 and 18 points in 51 games last season. While he has a career average of 22:50 of ice time per game, he averaged 20:52 last season as well. Last month, David Dwork of The Hockey News' Panthers site shared a rumor that GM Bill Zito is shopping Ekblad. Florida losing Montour and Ekman-Larsson leaves Ekblad as the team's true top right-shot D-man [https://thehockeynews.com/lineups/atlantic/florida-panthers-projected-lineup-and-depth-chart], with Adam Boqvist and Mackenzie Entwistle being other right shots. Meanwhile, Verhaeghe and Bennett have been underpaid on their current contracts. Verhaeghe, 28, carries a $4.166-million cap hit and is consistently among the Panthers' leading scorers. The 28-year-old Bennett is an agitating two-way center carrying a cap hit of $4.425 million. Greenberg believes both forwards will get more from free agency next summer than the Panthers can afford. If Zito is unlikely to part with Ekblad this summer, he won't hobble the Panthers' efforts to defend the Stanley Cup this season by trading Verhaeghe or Bennett. Nevertheless, this could be the last season with the Panthers for at least one of those three players. Turning to the Pittsburgh Penguins, Matt Vensel of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette observed [https://www.post-gazette.com/sports/penguins/2024/07/24/kyle-dubas-nhl-offseason-free-agency-trade-draft-crosby-sullivan/stories/202407220103] they have $3.5 million in cap space for 2024-25. He wondered what GM Kyle Dubas could do with it. Vensel suggested Dubas could add another winger, but there are slim pickings in the free agent and trade markets. The Penguins GM could acquire a roster player from a cap-strapped team bundled with a draft pick similar to his recent acquisition of Kevin Hayes from the St. Louis Blues. Dubas could pursue a promising, affordable young player seeking a fresh start, such as winger Arthur Kaliyev of the Los Angeles Kings or Nick Robertson of the Toronto Maple Leafs. He could also stand pat and see how the season unfolds before committing that cap space to any additions. The betting here is Dubas uses his cap flexibility for any necessary moves during this season. His 23-man active roster spots are filled, and he made significant additions in early July. And no, a new contract for Sidney Crosby won't affect that cap space. That goes into effect for 2025-26 whenever the two sides agree to an extension. Get the latest news and trending stories right to your inbox by subscribing to The Hockey News newsletter here [https://info.thehockeynews.com/mail/microsites/951/1/gTeQVf?_gl=1*ustlbj*_ga*NjkyMzUxMy4xNjYzNjIwMzQ3*_ga_PK63FB1PME*MTcxMzUwOTExNi40NDguMS4xNzEzNTA5MjA5LjU5LjAuMA..]. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com or by visiting our forum [https://thehockeynews.rtb.io/THNHOME/posts].
