Welcome back to another Vancouver Canucks 2025–26 season series preview. In this article series, The Hockey News - Canucks site previews Vancouver’s team series matchups for the season in chronological order. Last time, we looked at what the Canucks will face in the Tampa Bay Lightning. Today, let’s preview their season matchups against the Florida Panthers.
2024–25 Season Stats
Team Stats:
Record: 47–31–4
Points: 98
Standings placement: 3rd in Atlantic Division
PP%: 23.5% (13th)
PK%: 80.7% (10th)
Goals:
Sam Reinhart (39)
Sam Bennett (25)
Brad Marchand (23)
Matthew Tkachuk (22)
Carter Verhaeghe / Aleksander Barkov (20)
Assists:
Aleksander Barkov (51)
Sam Reinhart (42)
Matthew Tkachuk (35)
Carter Verhaeghe (33)
Aaron Ekblad (30)
Points:
Sam Reinhart (81)
Aleksander Barkov (71)
Matthew Tkachuk (57)
Carter Verhaeghe (53)
Brad Marchand (51)
Goaltenders:
Sergei Bobrovsky
Record: 33–19–2
GAA: 2.44
SV%: .906
SO: 5
Points: 1A
Daniil Tarasov
Record: 7–10–2
GAA: 3.54
SV%: .881
SO: 1
Points: 1A
2025 Free Agency Rundown
While the Panthers are now two-time defending Stanley Cup champions, and Vancouver missed the playoffs in 2024–25, the two teams approached the 2025 free agency period similarly — by re-signing their pending free agents. Conn Smythe winner Sam Bennett, Aaron Ekblad, and Brad Marchand were all on expiring deals as July 1 approached. Shockingly, the Panthers signed all three players to new deals, with none of these three players individually making more than $8.5M annually on average. Florida was not without free agency losses, however, as Nate Schmidt, Nico Sturm, Vitek Vanecek, and others all departed.
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2025–26 Season Series Preview
The Panthers have the chance to do something that has not been accomplished since 1983 — win three consecutive Stanley Cups. The last team who had the opportunity was none other than their inter-state rivals, the Lightning, who came up short in the 2022 Stanley Cup Finals with a loss to the Colorado Avalanche. With all of their key players returning in 2025–26, Florida has a very good chance of becoming the sixth team in NHL history to complete their Stanley Cup three-peat.
The Canucks will face Florida for the first time in 2025–26 on November 17 in the second-half of a back-to-back. This game will follow Vancouver’s match against Tampa Bay only a day before, meaning that this Sunday–Monday stretch could prove difficult. In 2024–25, the Canucks struggled in the second-halves of their back-to-backs, as they dropped eight of their 10 games played. This matchup against Tampa Bay on November 16 and Florida on the 17 will be the team’s fourth back-to-back of the 2025–26 season. While a healthy tandem of Kevin Lankinen and Thatcher Demko will definitely help with this record, the team themselves will need to make sure they are prepared when they take to the ice for these games — particularly against the defending Stanley Cup champions.
2025–26 Games Against Vancouver
Game 1: November 17, 4:00 pm PT @ Amerant Bank Arena
Game 2: March 17, 7:00 pm PT @ Rogers Arena
Dec 12, 2024; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Florida Panthers defenseman Nate Schmidt (88) and defenseman Uvis Balinskis (26) watch as Vancouver Canucks forward Brock Boeser (6) scores during the second period at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Frid-Imagn ImagesSeason Series Preview Articles
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