Ekblad, Reinhart, Draisaitl, Bennett ‘brothers for life’ since 2014 NHL Draft

SUNRISE, Fla. -- The photo circulated on social media again last week and soon after became part of the Florida Panthers players’ group text chat.

It was of Aaron Ekblad, Sam Reinhart, Leon Draisaitl and Sam Bennett together at the top of the stone steps, made famous in the film “Rocky”, leading up to the entrance to the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Ekblad, Reinhart, Draisaitl and Bennett were in Philadelphia for the 2014 NHL Draft, where they were selected by the Panthers, Buffalo Sabres, Edmonton Oilers and Calgary Flames with the first four picks, respectively.

“We were sending those pictures in our group chats and just laughing at our terrible outfits and terrible shoes,” Bennett said. “It was pretty funny to reminisce on those times.”

Just 18 at the time, none of them could have predicted then that Ekblad, Reinhart and Bennett would become teammates in Florida and face Draisaitl and Edmonton in the Stanley Cup Final in back-to-back seasons.

The Panthers defeated the Oilers in seven games in the Cup Final last season to win their first championship.

“It’s amazing” Ekblad said. “We joke about it all the time, you know, ‘What are the odds?’ And it’s special because we're friends before it and friends for life now. So, it’s amazing. Brothers for life, at this point.”

The best-of-7 Cup Final rematch is tied 1-1. The series shifts to Amerant Bank Arena for Game 3 on Monday (8 p.m. ET; MAX, truTV, TNT, SN, TVAS, CBC).

Matthew Schaefer, Michael Misa, James Hagens and Jake O’Brien, four of the top prospects for the 2025 Upper Deck NHL Draft, will be here and meet some of the players from each team. Ekblad, Reinhart, Bennett and Draisaitl were in their shoes -- as “terrible” as they might have been -- at the 2014 Cup Final between the Los Angeles Kings and New York Rangers.

Knowing what they know now, 11 years later, what would tell their 18-year-old selves or Schaefer, Misa, Hagens and O’Brien as they’re about to embark on pursuing their own NHL dreams and the Stanley Cup?

“Just pick up any advice, anything you see,” Draisaitl said. “There’s so many lessons along the way to get to this point. There’s so many moments that you have to pick up and learn to understand and deal with the right way.

“I’m not sure what my message would be to myself, but just enjoy it.”

Schaefer, a defenseman from Erie (Ontario Hockey League), and Misa, O’Brien and Hagens, forwards with Saginaw (OHL), Brantford (OHL) and Boston College, respectively, could undoubtedly learn from each of their stories.

Draisaitl is second in the Stanley Cup Playoffs with 29 points (10 goals, 19 assists) in 18 games. He has 14 points (five goals, nine assists) during an eight-game point streak, including the overtime goal in the Oilers’ 4-3 victory in Game 1 of the Cup Final. Draisaitl has four points (three goals, one assist) in the series thus far.

But the 29-year-old forward played in the playoffs just once in his first five seasons and didn’t get past the second round until his eighth, when Edmonton reached the 2022 Western Conference Final before losing to the Colorado Avalanche.

Ekblad went through similar. The 29-year-old defenseman played in the playoffs once in his first five seasons, and the Panthers didn’t advance until his eighth, when they defeated the Washington Capitals in the first round in 2022 before being swept in the second round by the Tampa Bay Lightning.

Florida has reached the Cup Final in three consecutive seasons since then, but the road there was far from smooth. And Ekblad had to deal with the additional pressure that comes with being a No. 1 pick.

“All eyes are on you,” Ekblad said. “I was lucky that I was in Florida, so maybe a little bit sheltered, and I had some amazing older players and an amazing support group and family to lean on. I think maybe it’s hurt some guys, but I’ve been lucky that it worked out for me.”

That’s why Ekblad says his advice would be, “Just stick with it. You’re doing the right things.”

The turning point for Reinhart, who scored the Cup-winning goal in a 2-1 victory in Game 7 of the Final last season, was his trade to the Panthers on July 24, 2021. The 29-year-old forward never played in the playoffs during his seven seasons with Buffalo and hasn’t missed the postseason in four seasons with Florida.

So, Reinhart’s message to the prospects involves patience and persistence.

“I would say, ‘You never know when your opportunity is going to come, so just be ready for it,’” he said. “Whether you get there your first year or your 10th year or 20th year, that work that you do at that age, that summer, that day could make a difference when you time comes later on. So, be ready for it.”

Bennett, who will turn 29 on June 20, had to wait for his opportunity as well. Although the forward played in the playoffs in four of his seven seasons with the Flames, he never advanced past the second round and never had the consistent offensive role he coveted.

That chance came after he was traded to the Panthers on April 12, 2021. He was ready for it.

Bennett had 12 points (four goals, eight assists) in 38 regular-season games with Calgary in 2020-21 before the trade and 15 points (six goals, nine assists) in 10 regular-season games with Florida. Four years later, he leads the NHL with 13 goals in 19 playoff games, including three in the first two games of the Cup Final.

It’s everything he could’ve hoped for that day at the top of the Rocky steps.

“It’s 11 years now,” Bennett said. “Back then, you’re just excited to get into the NHL That’s all you’re thinking about as a kid. Your whole life is, ‘One day I get to play in the NHL,’ and we were close at that moment, but we weren’t there, yet.

“It’s pretty crazy how far we’ve come.”

So, what is Bennett’s advice to Schaefer, Misa, Hagens and O’Brien?

“It’s pretty simple -- just enjoy the ride,” he said. “It’s going to go way quicker than you’ll ever imagine.”