‘Florida is the best place in the world’: Denault brings size, excitement to Panthers pipeline

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Louis-Antoine Denault is used to it by now.

Impossible to miss on the ice, the towering goaltender gets asked the same question everywhere he goes.

“I’m always asked how tall I am,” he said with a laugh following the second day of development camp at Baptist Health IcePlex on Tuesday.

For those wondering, the answer is 6-foot-8.

Selected by the Florida Panthers in the seventh round (217th overall) of the 2026 NHL Draft, Denault has an intriguing mix of both size and skill.

In 42 games in the QMJHL this past season, he posted a combined record of 22-15-3.

Traded from Quebec to Newfoundland in December, he went on to post a 16-7-2 record with a .913 save percentage with his new team.

No stranger to South Florida, the 19-year-old attended last year’s development camp with the Panthers as an undrafted invitee.

“They treated me like I was drafted,” Denault said of experience last summer. “To be back knowing most of the staff here helps a lot. It helps having that relationship.  I knew what to expect coming here, and I’m just trying to leave a good mark.”

Unsure if he’d be drafted during his second year of eligibility, Denault was on the golf course when the Panthers called his name.

With his phone blowing up and his mind racing, he ended up calling it quits on the course just before the 18th hole.

“It was a surreal feeling,” Denault said. “I tried to hit one [more] shot, and it was the worst shot of the day.”

One of the tallest players taken during this past weekend’s draft, Denault’s growth spurt came during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Just “14 or 15” years old at the time, he recalls, the return to sports wasn’t an easy transition with his newfound frame.

“I was already pretty tall growing up, and then I grew even taller,” said Denault, who unsurprisingly also played basketball. “It was hard because there wasn’t any sports [during COVID]. Coming back to sports after was pretty hard. I’m happy with my size, but I hope I stop growing.”

Praised by scouts for his strength on the posts and quickness for his size, Denault is now the second 6-foot-8 goaltender in Florida’s system, joining Cooper Black.

Just finishing up his second season in the pros, Black went 25-13-5 with a .903 save percentage in the AHL in 2025-26.

Another project for organization's Goaltending Excellence Department, the Panthers seem to have a good blueprint for large netminders.

“I had the chance to be beside him at the Rookie Showcase last year and see where he’s at,” Denault said of Black. “I’m happy they have another 6’8" goalie, so they know what to expect with me.”

Even though he knows his path to playing in the pros will be a long one, Denault already has a well thought out plan for his development.

After another season in the QMJHL, the Quebec native wants to spend at least two seasons in the NCAA.

From here on out, he’ll also have summer camps in South Florida on his schedule.

“Florida is the best place in the world, pretty much, Denault said. “I’m just trying to show them what I built this year, and just trying to leave a good mark.”

On the outset of a journey he hopes will one day land him in the NHL, the only thing bigger than Denault right now are his dreams.

“So exciting,” he said. “It’s probably the best feeling in the world. Being drafted was probably the best day of my life.”