FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Aaron Ekblad was on vacation in Windsor, Ontario when the news broke that he’d signed an eight-year extension to remain with the Florida Panthers.
Even though he was born and raised and Windsor, he pointed out it wasn’t exactly a trip home.
After spending the first 11 seasons of his career in South Florida – and with at least eight more now coming up – his heart has always been with back-to-back champion Panthers.
And, as they say, home is where the heart is.
“I’ve said it plenty of times over the last year that Florida, for us, my wife and I, is home” Ekblad said of his long-term commitment during a Zoom teleconference with the media on Tuesday. “It means the world to me. Nineteen years is a long time, especially with one franchise. I have so much pride and still a lot of expectations for my career in these eight years.”
For fans of the Panthers, it’d be hard to imagine the team without Ekblad on the blue line.
Taken with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2014 NHL Draft, the 29-year-old already stands as Florida’s all-time leader among defenseman in nearly every category, including goals (118), assists (262), points (380), blocked shots (793) and games (732).
He’s not only been one of the faces of the franchise during the team’s long journey from bottom feeders to back-to-back Stanley Cup champions, but his literal face has also been towering on the front of the team’s arena for many years.
Ekblad wanted to be a Panther for life, and Bill Zito was happy to oblige.
“It’s special for Aaron because this is his home,” the Panthers President of Hockey Operations and General Manager said with a smile. “He created this. He was here early. He stayed on through the transition. He was part of solution. He continued to elevate himself as a player, as a leader in the room, and where he is in the community that is the room. For the Panthers, it’s a big statement to be able to keep someone for that long, especially a player with that kind of character and personality. It’s a big deal, and it was special.”
Special is a word that seems to stick to the Panthers these days.
With two Cups already in tow and aspirations of becoming the next great dynasty in the NHL, Ekblad is one of nearly a dozen players the team has locked up for the foreseeable future.
As it stands now, the Panthers have a whopping 10 players currently signed through at least the 2029-30 season, including Ekblad (32-33) Sam Bennett (32-33), Brad Marchand (30-31), Aleksander Barkov (29-30), Matthew Tkachuk (29-30), Sam Reinhart (31-32), Carter Verhaeghe (32-33), Anton Lundell (29-30), Seth Jones (29-30) and Gustav Forsling (31-32).
“It speaks a lot about the organization and everything they do for us and how bad guys want to play here,” Ekblad said. “Our practice rink, our game rink, the hotels that we stay in on the road, the food that we eat, the organization does everything for us. It’s easy to want to stay here. The culture of winning is a huge draw to guys, right? It’s the most important thing for us. It’s why we all play the game. We’ve all been taken care of extremely well.”
With Ekblad and Forsling both locked up, the Panthers have also kept their top pair intact.
For opposing teams, that’s bad news.
Over the past three seasons, few defensive duos have been better.
Despite playing against incredibly stiff competition each and every night, the Panthers have controlled 56.30% of shot attempts and also led 115-88 in goals at 5-on-5 when the pair has been deployed, according to NaturalStatTrick.com.
If the Panthers are a family, Ekblad and Forsling are brothers.
“When you’re looking at teams around the league, I don’t think there’s a better partner than Gus Forsling,” Ekblad said of his longtime D partner. “On top of that, a better group of guys, guys that we’ve won with and willing to go to battle with. That’s absolutely a driving factor, the guys on the team and the camaraderie we have. They’re friends and brothers for life.”
Even though it feels like he’s been a Panther forever, Ekblad’s just getting started.
Appearing in 56 games last season, he led Florida’s defensemen in points (33) and assists (30) while averaging 23:31 of ice time per game. Carrying that into the playoffs, he notched 13 points (four goals, nine assists) in 19 games, while also tallying 62 hits and 27 blocks.
Battle tested and full of belief, he envisions plenty of more big seasons for both himself and the Panthers.
“There’s still a lot of expectation for my career and all of us here,” Ekblad said. “If we can continue to excel and do the right things and use the expectations and responsibility to build on it, legacy is definitely part of the conversation at that point.”
