Standing 6-foot-4 and weighing 195 pounds at the age of 18, Gudbranson was too big to miss and too intriguing to overlook at the 2010 NHL Draft. The Florida Panthers thought so, and quickly snapped him up with the No. 3 pick.

Gudbranson had been ranked fourth among North American skaters by NHL Central Scouting heading into the draft. A punishing physical force in the corners and in front of his net, the Ottawa native had just finished his second junior season with Kingston of the Ontario Hockey League.

In Gudbranson's final season with Kingston (2010-11), he showed the progress the Panthers had been hoping for (12 goals, 34 points), and he was rewarded with a place on Canada's roster at the World Junior Championship. Canada reached the final and had a 3-0 lead on Russia, but gave up five unanswered goals, lost 5-3 and settled for the silver medal.

To conclude a whirlwind few months, Gudbranson made the Panthers roster straight out of training camp in 2011 and made his NHL debut on Oct. 8, 2011 in a 2-0 victory against the New York Islanders. He scored his first NHL goal Dec. 11, 2011, in a 6-1 loss to the New York Rangers.

Gudbranson scored two goals and eight points in 72 games and helped the Panthers reach the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time in 11 years.

In five seasons with the Panthers, Gudbranson had 11 goals and 43 points in 309 games. He had 754 hits and 344 blocked shots and averaged 17:46 of ice time per game.

Gudbranson appeared to be what the Panthers had projected for him on draft day, a solid top-four defenseman. But the Panthers, with salary-cap issues and a surplus on defense, traded Gudbranson to the Vancouver Canucks on May 25, 2016.