SUNRISE — While Florida Panthers general manager Bill Zito has reassembled much of his roster for the coming season — bringing back Jacob Markstrom, Radko Gudas and Alexander Petrovic — a notable group of former Panthers remains unsigned with training camp weeks away in Fort Lauderdale.
Vladimir Tarasenko is the biggest name still on the market, Florida Hockey Now reported. The 34-year-old forward, who still maintains a home in South Florida, was a superstar with St. Louis for 11 seasons before forcing a late-season trade to the Rangers in 2023. He won a Stanley Cup with the Blues in 2019 and proved one of the best late-season rentals in Panthers history during Florida’s first Cup run in 2024. Cap space prevented his re-signing, and Tarasenko moved on to Detroit and Minnesota, where he posted a bounce-back 23-goal season with the Wild. Unlike many lingering free agents, he will likely command a salary well above the league minimum.
Reilly Smith, 35, is another former Panther searching for a landing spot. Smith scored 20 goals during his time in Sunrise in 2015-16, was traded to Vegas at the 2017 expansion draft and eventually recorded a career-high 26 goals in 2022-23 as part of the Knights’ Cup championship team. He scored 16 goals in the regular season last year but was a healthy scratch in all but seven of Vegas’ 22 playoff games.
Goaltender James Reimer, who spent three seasons as Roberto Luongo’s backup in Sunrise, faces the longest odds. At 38 with 539 NHL games to his credit, Reimer was unemployed last season until Ottawa signed him in January. He has played for eight NHL organizations since leaving Florida. Defenseman Jeff Petry, signed to a one-year contract by the Panthers last season, also remains unsigned after a 16-year career that never clicked in Sunrise and ended with healthy scratches in Minnesota.
Defenseman Mike Reilly’s situation carries a more sobering backdrop. Signed by Zito as a depth defender for the 2023-24 season, Reilly was claimed on waivers by the Islanders and posted a career-high 24 points in 59 games. He was then diagnosed with a heart condition and played only 18 games the following season, registering two assists. The 33-year-old caught on with Carolina last season and played enough games to get his name on the Stanley Cup.
Forward Evgenii Dadonov, who was drafted by Florida in 2007 and twice scored 28 goals for the Panthers, earned only $1 million with New Jersey last season. Injuries and healthy scratches limited him to 24 games and one goal — a steep decline from his peak years when he earned $5 million. Rumors have him headed back to the KHL. Forward Luke Kunin, 28, produced four goals in 62 games as a fourth-line fill-in on a league-minimum two-way contract last season and will likely earn at least a professional tryout.
Per PuckPedia, the Panthers have very little cap space remaining, though Zito has found room in the past. The Panthers’ preseason opens Sept. 20 against the Carolina Hurricanes, with the 2026-27 regular season opener set for Sept. 29 at Carolina at 5 p.m. on ESPN and the home opener against the Minnesota Wild on Oct. 10 at 6 p.m.