NHL Rumors: Elliotte Friedman provides lates update on Sam Bennett's contract talks with Panthers

On Monday's episode of the "32 Thoughts" podcast, NHL insider Elliotte Friedman discussed Sam Bennett's contract talks with the Florida Panthers. He spoke with co-host Kyle Bukauskas about Bennett and how the team is handling player contracts.

Friedman said the Panthers have set a clear approach for contracts. He mentioned Carter Verhaeghe's recent deal, which included a good bonus structure and a no-trade clause:

Friedman said:

"I think players understand now that the Panthers have positioned it as, if you want to play here, if you look at the Verhaeghe deal, they gave him the great bonus structure, they gave him a lot of no trade protection. He had to take a bit a lower of a number than so that's the template, right? Like, we'll give you some structure, we'll give you some protection. You're going to concede to us on the number, and the way a lot of people look at it is, there's no reason that that can't happen between Sam Bennett and the Florida Panthers."

Friedman also mentioned that the relationship between Bennett's agent and Panthers' general manager Bill Zito will be tough. He compared this situation to last year's contract talks with Sam Reinhart, which took a long time to finalize.

Friedman said:

"If you remember Sam Reinhart last year, we were all saying the same thing, and it got done right at the deadline for it to be an eight year deal. So that's [why] you always look at the surest predictor of future behaviors past behavior, and that was a case where two sides really grinded away at a deal, and it took them until the absolute last second to get there. So we'll see what this one but if Bennet hits the market, there'll be a lot of interest."

If Bennett becomes available, many teams would be interested in signing him. He is having a strong start this season.

Sam Bennett's performance in 4-3 OT win for Panthers

On Saturday, Sam Bennett scored a power-play goal and recorded two assists in a 4-3 overtime win against the Golden Knights. So far, he has four goals and three assists in seven games.

Bennett has been active on the ice, recording five shots, three hits, and a plus-1 rating in the game against Vegas. The Panthers are currently missing key players like Aleksander Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk. Bennett's elevated performance is important for the team.

As the season continues, fans will watch to see how the contract talks progress and if Sam Bennett stays with the Panthers long-term.