Knight ended his first NHL development camp the day before the Panthers signed Bobrovsky. His next stop will be Boston College, where the starting goalie position is there for the taking after Joseph Woll, a three-year starter, signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs on March 24.
"I just want to get to campus and meet the guys," Knight said. "It's just get there and do what I do, right? And hopefully win some hockey games."
Knight, who was 59-10-1 with a 2.46 goals-against average and .912 save percentage with the USA Hockey National Team Development Program Under-18 and Under-17 teams the past two seasons, was the first goalie the Panthers selected since they took Sam Montembeault in the third round (No. 77) and
Ryan Bednard
in the seventh round (No. 206) in the 2015 NHL Draft.
Montembeault is likely to begin the season as the backup to Bobrovsky. Bednard is coming off an impressive season at Bowling Green University, where he was 20-8-4 with a 1.77 GAA and .927 save percentage.
Although those two goalies have a rightful place in the organization, the Panthers believe Knight can be a special one day.
"He's got swag," Tallon said. "He's got it. It's very rare to find a goaltender with that kind of mentality that he has and his ability and his hockey sense and all those things.
"He's got a special calmness about him that you don't get very often, especially at this position. I look forward to many positive years with him."
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