SUNRISE, Fla.– Florida Panthers President of Hockey Operations & General Manager Bill Zito announced today that the club has agreed to terms with forward Carter Verhaeghe on an eight-year contract extension commencing in the 2025-26 season.
“Carter is one of our most trusted players. South Florida has watched him evolve into one of the NHL’s most elite goal scorers while also being a relentless forechecker,” said Zito. “His willpower and perseverance have allowed him to repeatedly succeed as a critical performer on the biggest stages. He is an integral part of our team now and into the future, and we are thrilled to see him remain a part of our core group.”
Verhaeghe, 29, amassed 72 points (34-38-72) over 76 games during the 2023-24 season, setting new career highs in assists (38), power-play goals (8), game-winning goals (7) and points-per-games played (.95). The 2023-24 campaign marked Verhaeghe’s third with at least 20 even-strength goals, tying Olli Jokinen for the most such campaigns in club history, and his 19 third-period tallies were the most on Florida.
In the 2024 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Verhaeghe led all Panthers skaters in goals (11) while ranking third on the team with 21 points (11-10-21). He scored the series-opening goal of the 2024 Stanley Cup Final, which ended as his 10th career game-winning playoff goal and third this postseason, exactly one year from his overtime winner vs. Vegas in Game 3 of the 2023 Stanley Cup Final. Verhaeghe became the sixth player in NHL history – and third in the past 95 years – to account for each of a franchise’s first two game-winning goals in the Stanley Cup Final. He has scored at least three game-winning goals in each of Florida’s past three postseason runs – only Mike Bossy (4, 1981-1984) and Wayne Gretzky (3, 1983-1985) have done so in as many postseason runs.
Verhaeghe is the Panthers all-time playoff leader in goals (26), even-strength goals (21), even-strength points (46), overtime goals (5) and game-winning goals (10). He has tallied two series-clinching overtime goals with Florida, the first in Game 6 of the first round of the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Washington to give the Panthers their first postseason series win in 26 years, and the second in Game 7 of the first round in 2023 at Boston to complete Florida’s monumental comeback against the Presidents’ Trophy-winning Bruins. He has competed in two career NHL game sevens, producing a goal and assist in each, and set the club record for points in a postseason game with five (2-3-5) against Washington in Game 5 in 2022. He also owns the club record for points in a postseason series with 12 (6-6-12) in six games over the Capitals in that round.
The 6-foot-2, 183-pound native of Toronto, Ontario has appeared in 330 career NHL games between Tampa Bay (2019-20) and Florida (2020-21 to 2023-24), posting 249 points (127-122-249). He has surpassed 30 goals and 70 points in each of his last two seasons and led the Panthers in even-strength goals in each of the last three campaigns, achieving a cumulative plus-minus rating of plus-75 over the past four seasons which is the second-best among Florida forwards over that span behind only Aleksander Barkov (plus-91).
Prior to his professional career, he spent four seasons (2011-12 to 2014-15) with the Niagara Ice Dogs of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), producing 224 points (83-141-224) over 252 regular season games. He served as Niagara's captain during the 2014-15 season and led the club in points in his final two seasons.
On the international stage, Verhaeghe won a gold medal with Canada at the 2013 IIHF World U18 Championship, notching four assists over seven tournament games. Verhaeghe was originally selected by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the third round (82nd overall) of the 2013 NHL Draft.
Catch your Florida Panthers in action this season! 2024-25 single game tickets are on sale now and can be purchased at SeatGeek.com or at Amerant Bank Arena Box Office (Monday-Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.). Fans can learn more about ticketing options and join the waitlist for future Florida Panthers Territory Memberships by visiting FloridaPanthers.com/tickets or by calling the PUCK line (954.835.PUCK).
