FORT LAUDERDALE – Jack Devine is building quite the collection of jewelry.
After winning a national championship at Denver in 2022 and 2024, the Florida Panthers prospect is hoping to add a third ring to his resume during his upcoming senior season.
That being said, he’s also making sure not to get too far ahead of himself.
“It’s just taking it one day at a time,” Devine said after the second day of development camp at Baptist Health IcePlex on Tuesday. “I think last year our team really didn’t get ahead of itself. We just focused the game to game, day to day. There were a lot of times where we maybe didn’t play our best or even lost, but we just stuck to our process and tried to learn.”
Hitting the pause button on turning pro, Devine said the decision to return to school was certainly not an easy one, but it was the one that he felt made the most sense. In addition to having another season to fine-tune his skills, he’ll also be able to finish his degree in finance.
When the decision was made, he received the full support of the Panthers.
“The Panthers are a top-of-the-class organization,” said Devine, a seventh-round pick in 2022. “I’m fortunate for the support they’ve given me. For me, it was a tough decision and one that I thought a lot about. I think it was just making the right decision both for myself and my family. I had great support from an organization that just wants what’s best for me.”
Finding another gear as a junior, Devine had his best season to date in 2023-24.
Taking on a top-line role with the Pioneers, he led the team and ranked fourth in the nation with a career-high 27 goals, which was more than double the 13 he scored as a sophomore.
He also ranked seventh in the nation in scoring with a career-high 56 points.
“I think it was pretty special both for myself and my team,” said Devine, who was a top-10 finalist for the Hobey Baker Award, which is given annually to the top men's college hockey player in the country. “When you can cap your season off with a victory, it’s an amazing accomplishment. It was a special year and one I was very lucky to experience.”
After winning the national championship as a freshman in 2022, Devine said it was actually the experience of losing in the first round of the Frozen Four in 2023 that really shaped him.
Like they always say, you learn more in defeat.
Taking what they learned from that loss, Devine and his teammates put on a defensive clinic during their epic run to the national championship in 2023, surrendering no more than one goal in any of the four game they played in during the tournament.
In the championship game, the Pioneers blanked Boston College in a 2-0 win.
“Winning my first year, I don’t think I really understood how hard it was,” Devine said. “I mean, you win you’re first year, what do you expect? I think knowing how it felt to lose after my sophomore year, knowing that it’s a real grind and a battle. I think it’s really special with the group that I won with in 2022, but you make a band of brothers from 2024, too. It was really nice to win with some of those younger guys that were on my team this year.”
While his focus remains on a third ring, Devine admits he does sometimes dream of the next step.
When the time’s right, he’s eager to start chasing even bigger hardware in the pros.
“It’s awesome to also see the club I’m drafted by have so much success,” Devine said of the Panthers winning their first-ever Stanley Cup this season. “I know that when the time is right for me that I have an organization like this to back me and hopefully I can jump in and try my best to help [these] guys win, whichever team that is in either Charlotte or Florida.”
Stay tuned to FloridaPanthers.com for stories from development camp all week.
