Panthers to keep 2026 first-round pick; will transfer 2027 pick to Blackhawks
When the Florida Panthers traded their first-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft in the deal that brought over Seth Jones, they probably didn’t think the top 10 protection would ever come into play.
And after winning the Stanley Cup for the second straight year in 2025 – with Jones playing a significant part – it didn’t feel like the condition would ever need to be used.
Well, it was. And the Panthers will get to keep their pick. With the 2025-26 NHL regular season coming to a close on Thursday, the Panthers finished in 24th place – good for eighth last in the league, and enough to ensure they won’t need to give up their 2026 first-round pick to the Chicago Blackhawks.
Instead, the Panthers will trade their unprotected first-rounder in 2027 to the Blackhawks. Meanwhile, the Boston Bruins will get Florida’s 2028 first-round pick as part of the Brad Marchand trade. That pick, in particular, would have been a second-round pick had Marchand played in fewer than 50 percent of Florida’s playoff rounds in 2025.
OFFICIAL: The Florida Panthers finish eighth last in the NHL. They are guaranteed a top-10 pick in the 2026 Draft and will not have to forfeit the pick to the Chicago Blackhawks. Chicago will get Florida’s unprotected first in 2027 (Jones trade), Boston gets the 2028 first Show more
So, imagine winning two Stanley Cups, then falling in the standings due to a boatload of injuries, and getting a high draft pick as a result. What a moment for that organization.
The Panthers will have a six percent chance at landing the first overall pick in 2026. So the chance of landing Gavin McKenna or Ivar Stenberg is still a possibility. If you just woke out of a coma dating back to last June, you’d be flabbergasted right now. The Panthers are expected to make a push back up the standings next year, as long as the team can stay healthy.
Significant injuries to most of the team’s core, including Aleksander Barkov, Matthew Tkachuk and Sam Reinhart, prevented the Panthers from being serious contenders at any point this season. As long as the core gets back to full health next season, the Panthers should be firmly back in the Eastern Conference playoff picture once again.