Panthers sign Matvei Shuravin to three-year, entry-level contract

The Florida Panthers announced Monday they signed defenseman Matvei Shuravin to a three-year, entry-level contract that will kick in next season.

“Matvei is a poised, two-way defenseman who reads the game exceptionally well,” Panthers’ president of hockey operations and general manager Bill Zito said in a press release. “We’re looking forward to watching him progress as a professional in North America.”

Shuravin spent the 2025-26 season split between Russia’s three domestic leagues: the top-ranked KHL, the second-tier VHL and the junior-tier MHL system. In 21 games with the KHL’s CSKA Moskva, he recorded one assist. He found the most production in the MHL with Krasnaya Armiya Moskva, where he scored two goals and added an assist for three points in 15 games.

In 2024-25, he had four goals and 20 assists for 24 points in 38 games in the MHL.

Shuravin, taken in the third round by the Panthers in the 2024 NHL Entry Draft, was ranked by Daily Faceoff prospect analyst Steven Ellis as the 53rd-best prospect in that season’s NHL Draft Rankings.

“He’s got the size scouts are looking for,” Ellis said. “He does play with an edge, but there are some questions about his decision-making. I liked him in his spot on KHL duty, perhaps a bit more than some of his games in the MHL.”

Due to Russia’s ban from IIHF-sanctioned events, Shuravin hasn’t been able to represent his country in tournaments like the World Junior Championships. However, he did play in the Under-17 and U-16s before he was drafted.

The Panthers went 40-38-4 to earn 84 points in 2025-26, finishing seventh in the Atlantic Division and 15 points back of a Wildcard spot in the Eastern Conference.