Report: Panthers sign veterans Ben Harpur, Tyler Motte to PTOs

According to NHL insider Frank Seravalli, the Florida Panthers have signed defenseman Ben Harpur and winger Tyler Motte to professional tryout contracts (PTOs).

With these moves, the two-time reigning Stanley Cup champions add some strong veteran depth to their training camp roster.

Harpur, 30-year-old left-handed defenseman who stands at a towering height of six-foot-eight, has appeared in 198 career NHL regular season games while compiling 21 points and skating to a minus-42 rating. A 2013 fourth-round draft pick by the Ottawa Senators, Harpur has played for the Senators, Nashville Predators and New York Rangers in his career. His last NHL action came in New York during the 2022-2023 campaign.

Mott, also 30 years of age, broke into the NHL with the Chicago Blackhawks during the 2016-2017 season. He has 99 points in 455 games played throughout his career, setting career-highs in both goals (9) and points (16) with the Vancouver Canucks in 2018-2019. Motte spent last year as a member of the Detroit Red Wings, where he played in 55 games, recording four goals and five assists for nine points in an average of 11:19 of ice time per game.

After defeating the Edmonton Oilers to win the Stanley Cup once again, general manager Bill Zito and the club pulled off a stunning feat, retaining pending unrestricted free agents Sam Bennett, Brad Marchand and Aaron Ekblad despite having limited salary cap space with which to do so.

As a result, Florida’s offseason additions were minimal, with Daniil Tarasov joining the fold as the new backup goaltender to Sergei Bobrovsky along with Luke Kunin added for forward depth and veteran Jeff Petry signed to round out the defense.

The Panthers will raise their Stanley Cup banner on the first night of the regular season when the Blackhawks make a trip to Sunrise on October 7.