Brad Marchand didn't expect to stay with the Panthers this season. Here's why he could

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Brad Marchand did not expect to be back with the Florida Panthers this season.

That's not to say he didn't want to remain with the Stanley Cup champions — he did — but rather that he didn't think it was mathematically possible. There was only so much cap space available to spend on free agents like him, Sam Bennett and Aaron Ekblad. At least one of the three would have to go, he figured.

He was wrong. Bennett — the Conn Smythe Award winner as MVP of the Stanley Cup playoffs — got eight years to stay with Florida. Ekblad got eight years as well, a deal that could give him 19 years with the Panthers. And Marchand — now a two-time Cup winner — got a six-year deal, one that could keep him with Florida until he's 43.

“I honestly didn’t think there was a chance of it happening," Marchand said Wednesday at the team's media day, the prelude to the start of training camp on Thursday. "I did not expect to be a Panther this year if I’m being completely honest. I just didn’t think that it could work with everybody.”

The Panthers committed $144.3 million in those contracts — $8 million a year on average for Bennett, $6.1 million a year for Ekblad, $5.25 million a year for Marchand. The Panthers, who acquired Marchand at the trade deadline from Boston, had no problem giving him a long contract. Marchand didn't reveal his other offers but said he went into the summer knowing he wasn't going to even consider accepting a one-, two- or even three-year contract from anywhere.

“It’s part of why it didn’t work out in Boston," Marchand said. “It’s the main reason it didn’t work out in Boston.”

But Florida comes with other perks. The team's practice facility is a palace. The club has won the last two Stanley Cup titles and figures to contend for more championships for years to come. The weather is nothing to complain about. And Marchand confirmed that, yes, the fact Florida has no state income tax doesn't hurt.

“If we we’re not in a no-tax state it wouldn’t work out, probably for two guys. Two guys probably would be leaving in that situation," Marchand said. “That's a benefit that this team has that we able to utilize and make work. I’m thrilled to be here for the next six years.”

Marchand had 10 goals and 10 assists in last season's playoff run for the Panthers and immediately was a perfect fit when he joined the team.

“Guys are just willing to take less to come here and be part of it and have a great lifestyle,” Marchand said.

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