Florida Panthers Prospects Push for NHL Roster
The Florida Panthers prospects pipeline is finally producing forwards who look NHL-ready. And two names lead the pack: Jack Devine and Sandis Vilmanis. Both spent 2025-26 in Charlotte making their case. And after a season that tested Florida's depth up and down the lineup, the timing could not be better.
NHL.com ranked Devine No. 2 on Florida's top five prospects list for 2025-26.
Vilmanis is right there in the same conversation.
Here is what each brings and why the opening might be real.
Jack Devine: The No. 221 Pick Who Keeps Producing
Devine is the late-round steal every scouting department dreams about. Florida grabbed him with the No. 221 pick in the 2022 draft, the kind of selection that usually vanishes. Instead he went out and put up 13 goals and 44 assists for 57 points in 44 games at the University of Denver in 2024-25. That is better than a point per game in college hockey.
He followed it with a three-game AHL cameo in Charlotte, picking up two assists, then became a full-time Checker. NHL.com's November 18, 2025 prospect report had him at 6 goals and 6 assists in 13 games. Dobber Prospects already pegged him No. 3 in Florida's system in April 2024. And he has only climbed. Upside Hockey calls him a "skilled, competitive winger" projected as a "Middle-6 winger," which is exactly the profile a team craves when the injury bug hits.
Why Is Sandis Vilmanis Already Getting NHL Games?
Here is what separates Vilmanis from the rest of the Charlotte roster: he has already split time between the NHL and AHL. Daily Faceoff described his 2025-26 as "a strong campaign" while "splitting his time between the NHL and AHL".
That is not a projection or a hope. On the resume.
Drafted 157th overall in the fifth round in 2022, the 21-year-old logged 58 games and 24 points for the Checkers in 2024-25. As of November 18, 2025, he had 6 points in 13 AHL games.
The scoring is not eye-popping. But holding your own across two leagues at 21 is what earns a full-time job.
Dobber had Vilmanis at No. 9 in the system in April 2024.
His straight-line climb into NHL action since then tells you the development plan is working.
Florida Panthers Prospects: Who Makes the Jump?
When were Devine and Vilmanis drafted? Both came out of the 2022 class. Devine went No. 221 overall, and Vilmanis went 157th in the fifth round. Two late picks, two legitimate NHL candidates.
Who are the Panthers' top prospects? NHL.com's top five for 2025-26 is led by Devine at No. 2, with Vilmanis also part of the pipeline. The common thread is that both are forwards already producing in Charlotte, not projects years away.
The 2025-26 season chewed through Florida's roster.
When depth gets tested that hard, the prospect pool stops being a luxury and becomes a lifeline. Devine makes his case with pure offense. Vilmanis makes his with reps, already surviving NHL minutes. Different paths, same destination.
What to Watch Next Season
The Florida Panthers prospects story has shifted from "someday" to "soon." Devine and Vilmanis are the headliners. But the real test comes in camp, when jobs are actually on the line.
So here is the question worth tracking all year: does Devine keep scoring at the pro pace that made him a Denver star. And does Vilmanis turn his NHL cameos into a permanent address? If the answer to either is yes, the pipeline just delivered exactly when the big club needed it most.