Panthers Pulse: Uvis Balinskis Set to Compete for Role Yet Again
After turning heads with an impressive start to the 2023-24 season, Uvis Balinskis will look to lock up a role on the Florida Panthers yet again.
Photo via Alex Baumgartner (Five Reasons Sports)
Leading up to the beginning of training camp, Pucks and Palms will be previewing each of the key pieces of the defending Stanley Cup Champion Florida Panthers in a series called ‘Panthers Pulse’ heading into the 2024-25 season. Uvis Balinskis is next.
2023-24 Stats: one goal, three points, 26 GP (AHL Charlotte: three goals, 21 points, 37 games)
Uvis Balinskis exceeded every expectation the Florida Panthers had of him in his first season in North American.
The now 28-year-old blueliner shined in training camp and eventually beat out Mike Reilly to earn a spot on the opening-night roster with Aaron Ekblad and Brandon Montour both out due to offseason shoulder surgery.
All things considered, he did pretty well.
One goal and three points aren’t numbers that jump off the page, but Balinskis showed signs of being a quality puck mover with speed to his game while helping Florida be one of the best defensive teams in the league despite missing two star defensemen.
He finished up the year splitting time between the AHL and NHL once those two defensemen returned, but he more than solidified his spot as the organization’s No. 7 defenseman in the process.
And he could prove himself once again if he can beat out some new competition.
The Panthers took a hit on the blueline with Montour and Oliver Ekman-Larsson both heading elsewhere in free agency. They brought in Nate Schmidt and Adam Boqvist to replace them, but there could be opportunity for Balinskis to prove himself.
The 23-year-old Boqvist fell out of favor with the Columbus Blue Jackets after failing to hit his high ceiling as a former Top 5 draft pick. He is still unproven and the roster battle is still wide open.
Boqvist is still more likely to win said battle, but that same logic did not stop Balinskis from winning his roster battle last year either.
Despite being five years older than Boqvist, Balinskis’ play with AHL Charlotte showed signs of what his upside could be.
He was very active in the offense, picking up a whopping 18 assists in 37 games, and showcased those same tools he showed flashes of in the NHL at a much larger scale.
Despite the quick turnaround between his arrival from Europe and his eventual NHL debut, Balinskis has shown that his game can translate well to the North American game and he has a chance to play in some games for the Panthers again this year.
Prior to the Panthers reaching out to him in 2023, playing in the NHL was not even on Balinskis’ radar.
He spent the previous three years playing in the Czech league — logging 35 points in 50 games in his final season — after spending five years in the KHL with Latvia’s Riga Dynamo.
His NHL dream came true last season and he has what it takes to take them even further eventually.
The Panthers recognized that much and rewarded him with a two-year extension worth $850,000 in the middle of last season. He will be under contract until the end of the 2025-26 season, looking to continue to carve out a role in South Florida.
Up Next in Panthers Pulse: Anton Lundell
Previously: Matthew Tkachuk, Gustav Forsling, Sam Bennett, Evan Rodrigues, Eetu Luostarinen