Balinski Re-Signs: Panthers Extend Defender’s Contract

Ballin’ for two more years 🙂‍↕️

📝 » https://t.co/SYEP0opCLD pic.twitter.com/fYuW8iu9ch

— Florida Panthers (@FlaPanthers) January 16, 2026

Balinski won the Stanley Cup in the previous two years with the Panthers.

This season, the Latvian defender scored one goal in 36 matches, provided seven assists and accumulated a positive efficiency coefficient of +1. On average, he spent 14 minutes and 38 seconds on the ice per match.

This is the third season of Balinsky’s NHL career, in which he scored six goals and provided 23 assists in 138 regular season games. Before that, he was in the Panthers system in the American Hockey League (AHL), representing the Charlotte Checkers.

Before going to North America, Balinski spent three seasons in the Czech Republic, where he represented the teams “Bili Tygri” from Liberec and “Verva” from Litvinov. The defender also played for “Dinamo” of Riga.

At the youth level, Balinskis learned hockey knowledge and skills at the Augsburg club in Germany for two years.

The hockey player has so far represented Latvia five times in the world championships, winning a bronze medal in 2023. He also played in the tournament of the Beijing Olympic Games and is part of the national team for participation in this year’s Olympics.

The Panthers are currently in 12th place in the Eastern Conference, but the tournament table is very tight.

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