Winterhawks forward Davies signs with Florida Panthers
Portland Winterhawks forward Josh Davies has put pen to paper on a three-year, entry-level contract with the Florida Panthers.
While the news hasn’t completely sunk in yet, the 19-year-old power forward says he’s grateful for the opportunity.
“It’s definitely a dream come true, more so for my family, all the stuff they’ve sacrificed and obviously the feeling of all your hard work paying off,” Davies said. “I just got off the phone with Bill Zito, the GM, just the words he said to me kind of makes me realize ‘Wow, I really have a shot’. Just to have that opportunity is pretty cool and makes me a lot more hungry to get to that next level.”
Davies is enjoying a breakout season with the Winterhawks, tallying a team-leading 19 goals and 12 assists in 22 games.
He says the Panthers would typically check in with him once a week at the start of the season, but their touch-bases had tripled in the two weeks leading up to the contract signing.
“Josh is a physical, energetic and talented player who competes with heart and tenacity,” Panthers General Manager Bill Zito said in a statement on Thursday. “We are excited to have him continue to develop his game within our system.”
The Airdrie, Alta. product was selected in the sixth round, 186th overall at the 2022 NHL Entry Draft.
Davies skated in one preseason tilt with the Panthers, a 5-2 win over the Nashville Predators that saw the 19-year-old register an assist, two hits and two shots on net in nearly 17 minutes played.
He joins Winterhawks blueliner Marek Alscher, who signed his ELC in May of 2023, in the Panthers organization.
“He (Alscher) was pretty fired up for me,” Davies added. “He was kind of chatting me up about it, seeing what Brian McCabe (Panthers Director of Player Personnel) had to say. We’re looking forward to playing with each other for the next three, four years depending on what happens.”
Portland looks to snap a four-game skid on December 8 when it welcomes the division rival Spokane Chiefs to the Veterans Memorial Coliseum.
Puck drop is set for 7:00 p.m. PST.