Panthers sign Uvis Balinskis to two-year contract extension

A depth blueliner in South Beach is sticking around for a couple of more years.

On Friday, Florida Panthers general manager Bill Zito announced that the team has signed defenseman Uvis Balinskis to a two-year contract extension. The deal, set to begin next season, will carry a cap hit of $875,000 through the 2027-28 campaign.

It’s a slight pay bump for the 29-year-old. He’s in the final season of his two-year contract extension that he signed in January 2024. That deal has an AAV of $850,000.

Balinskis is in his third season with the Panthers. The undrafted rearguard first joined the organization in the fall of 2023. After splitting part of his rookie season with Florida’s American Hockey League affiliate, the Charlotte Checkers, the Ventspils, Latvia native became a full-time NHLer during the 2024-25 campaign. In 76 games, he scored four goals and 14 assists for 18 points, adding a goal in five playoff games as the Panthers went on to win the Stanley Cup for the second year in a row.

This season, Balinskis has posted a goal and seven assists for eight points in 36 games. He has a plus/minus of +1 while averaging 14:38 of ice time per game.

In 138 career regular-season games in the NHL, Balinskis has notched six goals and 23 assists for 29 points.

The signing comes just weeks before Balinskis is set to represent his country on the world stage. He was named to the Latvian Olympic roster for the second time in his career. He was on the squad that finished 11th in Beijing four years ago, with hopes that the nation will have a better performance this time around with NHLers Zemgus Girgensons, Elvis Merzlikins and Artūrs Šilovs on the roster.

Balinskis won a bronze medal with Latvia at the 2023 IIHF Men’s World Championship.

The Panthers (24-18-3) sit seventh in the Atlantic Division, five points back of the last Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference.