# 1995–96 Florida Panthers season

The 1995–96 Florida Panthers season was the 3rd season of the franchise that was established in 1993 and is tied for their most successful season ever, until 2024, when they won the Stanley Cup Finals. In only their third season in the National Hockey League, the Panthers qualified for the playoffs, and won three playoff series to become Eastern Conference champions. In the 1996 Stanley Cup Finals, Florida lost to the Colorado Avalanche in four games. The Panthers would not win another playoff series until 2022.

## Offseason

Head coach Roger Neilson was fired on June 8. Player-development director Doug MacLean was named his replacement on July 24.

## Regular season
### Year of the Rat

A very unusual goal celebration developed in Miami. On the night of the Panthers' 1995–96 home opener, a rat scurried across the Florida locker room. Panthers winger Scott Mellanby reacted by "one-timing" the rat against the wall, killing it . That night he scored two goals, which goaltender John Vanbiesbrouck quipped was "a rat trick". Two nights later, as the story found its way into the world, a few fans threw rubber rats on the ice in celebration of a goal. The rubber rat count went from 16 for the third home game to over 2,000 during the playoffs. In an amusing coincidence, 1996 was also year of the Rat according to Chinese astrology.
In the 1996 playoffs, as the fourth seed, the Panthers defeated the Boston Bruins in five games, then upset the top-seeded Philadelphia Flyers in six and the second-seeded Pittsburgh Penguins in seven games to reach the Stanley Cup Finals. Their opponents, the Colorado Avalanche, eliminated the Panthers in four games.

### Final standings

Atlantic Division :
| No. | | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | Philadelphia Flyers | 82 | 45 | 24 | 13 | 282 | 208 | 103 |
| 2 | New York Rangers | 82 | 41 | 27 | 14 | 272 | 237 | 96 |
| 3 | Florida Panthers | 82 | 41 | 31 | 10 | 254 | 234 | 92 |
| 4 | Washington Capitals | 82 | 39 | 32 | 11 | 234 | 204 | 89 |
| 5 | Tampa Bay Lightning | 82 | 38 | 32 | 12 | 238 | 248 | 88 |
| 6 | New Jersey Devils | 82 | 37 | 33 | 12 | 215 | 202 | 86 |
| 7 | New York Islanders | 82 | 22 | 50 | 10 | 229 | 315 | 54 |
Eastern Conference :
| R | | Div | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | Philadelphia Flyers | ATL | 82 | 45 | 24 | 13 | 282 | 208 | 103 |
| 2 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NE | 82 | 49 | 29 | 4 | 362 | 284 | 102 |
| 3 | New York Rangers | ATL | 82 | 41 | 27 | 14 | 272 | 237 | 96 |
| 4 | Florida Panthers | ATL | 82 | 41 | 31 | 10 | 254 | 234 | 92 |
| 5 | Boston Bruins | NE | 82 | 40 | 31 | 11 | 282 | 269 | 91 |
| 6 | Montreal Canadiens | NE | 82 | 40 | 32 | 10 | 265 | 248 | 90 |
| 7 | Washington Capitals | ATL | 82 | 39 | 32 | 11 | 234 | 204 | 89 |
| 8 | Tampa Bay Lightning | ATL | 82 | 38 | 32 | 12 | 238 | 248 | 88 |
| 9 | New Jersey Devils | ATL | 82 | 37 | 33 | 12 | 215 | 202 | 86 |
| 10 | Hartford Whalers | NE | 82 | 34 | 39 | 9 | 237 | 259 | 77 |
| 11 | Buffalo Sabres | NE | 82 | 33 | 42 | 7 | 247 | 262 | 73 |
| 12 | New York Islanders | ATL | 82 | 22 | 50 | 10 | 229 | 315 | 54 |
| 13 | Ottawa Senators | NE | 82 | 18 | 59 | 5 | 191 | 291 | 41 |
Divisions: ATL – Atlantic, NE – Northeast
bold – Qualified for playoffs

## Playoffs
### Eastern Conference Quarterfinals

The fifth-seeded Boston Bruins had one of the best offenses in the Eastern Conference, scoring 282 goals led by Cam Neely (26 goals) and Adam Oates (25 goals, 67 assists). The Panthers won their first-ever playoff game 6-3 before a sold out Miami Arena, and soon built a 3–0 lead despite being outshot by the Bruins on all games. The Bruins stepped up to win Game 4 with a 6-2 blowout before the Boston crowd. Game 5 was tied 3-3 when with 4:57 left, Bill Lindsay scored with a dive through the air goal while being tripped by star defenseman Ray Bourque, giving the Panthers their first-ever playoff series victory. This was the last year in a record 29 consecutive seasons in the playoffs for the Bruins, as they missed the 1997 post-season.

### Eastern Conference Semifinals

The Philadelphia Flyers finished atop the Eastern Conference in the regular season with 103 points, led by the high-scoring "Legion of Doom" and the strong goaltending of Garth Snow and Ron Hextall. Philadelphia had just eliminated the other Florida team, the Tampa Bay Lightning, in 5 games after overcoming a 2–1 series deficit.
Vanbiesbrouck posted a 2–0 shutout in Game 1, and it took until midway through Game 2 for the Flyers to get rolling offensively in a narrow 3–2 win. Game 3 saw Flyers veterans Dan Quinn, Dale Hawerchuk, Eric Desjardins and Hextall set the tone in a 3–1 victory. With young defenseman Ed Jovanovski tightly covering Flyers superstar Eric Lindros, the Panthers reversed the tide, defeating the Flyers in overtime in Game 4 and double-overtime in Game 5, in what would turn out to be the last Flyers game at the Spectrum. Lindros promised to win game 6 to return the series to Philadelphia, but the Panthers won with a 4–1 score. Florida became the third team to reach the conference finals in their third season – following fellow expansion team New York Islanders in 1975 and the Quebec Nordiques in 1982.

### Eastern Conference Finals

The 2-seeded Pittsburgh Penguins were energized by the return of Mario Lemieux, who missed the entire 1994–95 season due to injury, and had the league's best offense, scoring 362 goals, and the most wins in the Eastern conference with 49, finishing just one point behind the Flyers. The Penguins advanced to the third round for the first time since 1992, defeating the Washington Capitals in six games and the New York Rangers in five games.
Despite being outshot 33–25 in game one the Panthers came out on top with an impressive 5–1 win, with 32 saves by Vanbiesbrouck and two goals by forward Tom Fitzgerald. The Penguins wanting to avoid going down two games to none against the Panthers came out with a better effort in game two and won the game 3–2 and evened the series at one game each. In game three the Panthers fired an incredible 61 shots on Penguins goaltender Tom Barrasso and it paid off as the Panthers won 5–2 – two goals by Stu Barnes – to take a 2–1 series lead. The Penguins tied game four on Brad Lauer's goal with 11:03 remaining in regulation, and Bryan Smolinski scored with 3:31 to go to give the Penguins a 2–1 lead, tying the series. In game five the Penguins shut out the Panthers 3–0, with Barrasso stopping 28 shots.
Leading the series three games to two Pittsburgh looked to advance to the Stanley Cup Finals in game six. The Penguins led 2–1 in the second period but the Panthers scored three of the next four goals and edged the Penguins 4–3 to tie the series at 3–3. In game seven Florida got a 1–0 lead on Mike Hough's goal at 13:13 of the first period. After a scoreless second period Pittsburgh tied the game on Petr Nedvěd's power-play goal at 1:23 of the third period. The Panthers regained the lead on Tom Fitzgerald's bizarre 58-foot slapshot at 6:18 and got an insurance goal from Johan Garpenlov at 17:23. Florida hung on to win the game 3–1, with a total of 39 saves by Vanbiesbrouck, and closed the series four games to three.
By reaching the finals in only their third season, the Panthers became the fastest expansion team to do so since the St. Louis Blues reached the Stanley Cup finals in their first three seasons. Many Panthers players were managing their first trips to the finals after long careers, such as Vanbiesbrouck (13 years).

### Stanley Cup Finals

In the first Stanley Cup Finals where neither team had ever reached the decision before, the Panthers faced the Colorado Avalanche, who were in their inaugural season after relocating from Quebec City. Led by captain Joe Sakic, forward Peter Forsberg and defenceman Adam Foote, the Avalanche got even stronger once goaltender Patrick Roy joined the team in December 1995. The Avalanche finished the season with a 47–25–10 record for 104 points, won the Pacific Division and finished second in the Western Conference. On their way to the Western title, the Avs beat the Vancouver Canucks, the Chicago Blackhawks and Presidents' Trophy winners Detroit Red Wings, all in six games.
The series started in Denver, and the Avs dominated the Panthers at the McNichols Sports Arena. On game 1, Vanbiesbrouck shut out Colorado for half the game, before three goals were scored in a stretch of 3:49 minutes in the second period, leading to a 3–1 victory. The following game was an 8–1 blowout, starting with three power play goals in the first period as Florida incurred in bad penalties that forced Vanbiesbrouck to be pulled out in favor of Mark Fitzpatrick. Returning to Miami, Game 3 was closer, with Florida scoring twice in the first period. But the Avs still came through, taking over the lead with a Joe Sakic goal early in the second period and holding on to a 3–2 victory.
With their backs to the wall, the Panthers played a defensive game four. Vanbiesbrouck and Roy stood out, combining for 118 saves, and the two teams played a marathon game that took until the third overtime period. Uwe Krupp's unassisted goal at 4:31 ended 44 minutes and 31 seconds of overtime and gave the Avalanche a 1–0 win and a four-games-to-none series win. Goaltender Patrick Roy stopped all 63 shots he faced. Colorado outscored Florida 15–4 in the series, and Patrick Roy stopped 147 of 151 shots, for a save percentage of .974. Joe Sakic was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP, having led all skaters in goals with 18, and points with 34. For both Patrick Roy and Claude Lemieux, it was their third Stanley Cup win in eleven years.

## Schedule and results
### Regular season

1995–96 regular season :
October: 7–4–0 (home: 5–2–0; road: 2–2–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
1LOctober 7, 19950–4@ New Jersey Devils (1995–96)0–1–0Recap
2WOctober 8, 19954–3Calgary Flames (1995–96)1–1–0Recap
3WOctober 11, 19956–1Montreal Canadiens (1995–96)2–1–0Recap
4WOctober 13, 19956–2Ottawa Senators (1995–96)3–1–0Recap
5WOctober 15, 19955–3New York Islanders (1995–96)4–1–0Recap
6LOctober 17, 19953–6Chicago Blackhawks (1995–96)4–2–0Recap
7WOctober 21, 19953–0Hartford Whalers (1995–96)5–2–0Recap
8WOctober 24, 19956–1@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1995–96)6–2–0Recap
9LOctober 25, 19952–7@ Montreal Canadiens (1995–96)6–3–0Recap
10WOctober 28, 19954–1@ Ottawa Senators (1995–96)7–3–0Recap
11LOctober 31, 19954–5 OTNew York Islanders (1995–96)7–4–0Recap :
November: 10–2–1 (home: 7–1–1; road: 3–1–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
12WNovember 2, 19952–1@ Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96)8–4–0Recap
13WNovember 3, 19953–2@ Washington Capitals (1995–96)9–4–0Recap
14WNovember 5, 19954–1Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96)10–4–0Recap
15WNovember 7, 19954–2Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96)11–4–0Recap
16WNovember 9, 19952–1Edmonton Oilers (1995–96)12–4–0Recap
17WNovember 11, 19954–1Buffalo Sabres (1995–96)13–4–0Recap
18WNovember 14, 19955–2Toronto Maple Leafs (1995–96)14–4–0Recap
19TNovember 16, 19952–2 OTVancouver Canucks (1995–96)14–4–1Recap
20LNovember 18, 19952–3@ Los Angeles Kings (1995–96)14–5–1Recap
21WNovember 19, 19954–3@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1995–96)15–5–1Recap
22WNovember 21, 19954–3New Jersey Devils (1995–96)16–5–1Recap
23WNovember 26, 19955–1Los Angeles Kings (1995–96)17–5–1Recap
24LNovember 29, 19951–2 OTPhiladelphia Flyers (1995–96)17–6–1Recap :
December: 8–4–1 (home: 3–1–1; road: 5–3–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
25LDecember 1, 19951–2@ Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96)17–7–1Recap
26WDecember 2, 19955–3@ Hartford Whalers (1995–96)18–7–1Recap
27WDecember 5, 19954–3@ Washington Capitals (1995–96)19–7–1Recap
28TDecember 7, 19953–3 OTMighty Ducks of Anaheim (1995–96)19–7–2Recap
29WDecember 9, 19953–1Boston Bruins (1995–96)20–7–2Recap
30WDecember 11, 19952–1@ New Jersey Devils (1995–96)21–7–2Recap
31WDecember 12, 19953–1@ New York Islanders (1995–96)22–7–2Recap
32LDecember 14, 19954–6@ Boston Bruins (1995–96)22–8–2Recap
33WDecember 16, 19957–2@ Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96)23–8–2Recap
34WDecember 21, 19956–1Winnipeg Jets (1995–96)24–8–2Recap
35WDecember 23, 19952–1New Jersey Devils (1995–96)25–8–2Recap
36LDecember 28, 19954–5Washington Capitals (1995–96)25–9–2Recap
37LDecember 30, 19955–6@ Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96)25–10–2Recap :
January: 6–4–3 (home: 3–1–0; road: 3–3–3)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
38LJanuary 3, 19962–7@ Vancouver Canucks (1995–96)25–11–2Recap
39WJanuary 5, 19963–2@ Edmonton Oilers (1995–96)26–11–2Recap
40LJanuary 6, 19960–2@ Calgary Flames (1995–96)26–12–2Recap
41WJanuary 8, 19965–2@ San Jose Sharks (1995–96)27–12–2Recap
42TJanuary 10, 19964–4 OT@ Colorado Avalanche (1995–96)27–12–3Recap
43TJanuary 12, 19966–6 OT@ Dallas Stars (1995–96)27–12–4Recap
44WJanuary 16, 19964–1San Jose Sharks (1995–96)28–12–4Recap
45TJanuary 22, 19961–1 OT@ Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96)28–12–5Recap
46WJanuary 23, 19965–4@ Washington Capitals (1995–96)29–12–5Recap
47LJanuary 25, 19962–6Montreal Canadiens (1995–96)29–13–5Recap
48WJanuary 27, 19966–3Buffalo Sabres (1995–96)30–13–5Recap
49WJanuary 29, 19962–1Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96)31–13–5Recap
50LJanuary 31, 19961–6@ Buffalo Sabres (1995–96)31–14–5Recap :
February: 4–5–3 (home: 2–3–2; road: 2–2–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
51TFebruary 1, 19962–2 OT@ Boston Bruins (1995–96)31–14–6Recap
52WFebruary 3, 19965–3@ Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96)32–14–6Recap
53LFebruary 6, 19962–4@ Detroit Red Wings (1995–96)32–15–6Recap
54WFebruary 8, 19963–1Detroit Red Wings (1995–96)33–15–6Recap
55TFebruary 11, 19962–2 OTSt. Louis Blues (1995–96)33–15–7Recap
56LFebruary 14, 19962–4Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96)33–16–7Recap
57LFebruary 16, 19964–5 OTColorado Avalanche (1995–96)33–17–7Recap
58WFebruary 18, 19966–4Dallas Stars (1995–96)34–17–7Recap
59WFebruary 21, 19964–1@ New Jersey Devils (1995–96)35–17–7Recap
60LFebruary 24, 19960–4New York Rangers (1995–96)35–18–7Recap
61LFebruary 25, 19961–6@ Buffalo Sabres (1995–96)35–19–7Recap
62TFebruary 29, 19962–2 OTWashington Capitals (1995–96)35–19–8Recap :
March: 3–9–1 (home: 3–3–0; road: 0–6–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
63LMarch 2, 19961–7@ Hartford Whalers (1995–96)35–20–8Recap
64LMarch 5, 19960–2@ St. Louis Blues (1995–96)35–21–8Recap
65LMarch 7, 19963–5@ Winnipeg Jets (1995–96)35–22–8Recap
66LMarch 10, 19961–4Boston Bruins (1995–96)35–23–8Recap
67LMarch 11, 19964–8@ Chicago Blackhawks (1995–96)35–24–8Recap
68TMarch 13, 19963–3 OT@ New York Rangers (1995–96)35–24–9Recap
69WMarch 17, 19963–0New Jersey Devils (1995–96)36–24–9Recap
70WMarch 19, 19965–2Ottawa Senators (1995–96)37–24–9Recap
71WMarch 21, 19963–2New York Islanders (1995–96)38–24–9Recap
72LMarch 23, 19962–4@ Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96)38–25–9Recap
73LMarch 27, 19960–3@ New York Rangers (1995–96)38–26–9Recap
74LMarch 28, 19962–3Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96)38–27–9Recap
75LMarch 30, 19961–2Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96)38–28–9Recap :
April: 3–3–1 (home: 2–1–0; road: 1–2–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
76WApril 1, 19963–2Hartford Whalers (1995–96)39–28–9Recap
77LApril 3, 19962–3@ Ottawa Senators (1995–96)39–29–9Recap
78LApril 6, 19961–2@ Montreal Canadiens (1995–96)39–30–9Recap
79WApril 8, 19965–3@ New York Rangers (1995–96)40–30–9Recap
80LApril 10, 19961–2Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96)40–31–9Recap
81TApril 12, 19961–1 OT@ New York Islanders (1995–96)40–31–10Recap
82WApril 14, 19965–1New York Rangers (1995–96)41–31–10Recap :
Legend:
  Win (2 points)
  Loss (0 points)
  Tie (1 point) :

### Playoffs

1996 Stanley Cup playoffs :
Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. (5) Boston Bruins – Panthers win 4–1
GameResultDateScoreOpponentAttendanceDecisionSeriesRecap
1WApril 17, 19966–3Boston Bruins14,703VanbiesbrouckPanthers lead 1–0Recap
2WApril 22, 19966–2Boston Bruins14,703VanbiesbrouckPanthers lead 2–0Recap
3WApril 24, 19964–2@ Boston Bruins14,922VanbiesbrouckPanthers lead 3–0Recap
4LApril 25, 19962–6@ Boston Bruins14,810VanbiesbrouckPanthers lead 3–1Recap
5WApril 27, 19964–3Boston Bruins14,703VanbiesbrouckPanthers win 4–1Recap :
Eastern Conference Semifinals vs. (1) Philadelphia Flyers – Panthers win 4–2
GameResultDateScoreOpponentAttendanceDecisionSeriesRecap
1WMay 2, 19962–0@ Philadelphia Flyers17,380VanbiesbrouckPanthers lead 1–0Recap
2LMay 4, 19960–2@ Philadelphia Flyers17,380VanbiesbrouckSeries tied 1–1Recap
3LMay 7, 19962–3Philadelphia Flyers14,703VanbiesbrouckFlyers lead 2–1Recap
4WMay 9, 19964–3 OTPhiladelphia Flyers14,703VanbiesbrouckSeries tied 2–2Recap
5WMay 12, 19962–1 2OT@ Philadelphia Flyers17,380VanbiesbrouckPanthers lead 3–2Recap
6WMay 14, 19964–1Philadelphia Flyers14,703VanbiesbrouckPanthers win 4–2Recap :
Eastern Conference Finals vs. (2) Pittsburgh Penguins – Panthers win 4–3
GameResultDateScoreOpponentAttendanceDecisionSeriesRecap
1WMay 18, 19965–1@ Pittsburgh Penguins17,355VanbiesbrouckPanthers lead 1–0Recap
2LMay 20, 19962–3@ Pittsburgh Penguins17,181VanbiesbrouckSeries tied 1–1Recap
3WMay 24, 19965–2Pittsburgh Penguins14,703VanbiesbrouckPanthers lead 2–1Recap
4LMay 26, 19961–2Pittsburgh Penguins14,703VanbiesbrouckSeries tied 2–2Recap
5LMay 28, 19960–3@ Pittsburgh Penguins17,355VanbiesbrouckPenguins lead 3–2Recap
6WMay 30, 19964–3Pittsburgh Penguins14,703VanbiesbrouckSeries tied 3–3Recap
7WJune 1, 19963–1@ Pittsburgh Penguins17,355VanbiesbrouckPanthers win 4–3Recap :
Stanley Cup Finals vs. (W2) Colorado Avalanche – Avalanche win 4–0
GameResultDateScoreOpponentAttendanceDecisionSeriesRecap
1LJune 4, 19961–3@ Colorado Avalanche16,061VanbiesbrouckAvalanche lead 1–0Recap
2LJune 6, 19961–8@ Colorado Avalanche16,061VanbiesbrouckAvalanche lead 2–0Recap
3LJune 8, 19962–3Colorado Avalanche14,703VanbiesbrouckAvalanche lead 3–0Recap
4LJune 10, 19960–1 3OTColorado Avalanche14,703VanbiesbrouckAvalanche win 4–0Recap :
Legend:
  Win
  Loss :

## Player statistics
### Scoring

* Position abbreviations: C = Center; D = Defense; G = Goaltender; LW = Left wing; RW = Right wing
* † = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Panthers only.
* ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Panthers only.
| No. | Player | Pos | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs |
| No. | Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM |
| 27 | Scott Mellanby | RW | 79 | 32 | 38 | 70 | 4 | 160 | 22 | 3 | 6 | 9 | −10 | 44 |
| 44 | Rob Niedermayer | C | 82 | 26 | 35 | 61 | 1 | 107 | 22 | 5 | 3 | 8 | −8 | 12 |
| 24 | Robert Svehla | D | 81 | 8 | 49 | 57 | −3 | 94 | 22 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 3 | 32 |
| 29 | Johan Garpenlov | LW | 82 | 23 | 28 | 51 | −10 | 36 | 20 | 4 | 2 | 6 | −2 | 8 |
| 14 | Stu Barnes | C | 72 | 19 | 25 | 44 | −12 | 46 | 22 | 6 | 10 | 16 | 10 | 4 |
| 26 | Jesse Belanger‡ | C | 63 | 17 | 21 | 38 | −5 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 12 | Jody Hull | RW | 78 | 20 | 17 | 37 | 5 | 25 | 14 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 0 |
| 21 | Tom Fitzgerald | RW | 82 | 13 | 21 | 34 | −3 | 75 | 22 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 3 | 34 |
| 11 | Bill Lindsay | RW | 73 | 12 | 22 | 34 | 13 | 57 | 22 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 6 | 18 |
| 6 | Jason Woolley | D | 52 | 6 | 28 | 34 | −9 | 32 | 13 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 3 | 14 |
| 5 | Gord Murphy | D | 70 | 8 | 22 | 30 | 5 | 30 | 14 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 6 |
| 9 | Radek Dvorak | RW | 77 | 13 | 14 | 27 | 5 | 20 | 16 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 0 |
| 20 | Brian Skrudland | C | 79 | 7 | 20 | 27 | 6 | 129 | 21 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 18 |
| 10 | Dave Lowry | LW | 63 | 10 | 14 | 24 | −2 | 36 | 22 | 10 | 7 | 17 | 8 | 39 |
| 18 | Mike Hough | LW | 64 | 7 | 16 | 23 | 4 | 37 | 22 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 8 |
| 55 | Ed Jovanovski | D | 70 | 10 | 11 | 21 | −3 | 137 | 22 | 1 | 8 | 9 | 2 | 52 |
| 2 | Terry Carkner | D | 73 | 3 | 10 | 13 | 10 | 80 | 22 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 10 |
| 8 | Magnus Svensson | D | 27 | 2 | 9 | 11 | −1 | 21 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 26 | Ray Sheppard† | RW | 14 | 8 | 2 | 10 | 0 | 4 | 21 | 8 | 8 | 16 | 4 | 4 |
| 25 | Geoff Smith | D | 31 | 3 | 7 | 10 | −4 | 20 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 2 |
| 3 | Paul Laus | D | 78 | 3 | 6 | 9 | −2 | 236 | 21 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 3 | 62 |
| 28 | Martin Straka† | C | 12 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 6 | 13 | 2 | 2 | 4 | −2 | 2 |
| 16 | Gilbert Dionne† | LW | 5 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 15 | Brett Harkins | LW | 8 | 0 | 3 | 3 | −2 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 23 | Rhett Warrener | D | 28 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 46 | 21 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| 19 | Brad Smyth | RW | 7 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −3 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 51 | David Nemirovsky | RW | 9 | 0 | 2 | 2 | −1 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 34 | John Vanbiesbrouck | G | 57 | 0 | 2 | 2 | | 10 | 22 | 0 | 1 | 1 | | 20 |
| 22 | Bob Kudelski‡ | RW | 13 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 40 | Steve Washburn | C | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 7 | Mike Casselman† | C | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 30 | Mark Fitzpatrick | G | 34 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 12 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 |

### Goaltending

| No. | Player | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs |
| No. | Player | GP | W | L | T | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI | GP | W | L | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI |
| 34 | John Vanbiesbrouck | 57 | 26 | 20 | 7 | 1473 | 142 | 2.68 | .904 | 2 | 3178 | 22 | 12 | 10 | 735 | 50 | 2.25 | .932 | 1 | 1332 |
| 30 | Mark Fitzpatrick | 34 | 15 | 11 | 3 | 810 | 88 | 2.96 | .891 | 0 | 1786 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 30 | 6 | 6.00 | .800 | 0 | 60 |

## Awards and records
### Awards

| Type | Award/honor | Recipient |
| League (annual) | NHL All-Rookie Team | Ed Jovanovski (Defense) |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Doug MacLean (coach) |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Scott Mellanby |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | John Vanbiesbrouck |

### Milestones

| Milestone | Player | Date |
| First game | Radek Dvorak | October 7, 1995 |
| First game | Rhett Warrener | October 7, 1995 |
| First game | David Nemirovsky | October 8, 1995 |
| First game | Ed Jovanovski | November 2, 1995 |
| First game | Mike Casselman | February 24, 1996 |
| First game | Brad Smyth | February 25, 1996 |
| First game | Steve Washburn | April 14, 1996 |

## Transactions
### Trades

The Panthers acquired Ray Sheppard from the San Jose Sharks on the trade deadline in 1996.

## Draft picks

Florida's draft picks at the 1995 NHL entry draft held at the Edmonton Coliseum in Edmonton, Alberta.
| Round | Pick | Player | Nationality | College/junior/club team |
| 1 | 10 | Radek Dvorak (RW) | Czech Republic | HC České Budějovice (Czech) |
| 2 | 36 | Aaron MacDonald (G) | Canada | Swift Current Broncos (WHL) |
| 3 | 62 | Mike O'Grady (D) | Canada | Lethbridge Hurricanes (WHL) |
| 4 | 80 | Dave Duerden (LW) | Canada | Peterborough Petes (OHL) |
| 4 | 88 | Daniel Tjarnqvist (D) | Sweden | Rögle BK (Sweden) |
| 5 | 114 | Francois Cloutier (LW) | Canada | Hull Olympiques (QMJHL) |
| 7 | 166 | Peter Worrell (LW) | Canada | Hull Olympiques (QMJHL) |
| 8 | 192 | Filip Kuba (D) | Czech Republic | HC Vítkovice (Czech Republic) |
| 9 | 218 | David Lemanowicz (G) | Canada | Spokane Chiefs (WHL) |