Black stopped 14 of 16 shots in Thursday's 5-3 preseason win over the Lightning.
This was essentially a dress rehearsal for the AHL Charlotte roster, and Black did his part well against a veteran-laden Tampa Bay lineup. Black is projected to be the organizational No. 3 in goal for the Panthers this year. He'll be in line for a call-up if Jacob Markstrom or Akira Schmid misses any time.
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Panthers' Cooper Black: Defending road crease Thursday
Rotowire
Black will draw the start during Thursday's road preseason game against the Lightning, Jameson Olive of the Panthers' official site reports.
Demko signed a two-year, two-way contract with the Panthers in early June, and he'll get a tune-up during the team's penultimate preseason game. He hasn't yet made his NHL regular-season debut, but he went 25-13-4 with a 2.47 GAA and .903 save percentage across 42 regular-season appearances with AHL Charlotte last year.
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Panthers' Cooper Black: Inks two-way deal
Rotowire
Black signed a two-year, two-way contract with Panthers on Monday.
After a strong campaign with AHL Charlotte, Black secured his second contract with Florida. In 42 AHL appearances this season, the 24-year-old netminder posted a 25-13-4 record, a 2.47 GAA and a .903 save percentage. Even though he hasn't made his NHL debut yet, the Panthers' crease was inconsistent last season between Sergei Bobrovsky and Daniil Tarasov, leaving the door open for Black to potentially see playing time in the NHL at some point during his new deal.
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Panthers' Cooper Black: Earns shutout for Charlotte
Rotowire
Black recorded a 27-save shutout in AHL Charlotte's 3-0 win over Grand Rapids on Friday.
Black has played in 27 games this season, going 18-7-2 with a 2.45 GAA and a .904 save percentage. He picked up his first shutout of the campaign and the fourth of his AHL career with this effort. Black was good in a limited role in 2024-25, and while his numbers have dipped a bit, he's still playing pretty well. The 24-year-old would likely be the next man up for the Panthers, which could be a situation that comes to pass if Daniil Tarasov (lower body) is still injured after the Olympic break.
