Panthers Waive Former 8th Overall Pick Adam Boqvist

When he was signed in the offseason to a one-year deal, the Florida Panthers thought they were making a sneaky-good low-cost addition to the right side of their defense corps with Adam Boqvist, the former 8th overall selection in the NHL Draft (2018).

However, despite his offensive upside, Boqvist's defensive shortcomings made him a liability and he hasn't played since Jan. 6th. He was a healthy scratch for the past 11 games.

With that, the Panthers have placed the 24-year-old on waivers.

Adam Boqvist has been placed on waivers by the Florida Panthers. It makes sense. Boqvist showed he's a good offensively, but terrible defensively. Played only 18 games with Florida. pic.twitter.com/xgXT1kNlpq
— Rono (@RonoAnalyst) January 30, 2025

Boqvist had been racked by injuries in his three previous years with the Columbus Blue Jackets, never able to play in more than 52 games in a season. The team bought him out of the final year of his $2.6M AAV contract after the 2023-24 campaign, and he entered unrestricted free agency.

The Panthers signed him to a minimum $775,000 one-year deal, and were hoping a healthy Boqvist could begin to reach his potential in South Florida.

But he got into just 18 games with the team, recording six points and a plus/minus rating of minus-4.

As a former No. 8 overall pick with immense offensive potential from the backline, and still just 24, it's likely that some team around the NHL will take a chance on making him their reclamation project.