SUNRISE, FL. – Florida Panthers General Manager Bill Zito announced today that the club has agreed to terms with defenseman Uvis Balinskis on a two-year contract extension through the 2025-26 season.
“Uvis is a talented two-way defenseman with excellent playmaking abilities,” said Zito. “His successful transition to North American play enabled him to make an immediate impact, and we are excited to have him continue as a professional within our organization.”
Balinskis, 27, made his National Hockey League debut with the Panthers at the start of the 2023-24 season, recording two points (1-1-2) over 18 games. He scored his first NHL goal and posted a plus-two rating on Nov. 10 against the Carolina Hurricanes, helping Florida secure a 5-2 win. Balinskis has also skated in seven American Hockey League games with the Panthers affiliate, the Charlotte Checkers, amassing seven points (1-6-7).
The 6-foot, 196-pound native of Ventspils, Latvia previously played for the Liberec White Tigers (2022-23) and HC Litvinov (2020-21 to 2021-22) of the Czech Extraliga, logging 75 points (25-50-75) in 140 appearances. In the 2022-23 season, Balinskis was named the Extraliga’s Best Defenseman, leading all Extraliga defenseman in goals (11) and points (35). He also skated in parts of five seasons in the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL), collecting 34 points (10-24-34) over 135 contests with Dinamo Riga from 2015-16 to 2019-20.
On the international stage, Balinskis represented Latvia at the 2023 IIHF World Championship, notching two assists over 10 tournament games, helping his home country secure its first-ever IIHF medal when Latvia downed the United States 4-3 in overtime of the bronze medal game. He also skated for Latvia at the 2022 Olympic Winter Games in Beijing and at the IIHF World Championships in 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2021.
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Florida Panthers media relations contributed to this column
