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When the Florida Panthers entered the NHL in 1993, Shayne Gostisbehere was a five-month-old baby in Pembroke Pines, halfway between the team’s original home in Miami and its current digs in Sunrise. There were few hardcore fans in the region. But Gostisbehere’s maternal grandfather, former Montrealer Denis Brodeur, was at the front of the line on Day 1 to become a season ticket holder. His passion for the sport was infectious. “I went to all the games with him,” Gostisbehere said. “He really got me involved. I shoot pucks on roller rinks. He would put up the soda cans. He was a big part of my success.”
Today, the Panthers are the Stanley Cup champions and the toast of South Florida. But growing up as a rink rat at the club’s practice facility in Coral Springs and learning his trade in their youth program, Gostisbehere was at the forefront.
The same can be said about his playing style. When another Florida-born blueliner, Quinn Hughes, won the Norris Trophy last June, he was praised for his impressive offense and cerebral approach to defense based on strong skating and sharp puck movement. Hughes is seen as part of a new breed of blueliners, with Cale Makar and Adam Fox also leading the class.
When Gostisbehere broke through with the Philadelphia Flyers in 2015-16, he scored 17 goals and 46 points and finished as runner-up for the Calder Trophy. But at the time, his play still raised some eyebrows. “It bothered me a little bit more at the beginning of my career because there weren’t that many of us,” he said. “It’s pretty cool to see all the guys having success with it.”
“Ghost Bear” arrived in the NHL with some fanfare — a third-round pick (78th overall) in 2012 who turned pro after being named tournament MVP at the 2014 Frozen Four in Philadelphia. His underdog Union College defeated Minnesota for the national title. “You have to go to Union to understand it,” he said. “To have two thousand kids in college, and it’s all Div. III except hockey. It was magical to have the success we had and all that hard work.”
After a knee injury derailed his 2019-20 season, Gostisbehere struggled to get back into the regular rotation with the Flyers. He got a fresh start in the desert in the fall of 2021 as part of the Arizona Coyotes.
There, he played more than 22 minutes a night, and caught the attention of the Carolina Hurricanes at the 2023 trade deadline. The fit turned out to be a good one. It was the longest playoff run of Gostisbehere’s career, with the Hurricanes ultimately defeated by the Panthers in the Eastern Conference finals.
A salary cap crisis prevented Carolina from re-signing him after that run. But the 31-year-old didn’t hesitate to commit to a three-year pact when the Canes circled back around last summer. “To come to an organization like this, where everyone is doing everything right and they’ve built this culture over the last 10 years, it was a pretty easy decision for my wife and I,” he said. “It was a lot of fun to watch it build and get the taste of playoff success.”
With Eric Tulsky in the GM chair for the first time, the Hurricanes underwent a major roster overhaul as they parted ways with longtime contributors Brady Skjei, Brett Pesce and Teuvo Teravainen. The newcomers fit in seamlessly, and the early results suggest that anyone who said Carolina’s Stanley Cup window was closed may have spoken too soon.
“At the beginning of my career, I took a little more of the burnt oil because there weren’t that many of us.” – Shayne Gostisbehere
After a 56-point season with the Detroit Red Wings, Gostisbehere comfortably stepped into the quarterback role on Carolina’s first power play unit, scoring in five of his first six games with his new team. At 5-on-5, coach Rod Brind’Amour paired him with another newcomer and former Flyer, Sean Walker. Together they form a new defensive pair, thwarting opponents by dominating puck possession and rarely giving up dangerous scoring opportunities. “It was a great partnership in the sense that we are very similar players,” Gostisbehere said. “I’m left-handed. He is a righteous one. We both enjoy getting on the ice, and we can skate. The system works for us and it plays to our strengths.”
Brind’Amour’s ability to bring out the best in his players is a hallmark of his six-plus years behind the bench in Carolina. But Gostisbehere also makes time for criticism from grandfather Denis. “He watches every game and I still get a text after every game, good or bad,” he said. “He’s very honest, so it’s good to have that. I’m lucky to have that.”
This article appeared in the November 25, 2024 World Junior Championship issue of The Hockey News. In this edition, we provide comprehensive coverage of the 2025 World Junior Championship, complete with previews of all 10 teams plus some of the most prominent players involved. Also in this issue we spotlight San Jose’s Tyler Toffoli, Philadelphia’s Travis Konecny and a team from Haida Gwaii that really goes the extra mile.
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