Chicago is still paying for Seth Jones's best month in Florida

The number: $2.5 million. That's what Chicago still pays every season so Seth Jones can play defense in Florida, and after his October, it's the best money the Panthers never spent.

Jones had 18 points in October, two goals and 16 assists, a Panthers record for a defenseman in a single month. Keith Yandle held the old mark with 17 in March 2018. The Norris conversation started right on schedule, and I'd slow that part down considerably. The contract conversation is the one that's already settled.

What Florida is actually paying

Jones carries a $9.5 million average annual value through 2029-30. When the Blackhawks moved him in March 2025, they kept $2.5 million of it for the remaining 5.25 seasons, a total of $13.125 million. That's the largest retained total in league history, ahead of the $10.71 million Philadelphia kept on Kevin Hayes.

So Florida's cap hit is about $7 million for a defenseman averaging 25.0 minutes a night, per NHL data. He has topped 27 minutes four times in 15 games, including 27.4 against Detroit on Monday. That's a No. 1 defenseman's workload at a second-pair defenseman's price.

The production, in context

All 18 of his points came in 13 October games. He was held off the sheet in the season's first three games, then posted multi-point games five times in the next 11, by our count, including four points in the 7-3 win at Columbus.

One wrinkle the box score hides: his power-play time has fallen. He averaged 7.1 power-play minutes over the first three games and 3.6 over the last five, per NHL data, and the points kept arriving anyway. Production that doesn't depend on the first power-play unit is the kind that survives a cold stretch.

Maurice put it simply: "Offensively he's as strong as there is from the blue line." He also said Jones's next level is more minutes. The minutes are already there.

Why I'm not on the Norris bus yet

It's a small sample, 15 games, and the competition is considerable. Jones is sixth among NHL defensemen with 18 points. Evan Bouchard has 28 in 16 games, a gap of ten that one good week doesn't close. Jones is also minus-3 in Florida's three Atlantic losses. A Norris case gets built in those games, not against Columbus.

Jones himself isn't selling it either. "I don't judge my game based on points," he said after the three-point night against Winnipeg.

The other side of the ledger

Spencer Knight is in Sunrise tonight with Chicago. He is 4-8-0 with an .894 save percentage and a 3.28 goals-against average in 12 starts, per NHL data. The Blackhawks also got a first-round pick in the deal, so this trade won't be fully graded until that pick plays.

But on the cap side, the verdict is in. Chicago bought itself flexibility and a goalie. Florida bought a top-pair defenseman at roughly 74 cents on the dollar through 2029-30. The term that looked like a risk in 2025 now looks like control.

What I'd watch: whether Maurice keeps him near 27 minutes against division teams. If Jones can drive play at that workload against Boston on Sunday, the $7 million becomes the most efficient big-minute deal on Florida's sheet. If the minutes fall back to 23, the October points will too.