Andrew Hammond Not Joining Florida Panthers at Training Camp

The Florida Panthers reportedly invited goalie Andrew Hammond to training camp on a professional tryout, but he will not be there.

Although the team did not officially announce Hammond getting a PTO, it was widely reported last month.

Hammond will not be part of camp when it opens on Sept. 22.

According to a report by Russia’s Sport-Express, the ‘Hamburglar’ was to sign with Traktor Chelyabinsk in the KHL.

That report has not been confirmed.

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Hammond, 34, is not listed on the Traktor roster nor has that signing been reported elsewhere.

When the news broke that Hammond was invited to Panthers’ camp, the thought was Florida was giving him a chance to battle for a spot on the Charlotte Checkers’ roster.

Florida’s goalie positions, of course, are currently full with Sergei Bobrovsky and Spencer Knight.

The Panthers will also have Charlotte goalies Mack Guzda and Alex Lyon in camp.

Prospect camp invitees Jari Kykkanen and Kolby Hay may start training camp with the Panthers but will be headed back to their junior teams fairly quickly.

Florida has not announced its camp roster.

Hammond broke into the NHL with a bang, starting 10-1-1 with the Ottawa Senators as a rookie in 2015.

But he struggled to get back to the big leagues and spent the past few years in the AHL.

Last February, Hammond made 30 saves to lead the Montreal Canadiens to a shootout victory over the Islanders — and it was Hammond’s first NHL start in four years and his first win in six.

After going 3-0 with a 2.40 GAA for the Montreal Canadiens last season, Hammond was traded to the New Jersey Devils in March.

He was part of one of the Panthers’ biggest comeback wins during the 2021-22 season.

On April 2, Florida found itself down 6-2 in the third period of a game in Newark against the Devils.

The Panthers then scored four goals against Hammond in the third period to force overtime before Gus Forsling got his second of the day to lift Florida to a 7-6 win over the stunned Devils at Prudential Center.

That win was Florida’s second comeback win when trailing by at least three goals in the third period and fourth comeback win when trailing by three goals at any point in a game.

“You can’t feel comfortable when you know that team could score the way they do,” Devils coach Lindy Ruff said afterward.

“They’re the highest-scoring team in the league, and … sometimes you’ve got to make a real tough play under duress, and we didn’t make enough of them.”