- Oct 16, 2026
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SportsMafia Wire graphic. Team logos and player headshots via ESPN.
Cooper Black will make his NHL debut Thursday when the Florida Panthers face the Pittsburgh Penguins, becoming the tallest goaltender in league history at 6-foot-9.
The 25-year-old surpasses Ben Bishop and Ivan Fedotov, who both stand 6-foot-7. Black joined the Panthers on a four-game road trip after Jacob Markstrom was injured in practice and is expected to miss 10-14 days.
Florida head coach Paul Maurice said Black "would get his first shot in the big time" during the trip. The undrafted netminder signed with the Panthers in April 2024 after completing his college career at Dartmouth, where he earned ECAC all-rookie honors in 2022-23 and second-team all-star recognition in 2023-24.
Black was called up from the Charlotte Checkers of the AHL this week. In three games with Charlotte this season, he posted a 2-1-0 record with a 2.67 goals-against average and .919 save percentage. Last Saturday, he stopped 33 of 35 shots in a 4-2 victory over the Hartford Wolf Pack. Across 63 career AHL games with Charlotte, Black has compiled a 38-19-6 record, 2.39 GAA, .904 save percentage and four shutouts.
Source: Daily Faceoff - Thu Oct 22, 7:09 PM ET
Written by the SportsMafia Wire desk in our own words from the original reporting (AI-assisted, checked against the source).