Ekblad won the Stanley Cup for the first time in 2024, when he was the longest-tenured defenseman ever to wear a Panthers uniform. He was the fifth No. 1 pick in NHL history to play at least 600 regular-season games (676) for the team that drafted him before winning the Cup with them, joining Alex Ovechkin, Steven Stamkos, Mike Modano and Nathan MacKinnon.

The following season, Ekblad became the ninth No. 1 pick to win the Cup at least twice with the team that chose him in the NHL Draft. That season, he set a new NHL career high with a six-game assist streak (seven assists) from Feb. 25 to March 8 and got his 250th assist with the Panthers on Dec. 22, passing Stephen Weiss for third in team history. He signed an eight-year contract to remain with the Panthers on June 30, 2025.

The winner of the 2015 Calder Trophy as the top rookie in the NHL, Ekblad was a rookie at the junior level before he was even eligible to be one. After a six-week review of his application, Hockey Canada gave Ekblad "Exceptional Player Status," making him eligible for the Ontario Hockey League's 2011 Priority Selection at the age of 15.

The first defenseman ever granted such status, Ekblad was chosen with the first pick by Barrie. Three years later, he was chosen No. 1 by the Panthers in the 2014 NHL Draft.

In each case Ekblad had no trouble justifying the selection. Voted the OHL Rookie of the Year in 2011-12, Ekblad helped Barrie to the playoffs a year later and was named OHL Most Outstanding Defenseman for the 2013-14 season.

Ekblad made his NHL debut Oct. 9, 2014, the first of 81 games he would play that season, and had an assist in a 3-2 overtime loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning. He finished with 39 points, the third most among rookie defenseman who began their NHL careers at age 18. Phil Housley (66) and Bobby Orr (41) were the others.

The Windsor, Ontario, native also set Panthers records for points, goals (12) and assists (27) by a rookie defenseman and at 18 years, 267 days became the youngest Panthers defenseman to score a goal, which came on the power play in a 2-1 win against the Philadelphia Flyers on Nov. 1, 2014.

Ekblad agreed to an eight-year contract with the Panthers on July 2, 2016 and was named an alternate captain. He became the 15th NHL defenseman to score double-digit goals in each of his first four seasons Feb. 3, 2018. He had surgery to repair a fracture in his lower extremities sustained against the Dallas Stars on March 28, 2021 that kept him out the rest of the season and Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Ekblad became Florida's points leader among defenseman when he passed Robert Svehla with three assists in a 5-3 loss at the Vegas Golden Knights on March 17, 2022. He became the first defenseman and 12th skater in Panthers history to score 100 goals in a 5-2 win against the Boston Bruins on Nov. 23. He did it in his 563rd game; one active NHL defenseman reached 100 in fewer games (Erik Karlsson, 477). He had one assist in a 4-3 overtime loss to the Edmonton Oilers on Nov. 29 to become the first Florida defenseman to reach 300 points (101 goals, 199 assists) in the NHL.