Panik, 6-foot-1, 208 pounds, played in 50 games with Tampa Bay last season, recording three goals and 13 points. He also played in 13 games with the Syracuse Crunch of the American Hockey League in 2013-14. With the Crunch he accumulated three goals and 11 points. Panik also played in two games during the Lightning’s Eastern Conference Quarter-Final series against the Montreal Canadiens during the 2014 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

A native of Martin, Slovakia, Panik has appeared in 75 career NHL games, all with the Lightning, with eight goals and 22 points. He won the AHL’s Calder Cup Championship with the Norfolk Admirals in 2012. Panik represented his native Slovakia at the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia and skated in four games.

Panik was drafted by Tampa Bay in the second round, 52nd overall, at the 2009 NHL Entry Draft.