Cooper Black is set to make his NHL debut Thursday night for the Florida Panthers, and at 6-foot-9 he is poised to become the tallest goaltender in NHL history when he faces the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG Paints Arena at 7 p.m. ET.
That is a rare kind of first game in a league with a 100-plus year history. Before Black, only four goaltenders listed at 6-foot-7 had appeared in an NHL game: Ben Bishop, Mikko Koskinen, Ivan Fedotov and Mads Sogaard.
Black’s case for the call-up is not built on size alone. He was recalled from the AHL on Tuesday after a run with the Charlotte Checkers that included three starts this season, a 2-1-0 record, a 2.67 goals-against average and a.919 save percentage. He also turned aside 33 shots in a 4-2 win over Hartford on Saturday, the kind of night that can push a goalie from depth option to the next man up.
His path to this moment has been steady. Black originally joined the Florida Panthers as an undrafted free agent in 2024 and later signed a two-year, two-way contract extension on June 8, 2026. He had already shown enough in the organization to get a look in the preseason, making 14 saves in a 5-3 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Sept. 24.
Paul Maurice said the performance against Tampa Bay mattered, calling it a “fantastic tell” for Black. The coach said Black “looked efficient,” was “small in the right way,” and “wasn’t all over the place,” adding that he did not appear to be relying only on his size to make saves. That matters now because the Panthers are not asking him to be a curiosity; they are asking him to handle NHL shots in his first game.
Even Maurice’s usual pregame message will not quite fit. He said he has a speech he gives to every player — to relax and take in the crowd — but he does not think it works for a goalie, and he will let Robbie Tallas handle that part instead. For Black, Thursday is not only a debut. It is the first test of whether the tallest goaltender in NHL history can turn an unusual frame into an ordinary NHL night.
What happens after that is the open question. Black’s immediate assignment is clear, but his longer stay with the Florida Panthers is not; for now, the only certainty is that he is going in against the Pittsburgh Penguins with a record on the line and a first impression waiting to be made.
