Cooper Black

Cooper Black is an American goaltender from Alpena, Michigan, who signed a two-year entry-level contract with the Florida Panthers as an undrafted free agent on April 2, 2024, after his sophomore season at Dartmouth College. The 6-foot-8 left-catching netminder spent his junior career with the Nanaimo Clippers of the BCHL before making the jump to the ECAC, where he was named a finalist for the Ken Dryden Award as the conference's top goaltender as a sophomore. One memorable storyline from his Clippers years: a head-to-head BCHL game against his then-15-year-old billet brother Matthew Hutchison, starting that night for the Cowichan Capitals.

In his first full pro season, Black has emerged as Charlotte's workhorse, posting a 25-13-4 record with a .903 save percentage and 2.47 goals-against average across 42 appearances for the Calder Cup runners-up. His 25 wins ranked fourth among all AHL goaltenders and tied for fourth-most in Checkers franchise history.