"Leave it to Kris Versteeg to keep it loose in the Panthers dressing room today when he snuck behind defenseman Mike Weaver and nailed him with a shaving-cream pie to celebrate the invaluable defenseman's two-year contract extension.

At 5-10 (in skates) Weaver may be one of the shorter defensemen in the NHL, yet his extra-long stick and excellent positioning has made him a key member of the Panthers seven-man defensive rotation, particularly on the penalty-kill unit where he excels.

With offensive-minded defensemen such as Brian Campbell, Jason Garrison, Dmitry Kulikov and a budding Erik Gudbranson, Weaver isn't asked to deliver bombs from the point. He knows his role yet he has chipped in with nine assists, two shy of his career high 11 set last year in his first season with the Panthers, after two years of anchoring the St. Louis Blues excellent penalty killing unit.

"He's one of those character players. He's widely respected around the league,'' said Panthers coach Kevin Dineen after morning skate. "He was a guy last year I used as an example for some players in the AHL on how to play defense. We got some clips of Mike playing and I never met him before in my life. His character as a player isn't always going to show up on the scoresheet; he's one of those guys who goes out and consistently does a good job. He plays against other team's top lines and not only does he play against them I think that's a role he really relishes. That's a very strong signing for the Florida Panthers and bodes well for both him and us. It's a win-win situation."