Selected in the third round (87th overall) of the virtual 2020 NHL Entry Draft, fast and savvy Justin Sourdif is the second player (Michael Repik was the first) from the WHL’s Vancouver Giants to ever be taken by the Florida Panthers.
Prior to being Bill Zito’s fourth-ever draftee as the Panthers general manager, Sourdif appeared in 125 regular season games over his first two seasons with the Giants, amassing 49 goals and 100 points to go along with 75 PIMs and a +56 rating. Additionally, Sourdif suited up in 24 playoff games with Vancouver and produced two goals and six assists, with of all those points coming during the 2019 postseason.
As WHL rookie in 2018-19, Sourdif led all freshmen Giants with 23 goals, making him just the third Vancouver skater to surpass the 20-goal mark during their 16-year-old season.
In his draft season, Sourdif’s 26 goals were second best on the Vancouver roster and he finished third on the club in scoring with 54 points. In January of 2020, he appeared in the 2020 CHL/NHL Top Prospects game in Hamilton, Ontario and recorded an assist in Team Red’s 5-3 victory over Team White.
In 2020-21, Sourdif was named player of the year in the B.C, Division as the WHL played a truncated, division-based schedule due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. The 19-year-old led all B.C. Division skaters with 23 assists and 34 points, scoring in 17 of Vancouver’s 22 games. He produced nine points on the power play, five while shorthanded and finished with a +10 rating. His 34 points were tied for third-highest in the league behind the Winnipeg Ice’s Peyton Krebs (43) and Ben McCartney (37) of the Brandon Wheat Kings.
On September 24, 2021, Sourdif inked an entry-level contract with the Panthers.
With an NHL deal in his back pocket, Sourdif set new WHL highs with 45 assists and 71 points while playing 24 games with the Giants and 28 games with his new team, the Edmonton Oil Kings, after he was traded in mid-January in exchange for forward Jacob Boucher, a first-round pick in the 2022 WHL Prospects Draft and a first-round pick in the 2025 WHL Prospects Draft.
Sourdif matched the 26 goals he scored in 2019-20 in five less games. The move to a better squad saw him slightly increase his overall offensive production and markedly increase the amount of goals scored. He netted nine goals with Vancouver and 17 with the Oil Kings.
In December, he was part of the Canadian team that took part in the canceled first run of the 2022 World Junior Championship. He played in the opener against Czechia and did not suit up against Austria.
During the WHL playoffs, he would put up five goals and 14 points as Edmonton would go an impressive 16-3 run on their way to capturing the third league championship in franchise history.
At the 2022 Memorial Cup, Sourdif collected two assists in the Oil Kings only win, a 4-3 overtime decision over the host Saint John Sea Dogs. He was held off the score sheet in tough losses to the Shawinigan Cataractes and Hamilton Bulldogs.
After attending both development and training camp, and beginning the campaign on Season-Opening Injured Reserve, Sourdif was finally assigned to the Charlotte Checkers on October 12.
He made his AHL debut two days later, and after going pointless in his first two games, put together a streak of four consecutive games with an assist. Sourdif scored his first professional goal on November 11, in Providence and later that month tallied in back-to-back games against the Utica Comets.
After missing most of January, Sourdif returned to the lineup late in the month and scored more three times and added ten assists the rest of the way to finish his rookie season with seven goals and 24 points in 48 games played. He was credited with 93 shots on goal and accumulated 32 penalty minutes.
The 2023 Calder Cup Playoffs saw Sourdif play in six of the seven postseason games Charlotte played against Lehigh Valley and Hershey. He produced a goal and an assist in those appearances.
According to Elite Prospects 2020 Draft Guide, Sourdif has a powerful, hands-in-front release with occasional crafty placement — he’s a legitimate long-range threat when he shoots. His off of the puck skating patterns, timing, and a nose for soft ice put him in the best possible shooting position. He’s a tremendously athletic player and skates with a low center of gravity, allowing him to bulldoze through traffic.
Barring a standout performance at training camp, or a reduction to the Panthers current forward depth via trade, chances are that Sourdif will spend a second season in Charlotte, honing his game with the Checkers. He’ll be on the shortlist of upfront players that could receive a call-up when injury bug hits.