NHL rumors: Panthers seeking blueline upgrade before trade deadline
Yesterday at 10:13 PM
The Florida Panthers are the defending Stanley Cup champions. However, they have experienced some rough stretches in 2024-25. Florida went on a stretch of losing six of their last eight before a recent three-game winning streak, for instance. As a result, the Panthers are reportedly checking in on potential moves on the trade market.
“My understanding is the Panthers do intend to tweak the blue line between now and the March 7 trade deadline. That's already the internal discussion. They don't have much cap space, so they will need to be creative,” NHL insider Pierre LeBrun wrote for The Athletic on Monday night.
Florida entered play Monday with a record of 15-9-1, good enough for 31 points. They hold a slim one-point lead atop the Atlantic Division over the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Panthers and Maple Leafs are comfortably ahead of the rest of the pack, though. But that likely won’t keep Florida from making an upgrade if the price is right.
Panthers lost key pieces on defense in NHL Free Agency
The Panthers won the Stanley Cup but knew they were losing pieces in the offseason. Florida re-signed Sam Reinhart to a massive contract but watched as key contributors left for greener pastures. They specifically lost key names on the blueline. Brandon Montour signed with the Seattle Kraken while Oliver Ekman-Larsson headed north to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Panthers did not make a splash signing to replace the lost names. They had limited cap space, so that wasn’t necessarily in the cards. However, the Panthers signed interesting veterans like Nate Schmidt and Adam Boqvist to plug and play for now.
Overall, something seems to be missing on the back end. Florida is 25th in the NHL for Goals Against Per Game, according to ESPN. Moreover, they allow the eighth-highest amount of Goals Per 60 Minutes, according to Evolving Hockey. Some of this can be attributed to the poor play of Sergei Bobrovsky, but he is not the only culprit here.
As LeBrun mentioned, Florida must get creative when adding a defenseman through trade. One potential option could be veteran Erik Johnson of the Philadelphia Flyers. Another may be San Jose Sharks defender Jan Rutta. Each option comes with its own set of challenges, but they could improve Florida defensively.
The Panthers are still among the best teams in the NHL at this point. But they have shown some vulnerability on the ice this season. Keep an eye on the defending champions as trade discussions around the league intensify between now and the March 7 NHL Trade Deadline.
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