Breaking down the Florida Panthers ahead of NHL Trade Deadline Day.
Deadline approach
The Florida Panthers will be: Sellers
Pending free agents
Unrestricted: 14 | Restricted: 11 | See full list
[teamleaders league=”nhl” team=”fla” season”2014″]
Panthers overview
The Panthers are the most enthusiastic sellers you’ll find. It’s a lost season for Florida, which won’t fall below the Buffalo Sabres for dead last in the Eastern Conference but should have a great shot at an enviable lottery pick.
General manager Dale Tallon posted a “for sale” sign on his young and mostly unknown roster months ago. He has publicly and repeatedly put his veterans on notice and is ready to detonate what’s left of his team in order to build towards the future. New owner Vinnie Viola has promised Tallon he can spend to the salary cap ceiling this summer; he wants to dress a competitive team and draw fans into the empty seats.
With so many regulars not under contract in 2014-15 — Dmitry Kulikov, Tim Thomas, Brad Boyes, Tom Gilbert, Scott Gomez, Marcel Goc, etc. — the Panthers are a wise bet to undergo the most drastic overhaul by next autumn, so Tallon might as well try to get as many prospects and picks as he can now.
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| Click player positions to see depth chart | ||
Areas to address
The only area to address is the future. Tallon has said Aleksander Barkov is his best player. He is 18. Besides Barkov and 2012 Calder Trophy winner Jonathan Huberdeau (age 20), no one is safe. Heading into the Olympic break, the Panthers ranked 27th in both offence and defence. Despite a few promising pieces, the Panthers’ awfulness is well-rounded. The Panthers operate the worst power play in the NHL by a long shot, converting just nine percent of the time. Also worst in the league: their penalty kill. So when everything needs an upgrade, where do you start? From the net out, if you’re smart. Tim Thomas might hang around for another year during the rebuild (Tallon reportedly wants to re-sign him), but Florida needs to sign or draft a young goaltender and some promising defencemen to develop alongside Huberdeau and Barkov.
Tallon will try his best to unload his veterans as playoff rentals by Mar. 5 in exchange for affordable prospects and draft picks. If he can’t, he’ll likely find himself overpaying in free agency.
Possible trade chips
Tom Gilbert
Dmitry Kulikov
Brad Boyes
Tim Thomas
