If you were to tell me that in 15 months that the Florida Panthers will be Stanley Cup champions again, I would believe you.<\/p>\n
Right now, though, they look like a tired, beat-up team that\u2019s played too much hockey over the past four years and finally needs a long summer to catch its breath.<\/p>\n
Which is absolutely OK after going to three straight Stanley Cup Finals and winning the last two.<\/p>\n
The Panthers came out of the Olympic break hoping to go on a run. They had five games in seven days heading into Friday\u2019s trade deadline. They\u2019ve gone 1-3-0 so far.<\/p>\n
I would never totally count them out \u2014 there\u2019s a heart of a champion in there still \u2014 but the Panthers woke up Thursday morning 10 points out of a playoff spot with 21 games to play. The math doesn\u2019t work.<\/p>\n
And so, not surprisingly, league sources say the Panthers are in sell mode, listening on their pending unrestricted free agents, which include A.J. Greer, Tomas Nosek, Jeff Petry, Daniil Tarasov and the big guy, Sergei Bobrovsky.<\/p>\n
Greer, with a cheap $850,000 cap hit, will most likely move. His brand of physicality is a desired ingredient come playoff time.<\/p>\n
The real question is what happens with Bobrovsky, 37, the two-time Cup champion and two-time, Vezina-winning netminder who has a 16-team no-trade list.<\/p>\n
This is just me, but I don\u2019t think the Panthers move Bobrovsky just to move him. He\u2019s not getting dealt for a fourth-round pick, for example. It would have to be a real offer, I think, because of the respect that organization has for him.<\/p>\n
Still, league sources confirm that teams are already calling on him, and the Panthers are listening.<\/p>\n
And of note, the Panthers announced Wednesday that they\u2019ve signed goalie Louis Domingue to a two-way contract as depth for the rest of the season.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s also worth pointing out that one can\u2019t discount a last-minute extension coming together. Those types of things happen.<\/p>\n
But if not, the Panthers will keep taking calls on him.<\/p>\n
Which teams could be interested?<\/p>\n
\u2022 The Vegas Golden Knights could make sense. All of their goalies are outside the top 30 in the league in save percentage and goals saved above expected.<\/p>\n
\u2022 The Carolina Hurricanes need to at least pick up the phone and inquire. Brandon Bussi has been an awesome story, but shouldn\u2019t the Canes do all they can to make sure of their goaltending if this is finally their year? According to league sources, the Canes checked in regarding the St. Louis Blues\u2019 Jordan Binnington earlier this week, though it doesn\u2019t seem to have gone anywhere.<\/p>\n
\u2022 I know everyone will scream \u201cthe Edmonton Oilers,\u201d and I mean, that\u2019s a team that still needs more saves. Big time. But can the Oilers really swap No. 1 goalies twice in one season? I would imagine Edmonton is on Bobrovsky\u2019s no-no list anyway. It is amazing to think of Bobrovsky helping the team he beat in consecutive Cup Finals, though.<\/p>\n
\u2022 What about the Montreal Canadiens? Jakub Dobes gave up six goals to the San Jose Sharks on Tuesday night (the Habs\u2019 defensive coverage was porous, too). I don\u2019t need to tell you how Samuel Montembeault has been this season. It\u2019s a move the Habs have resisted all year. They really, really haven\u2019t wanted to look at the goalie trade market, but I wonder if Tuesday night was a tipping point. What I would say is that if \u2014 and I still think it\u2019s a long shot \u2014 the Canadiens decided to trade for a goalie before Friday\u2019s deadline, it likely wouldn\u2019t be for a rental. In that scenario, Binnington (signed through next season) would actually make more sense.<\/p>\n
\u2022 Here\u2019s one from left field: the Buffalo Sabres? There\u2019s zero reason to worry about goaltending with the Sabres this season. Alex Lyon\u2019s .915 save percentage is top five in the NHL, and Ukko-Pekka Luukonen\u2019s .908 is top 20. But I will just point out the long history Sabres general manager Jarmo Kek\u00e4l\u00e4inen has with Bobrovsky from their Columbus days.<\/p>\n
All things being equal, Vegas and Carolina make the most sense if Bobrovsky moves.<\/p>\n
And finally, one has to point out that, yes, the Cup champions look tired, but Bobrovsky is part of that. His .873 save percentage is the worst of his NHL career. It\u2019s the first time he\u2019s dipped under .900 since his second year in the NHL, with the Flyers in 2011-12. But given what we all witnessed from Bob the past three years in the playoffs, it\u2019s hard not to be enticed if you\u2019re a playoff-bound team needing help in goal. Could he bottle up that magic for two months?<\/p>\n
Myers\u2019 patience pays off<\/p>\n
Outstanding work by Dallas Stars GM Jim Nill in the Tyler Myers trade. Getting him at a 50 percent discount, his salary going from $3 million to $1.5 million through the rest of his contract next season, was the key to that deal finally going down.<\/p>\n
The Stars at first were reticent to trade for Myers because every cent matters after this season, in terms of re-signing Jason Robertson and Thomas Harley\u2019s new extension kicking in (going from $4 million per year to $10.587 million). With Myers going from a $3 million player to a $1.5 million player, that\u2019s a different ball game.<\/p>\n
Veteran agent J.P. Barry deserves props, too. He showed patience after the Canucks came to him and Myers with the original trade offer from the Detroit Red Wings last week, wanting to see if the market would produce more teams. That patience paid off.<\/p>\n
Myers had to waive his no-movement clause for the deal.<\/p>\n
Latest on Sabres-Blues<\/p>\n
Some fascinating Wednesday morning news from TSN colleague Darren Dreger, who updated the Robert Thomas situation to say the Sabres had pushed all they could but weren\u2019t comfortable meeting the package price point the Blues needed.<\/p>\n
Per Dreger, the Sabres and Blues are now focused more on a deal involving a defenseman, whether that\u2019s Colton Parayko (full no-trade clause) or Justin Faulk (15-team no-trade list). Either would address Buffalo\u2019s real need. So stay tuned on that one. Parayko would be a real beauty of an add for Buffalo.<\/p>\n
Teams in on Thomas<\/p>\n
Where does it leave the Thomas situation? Does St. Louis finally lower its ask, which has been very high? (As I\u2019ve said before, I don\u2019t blame them for that. He\u2019s a 26-year-old No. 1 center.)<\/p>\n
The Utah Mammoth could circle back, and I think they will.<\/p>\n
The Canadiens have been unwilling to part with a top prospect like Michael Hage as part of a multi-asset return. But I would suspect they would also want to stay in that dialogue, at least just to see if the asking price changes.<\/p>\n
I think teams like the Seattle Kraken, the Boston Bruins and the Red Wings all very much love Thomas, but not at the original asking price.<\/p>\n
And keep in mind one final thing on the Thomas front: Even if\/when the Blues find a suitable trade, because of the full no-trade clause, they would have to go to Thomas and his camp, led by agent Craig Oster, and present it to them. At which point, I would surmise that Thomas would need some time to mull it over and decide what he wants to do (see: Tyler Myers). So there\u2019s that to factor in all of this as well.<\/p>\n
And again, there\u2019s no guarantee Thomas moves at all. The Blues can choose to revisit this in the offseason.<\/p>\n
Habs after Kadri?<\/p>\n
My sense is the Habs will continue to keep tabs on the Nazem Kadri situation, and it wouldn\u2019t surprise me if Montreal has at least checked in on the Vincent Trocheck situation as well. Again, I don\u2019t think the Habs will force anything before the deadline \u2014 they are trying to be very patient \u2014 but if trading for a top-six forward makes sense at a price point they\u2019re comfortable with, they will look at it.<\/p>\n
I still think the Colorado Avalanche make the most sense for Kadri, but I think the Avs would need Calgary to retain on Kadri\u2019s remaining contract (three more years after this season at a $7 million average annual value). In fact, I would imagine any team thinking of trading for Kadri would want that from the Flames, and I\u2019m not sure where Calgary would land on being willing to do that.<\/p>\n
Devils listening on Nemec<\/p>\n
The New Jersey Devils, per league sources, are listening on 22-year-old defenseman Simon Nemec, the No. 2 pick from the 2022 NHL draft. That doesn\u2019t mean they\u2019re intent on moving him. But my understanding is that they\u2019ve taken quite a few calls on him, as one would expect when a young, right-shot defenseman like that is on the market.<\/p>\n
My sense is the Devils would only seriously consider moving him if it\u2019s a trade that upgrades their forward group in a real way. But to say the least, that\u2019s a very intriguing name to monitor.<\/p>\n
Canucks-Garland<\/p>\n
The phone lines suddenly burned up Tuesday for the Vancouver Canucks on Connor Garland, with a half-dozen teams showing interest, but as of Wednesday at 11:30 a.m. ET, my understanding is that the Canucks still hadn\u2019t gotten a firm trade offer.<\/p>\n
That may be coming, given the interest in Garland, whose six-year, $36 million contract extension doesn\u2019t kick in until next season and whose no-move clause kicks in July 1 (no-move for three years).<\/p>\n
It makes sense for the rebuilding Canucks to move him before Friday\u2019s deadline if the offers are legit. But I think it\u2019s more likely they move him in June.<\/p>\n
Teams to watch on Garland: the Washington Capitals, the Bruins, the New York Islanders and the Devils, among others.<\/p>\n
Sherwood extension likely<\/p>\n
All signs point to Kiefer Sherwood signing an extension in the next day or two rather than getting dealt by the Sharks ahead of the deadline.<\/p>\n
There has been serious progress in negotiations on a multi-year deal between Sherwood and the team, per league sources. That was always the best outcome for everyone involved after the Sharks acquired the pending UFA on Jan. 19. He\u2019s a great fit in San Jose.<\/p>\n