Florida Keeping Busy

 It’s been a few months since we really got any updates on deals out of Florida. Since November the Panthers have added; Brayden Schenn, Quinton Howden, Brian Boyle and retained their 1^st and Chris Kreider.   But it’s been the last few weeks where we’ve seen the most movement from the Panthers.

 General Manager Dylan Wilson decided that he wasn’t happy with the team and that any success this year wouldn’t be sustainable. So he went off and traded the likes of Steve Sullivan, Tim Brent, Jerred Smithson and Owen Nolan for picks, prospect Jakob Silfverberg and Brian Boyle.  “We feel we that we could have made the playoffs this year but we just didn’t feel we could keep the strength of that and be a continuous contender as most of the key parts were veterans on 1 year deals or guys we just didn’t see as long term players here. The deals we’ve made allow us to keep the cupboard stocked but also giving us really good players that can make us a contender very soon.”  

 One deal saw the team trade Michael Del Zotto and Jack Skille to Phoenix for a pair of Swedish defensemen Oliver Ekman-Larsson and David Rundblad.  The deal was shocking none the less as it was well known that Dylan was very high on MDZ. “We didn’t want to deal Michael but this deal really helped shape the future of our D. OEL is an extremely talented defenseman who we have been very high on for a long time and to bring him into the fold was something we just couldn’t pass on. And to add Rundblad was a big bonus, he is having a great year in Sweden and we expect to see him in NA next year. To add both these talented D to a crop that already includes Luke Schenn, Alex Pietrangelo and Cam Fowler. We feel really set at this position.”

The Panthers then went on to make a pair of deals with the Flames, one a cap move that saw the team trade young Swedes, Alexander Fallstrom and Viktor Stalberg in return for Brian Rolston and another Swedish player in Jacob Josefson. “We really liked the players we dealt but Rolston can give us some veteran presence on a team that really needs it and to get a prospect in Josefson nature was great compensation. We are really high on him and feel that his defensive capabilities at centre are a huge plus but he also has a good offensive streak to him and that was great to pick up.”

 The next deal with the Flames came 2 weeks later, and probably one of the most monumental deals Dylan has ever made as GM of the Panthers.  The team dealt top prospect Tyler Seguin, along with top goalie prospect Jhonas Enroth plus 3 other prospects for top line centre Ryan Getzlaf and goalie Alec Richards. “We had really high hopes for Seguin and it was very tough to move him along with Enroth but to get a centre in Getzlaf’s caliber was just too hard to pass up. To have him, Duchene and Grabovski as our three centres’ we feel very set at this position and give us a very dynamic core.  We feel pretty set with the team we have going forward and are not really looking to makes any more moves for the time being. “

With the news, David Backes has relinquished his temporary captaincy and Ryan Getzlaf has been named the permanent captain of the Florida Panthers, while Backes and Schenn serve as the assistants.

Expect the Panthers to remain the status quo for now until the deadline approaches.