The Florida Panthers are the reigning back-to-back Stanley Cup champions, but Florida has a major hole in the lineup entering the season.
Matthew Tkachuk had to undergo surgery this offseason, and he’s expected to miss a few months. With that, Heavy.com has a trade idea that sees the Panthers acquiring Ondrej Palat from the New Jersey Devils.
Panthers acquire:
- Ondrej Palat ($2 million retained)
- 2026 third-round pick
Devils acquire:
The proposed deal would be an intriguing one as Florida would acquire Palat, with $2 million retained to make him a $4 million player and a third-round pick for taking on his contract. New Jersey, meanwhile, gets Rodrigues, whose name has come up in trade rumors.
Florida would acquire Palat, who’s entering the fourth year of a five-year, $30 million deal. Palat could replace Tkachuk for a couple of months and then be a third-line scoring winger. He also has plenty of playoff experience as he helped the Tampa Bay Lightning win back-to-back Cups in 2020 and 2021. Palat recorded 15 goals and 13 assists for 28 points in 77 games. But, his career-high is 23 goals, as he should be good for 15-20 goals with the Panthers.
The Panthers can also use the third-round pick as a trade chip at the deadline.
In return, New Jersey would acquire Rodrigues, who’s entering the third year of his four-year, $12 million deal. He would be a useful middle-six player for New Jersey, whose role with the Panthers has been diminished, and his name has come up in trade rumors. Rodrigues recorded 15 goals and 17 assists for 32 points in 82 games.
Tkachuk to Miss Start of Panthers Season
Tkachuk will miss the start of the Panthers’ season after undergoing surgery.
ESPN reported on August 24 that Tkachuk underwent surgery and is expected to be sidelined for a couple of months. Tkachuk did say earlier this offseason he would expect to miss ‘the first two or maybe three months’ if he did undergo the surgery.
Tkachuk battled injuries throughout the playoffs. After the Panthers won the Stanley Cup, he credited the trainers for getting him healthy enough to play.
“I wouldn’t be here without the trainers and the doctors and those people, and that’s what makes this Cup more special for me is how hard it was just to be out there and to get to the point of playing,” Tkachuk said. “I owe those guys. This Cup is because of them for me, and I’m so lucky.”
Tkachuk had a torn adductor muscle and a sports hernia injury on the same side.
Rodrigues’ Name has Come up in Trade Rumors
After Florida won the Stanley Cup again and Rodrigues’ name has come up in trade rumors.
NHL insider David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period named Rodrigues as a trade chip entering the offseason.
“Rodrigues might be a casualty of Florida’s salary cap situation. He has two years remaining on his contract and is an attractive asset for another Cup contender if the Panthers opt to move him. Teams reportedly linked: Toronto, Chicago, Detroit, Minnesota,” Pagnotta wrote.
Rodrigues has spent the last two years with the Panthers.
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