A team source confirmed the Panthers r trying to trade some unnamed vets to make room for players like Trocheck and Grimaldi. #flapanthers
— Harvey Fialkov (@hfialkov) November 25, 2014
One doesn’t have to be a rocket scientist to figure Fleischmann is at top of list. Perhaps Bergenheim and Kopecky as well. #FlaPanthers
— Harvey Fialkov (@hfialkov) November 25, 2014
No surprise that Florida wants to start going with the kids. New head coach Gerard Gallant is regarded for his work with young players, most recently with Quebec junior league outfit Saint John.
Florida, who’s been bad in recent years and subsequently drafted high, has stockpiled a ton of young talent, with the likes of Grimaldi (33rd overall, ’11), Quinton Howden (25th overall, ’10), Alex Petrovic (36th overall, ’10), Drew Shore (44th overall, ’09) and Connor Brickley (50th overall, ’10) all stuck in AHL San Antonio.
Meanwhile, at the NHL level, the club has a handful of underachieving forwards:
-- Tomas Kopecky, 32, has openly admitted concern about his roster spot and is in the last of a four-year, $12 million deal with a $3M cap hit.
-- Tomas Fleischmann, 30, has been a healthy scratch already this season and is in the last of a four-year, $18 million deal with a $4.5M cap hit.
-- Sean Bergenheim, 30, can’t stay healthy (as mentioned in the above tweet) and -- surprise! -- is in the last of a four-year, $11 million deal with a $2.75M cap hit.
In light of the Sun-Sentinel’s report, one would think 35-year-old Brian Campbell could also be up for grabs. An excellent puck-mover that reportedly asked for a trade this summer, Campbell would be a great addition for a number of teams but could be tough to move; he has two years left on his eight-year $57 million deal that carries a $7.14M cap hit.