Coming off their 11th straight playoff-less season and a year in which they finished in the Eastern Conference basement, the Florida Panthers signed three players on the first day of NHL free agency. Goalkeeper Jose Theodore, right winger Scottie Upshall and defenseman Ed Jovanoski were all added within a few hours of the period opening.
Florida Panthers Sign Jose Theodore, Scottie Upshall, Ed Jovanovski
Of the three, Upshall is most likely to have the biggest impact. The 27-year-old is coming off a season in which he scored 22 goals and had 34 points for the Columbus Blue Jackets and Phoenix Coyotes. Both totals were career highs, but were a continuation of an upward career trend. Upshall has scored at least 14 goals in each of the past three seasons, although he did post an astonishing -12 +/- in just 21 games with the Blue Jackets after being acquired in a trade-deadline deal. He reportedly signed a four-year, $14 million contract.
Theodore is coming off a season in which he went 15-11 and posted a .916 save percentage with the Minnesota Wild. His save percentage of 2.71 goals against average were significant improvements over his past two seasons. His deal was reported to be two years at $1.5 million per season.
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