The Florida Panthers acquired veteran winger Thomas Vanek from the Detroit Red Wings in a deal before the trade deadline, reports Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. The Red Wings will receive defenseman Dylan McIlrath and a third-round pick, per TSN’s Bob McKenzie.
Thomas Vanek reportedly traded to Florida Panthers
Florida adds some scoring punch for the playoff push.
Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports
The third-round pick heading to Detroit will be Florida’s unless the Panthers make the playoffs, in which case they will send Arizona’s third-rounder instead. The Wings are retaining 50 percent of Vanek’s salary.
Vanek’s addition helps shore up the Panthers’ secondary scoring as they look to make a playoff push in the final weeks of the season. He was considered one of the top forwards on a thin market, and comes at a surprisingly affordable price given what rental players like Martin Hanzal and Kevin Shattenkirk fetched in trades.
Like those players, Vanek is on an expiring contract that will see him hit unrestricted free agency in the summer. His current one-year deal, which he signed last offseason, carries a $2.6 million cap hit.
In 48 games with the Red Wings this season, Vanek recorded a team-leading 15 goals and 23 assists. Only Henrik Zetterberg has more points among Detroit players this season, so they’re going to be searching for offense elsewhere now that Vanek is shipped out.
Vanek’s scoring ability will be immediately welcomed in Florida, where the Panthers are currently 22nd in the league in goals per game. He could potentially push Jussi Jokinen, who has just 22 points in 52 games this season, into a smaller role, and solidify a strong top six with Jonathan Huberdeau, Aleksander Barkov, Jaromir Jagr, Vincent Trocheck, and Reilly Smith.
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