Florida PanthersJonathan Huberdeau is traded by the Florida Panthers to Matthew Tkachuk.
Friday night, the Florida Panthers made a big move when they dealt Matthew Tkachuk to the Calgary Flames in exchange for Jonathan Huberdeau and MacKenzie Weegar.
Before travelling to South Florida, Tkachuk consented to an eight-year contract with a $9.5 million yearly cap charge; this is said to be the first sign-and-trade in NHL history.
After finishing with 104 points in a season, the restricted free agent was about to enter arbitration and declined to sign a long-term deal with Calgary.
“Matthew is a tenacious, physical competitor who possesses a tremendously unique skillset,” said Florida general manager Bill Zito in a statement provided by the team.
“He is a consistent elite offensive contributor and has emerged as one of the most complete and dynamic young players in the National Hockey League. We are thrilled to be able to add a generational talent to our lineup.”
Florida was on a list of teams that was believed to have included Dallas, Nashville, St. Louis and Vegas that he was willing to sign an extension with.
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Tomas Nosek said one of the things which led him to the Florida Panthers as a free agent was how they played against his Boston Bruins in the playoffs last year.
Boston had the best regular season in NHL history, took a 3-1 series lead in the first-round of the 2023 playoffs — yet it was the Panthers who won the final three games and moved on to the next round.
“When I was playing in Boston [in 2023], we had not lost two games in a row — and then they beat us three games in a row in the playoffs,’’ Nosek said. “So, I knew they were a special group. And they proved it this year by winning it all. It’s a great group of guys, I can’t wait to join them. I am excited to play with the Panthers organization.
