The Stanley Cup favorites are locked and loaded.
Happening for the second consecutive campaign, superstar right wing Vladimir Tarasenko has been shipped off just prior to the NHL trade deadline. Except this time, he’s landed with the top team in the league: The Florida Panthers.
Before the deadline last season, Tarasenko was traded from the St. Louis Blues to the New York Rangers, but things didn’t go as planned. As a result, he ended up signing with the Ottawa Senators when free agency hit, and though the Senators were on the right track, it was clear that Tarasenko wasn’t a part of their future. (RELATED: Iditarod Race Gets Off To A Great Start After Musher Is Forced To Shoot And Kill A Moose)
For the 32-year-old, the Panthers sent over to Ottawa two draft picks — one being a third-rounder and the other being in the fourth, with that one being conditional. And to make this deal even sweeter for the Cats, and having them as the clear winner of this trade, the Senators will still be paying 50% of Tarasenko’s salary.
Just an absolutely masterful trade by a franchise that already had a wide path to the Stanley Cup.
Our newest Panther 👀 pic.twitter.com/crPcSuk06p
— Florida Panthers (@FlaPanthers) March 6, 2024
Wow … what a glorious moment to be a Florida Panthers fan.
What makes this whole thing sweeter is that Tarasenko clearly wanted to be a Panther, and that’s because of all the power that he had throughout this process because of him only being on a one-year deal and having a no-trade clause. And to get that kind of love from a guy who will clip the 50-point mark this season and already has a championship ring?
Yeah, it feels pretty damn good … GO CATS!