Tallon, Panthers decide to stand pat
Team retains prospects as deals fail to materialize
SUNRISE — The Florida Panthers have their team and they are sticking with it, passing up deals including their top prospects on a trade deadline day that general manager Dale Tallon called “frustrating.”
Despite entering the playoff picture by winning nine of 12 games since the All-Star break, the Panthers did not make a move. Entering Monday, reports suggested the Panthers were interested in big names like Rangers defenseman Ryan McDonagh and Canadiens forward Max Pacioretty.
But the team and Tallon stood pat, with last week’s acquisition of Frank Vatrano from Boston for a thirdround pick as the lone transaction leading into the deadline. Tallon cited the high costs on the trade market in explaining the reasoning behind not making a move.
“We gave it our best shot on a couple deals,” Tallon said. “Obviously, it takes two to tango. We made some legitimately strong, solid offers and, at the last minute, we just were not able to get it done. Frustrating, but we protected a lot of our good young assets. A lot of the teams wanted our top players and we weren’t willing to do that but we were close on a couple of really good deals.”
Among those assets is Henrik Borgstrom, the University of Denver center that doubles as the Panthers’ top prospect. The 2016 first-round pick likely joins the Panthers next season and currently leads his team with 41 points on 18 goals and 23 assists.
“Everybody’s high on him,” Tallon said. “We’re higher on him. He’s the real deal and