Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
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
we’re excited about having him in our system. We’ll be a better team with him in the lineup long-term. There was a lot of requests about him and we were reluctant to do anything.”
By not making a deal, the Panthers also held on to prospects in juniors like Owen Tippett, Aleksi Heponiemi, Adam Mascherin and Jonathan Ang. Tallon said he Panthers were “unwilling to give up our top prospects, that’s the bottom line.”
The Panthers also held on to any draft picks. In the week leading into the trade deadline, seven first-round picks were swapped, including deals that featured players like Evander Kane, Tomas Tatar, Paul Stastny and Ryan Hartman. Any major trade that would have included the Panthers likely would have sent a first-round pick away from Sunrise.
“I don’t like giving up first-round picks,” Tallon said. “I like drafting.”
Since the All-Star break, the Panthers have been one of the league’s best teams, chipping away at a 12-point deficit in the standings to push their way into postseason contention. Entering Monday, Florida was five points back of Columbus with three games in hand.
Tallon said the hot streak placed Florida in the buyers category, even if the club couldn’t swing a deal.
As the Panthers stood pat, the Blue Jackets made a series of moves. They acquired Mark Letestu on Sunday from Nashville (via Edmonton). On Monday, the Blue Jackets picked up defenseman Ian Cole from Ottawa and forward Thomas Vanek from Vancouver.
Other teams in the Atlantic Division made moves. Tampa Bay landed McDonagh in a trade that also gave the Lightning J.T. Miller for five pieces, including top-line forward Vladislav Namestnikov. Toronto traded for Tomas Plakanec. Boston got Rick Nash.
Before the deadline, Panthers coach Bob Boughner said “you got your eye out and seeing who’s doing what.” Tallon said other moves did not impact the club.
“We don’t do deals based on what other teams do,” Tallon said. “We do deals based on what’s best for the Florida Panthers. That’s how we operate.”
But Florida’s holes remain the same as they push towards the playoffs.
Their forward depth grew thinner with news that Denis Malgin is weekto-week with a lower-body injury. Their defense gives up the second-most shots on goal in the league and is on pace to allow the most goals in franchise history.
“We have a good young team and we didn’t disrupt it and we didn’t give up our top assets moving forward,” Tallon said. “All in all, we’re in good shape. I like the position with games in hand and a chance to make the playoffs with this young team. We’ve maintained and kept all the top prospects in our system.”