Florida Panthers trade James Reimer to Carolina Hurricanes
According to TSN’s Bob McKenzie, the Florida Panthers have traded goaltender James Reimer to the Carolina Hurricanes.
For the past few weeks, the Florida Panthers have been trying to trade goaltender James Reimer. They were going to buy him out, but they have found a suitor – the Carolina Hurricanes. According to Bob McKenzie, the Panthers are trading Reimer to the Hurricanes.
The return is a bit interesting. According to Elliotte Friedman, Scott Darling is a part of the return. The Panthers are expected to buy him out. Florida is also getting a sixth-round pick out of the deal.
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Carolina gets another goalie out of this deal. It seems they’ll gamble with Reimer and hope he can bounce back from a rough season.
For what it’s worth, it appears the Hurricanes will have a goaltending tandem next season. Reimer has had success in a tandem role, so that’s a bit encouraging. Still, it’s a fairly expensive bet to make.
Last season, Reimer had 36 appearances, including 29 starts. He had a save percentage of .900. Reimer’s save percentage has dropped in each of the last two seasons, which is a little bit concerning.
For the Panthers, it’s not hard to figure out what this move is all about – cap space. The Darling buyout, according to Frank Seravalli of TSN, looks like this.
Savings
- $2.17 million in 2019-20
- $1.07 million in 2020-21
Cost
- $1.18 million in 2021-22
- $1.18 million in 2022-23
The Panthers need cap space because they are reportedly trying to sign both Artemi Panarin and Roberto Luongo. After buying out Darling, Florida should have over $25 million of cap space. That’s probably enough to get Panarin and Bobrovsky locked up.
However, the New York Islanders appear to be trying to sign both as well. The Panthers could view Robin Lehner as a backup plan in goal. But regardless, Florida is in a good position to get either Bobrovsky or Lehner, the two best goaltenders on the open market.
Even if they don’t land Panarin, they’re in a good position to add some talent to their roster. It will be interesting to see what their Plan B is in case they don’t’ land both Bobrovsky and Panarin. One can assume Lehner is the Plan B in goal, but what else would the Panthers add?
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The Hurricanes now have $22.698 million of cap space with 15 of their players signed. Their focus is on re-signing Sebastian Aho, who had a breakout season. He should command at least $8 million a year on a long-term deal.