NHL Trade Deadline: Florida Panthers Smart to Show Interest in Rantanen

SUNRISE — Florida Panthers general manager Bill Zito has been extremely busy leading into today’s NHL Trade Deadline, including being linked to the biggest player available in Mikko Rantanen.

Early Friday morning, reports surfaced that Carolina was sending the former Colorado Avalanche winger to the Dallas Stars.

Regardless of where Rantonen may end up — we say may, because the Hurricanes could just end up keeping him, even as a rental — this deal will be a monster.

Rantanen, of course, was already traded once this season when Carolina got Rantanen from Colorado and Taylor Hall from Chicago; the Hurricanes sent Martin Necas and Jack Drury to Colorado along with a pair of draft picks.

Chicago got a third-round pick for retaining 50 percent of Rantanen’s $9.25 million cap hit.

But, with the Hurricanes unable to extend Rantanen to a new deal, he is back on the market.

That easily makes him the biggest name available.

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Speaking on TSN 1050 Thursday, Pierre LeBrun said the Hurricanes were talking to a couple of teams about Rantanen — specifically the Panthers, Vegas Golden Knights, Stars, and Los Angeles Kings.

How Zito could have pulled this thing off remains a mystery.

And, it appears it was just more gasoline on the draft deadline fire.

The Panthers would not have traded for Rantanen without a contract extension in place, and Dallas is currently talking working with Rantanen on an extension.

The Hurricanes reportedly offered Rantonen an eight-year deal worth over $100 million.

As long as Rantonen signs with his new team before July 1, he can get the maximum eight-year contract which means a sign-and-trade is not needed.

But, in a deal this big, it would be best to have that deal in place now.

Some wondered how the Panthers would have done a move due to salary cap space. That would not be a problem, at least right now.

The Panthers technically do not have enough cap space to fit Rantanen in — they are at $4.1 million per PuckPedia.com, and Rantanen’s new number thanks to Chicago’s retention is $4.625 — but that is a problem that would naturally work itself out.

Carolina could simply retain a little money to make things work; a third team (see: Chicago) could also help by retaining even more of Rantanen’s salary.

Without much draft capital, the Panthers would likely send some pretty good players (and their salaries) to Carolina which would cancel each other out and make the money work.

So that part is not a concern.

What is a problem is what the Panthers would have to send to the Hurricanes.

Carolina, like the Panthers, are a contender in the Eastern Conference. The Hurricanes lost to Florida in the 2023 conference finals, and intend to make another run this year.

So, the Hurricanes probably are not interested in a cache of draft picks, of which the Panthers do not have anyway.

Sam Bennett and Aaron Ekblad are names fans have been throwing out as potential returns for the Hurricanes.

A problem with that: Those two are not only very important pieces whom the Panthers want to keep, but they are pending free agents as well.

Carolina would just be putting itself in the same predicament it is already in with Rantanen.

How about Carter Verhaeghe? He has a new eight-year deal kicking in next season, but he also has a full no-movement clause. Thinking Verhaeghe would nix a move to North Carolina even if the Panthers were offering him up.

Rantonen is one of the top players in the NHL and Florida would have to give up a lot.

Right now, they just don’t have the goods to give.

This season, Rantonen has 27 goals and 70 points in 62 games — although only six of those points (off two goals) have come in the 13 games with the Hurricanes.

In 81 playoff games with the Avs, Rantonen had 34 goals and 101 points — including a team-high 25 points in Colorado’s run to the Stanley Cup in 2022.

Another question the Panthers had to be asking was where would Rantonen line up?

He is a left-handed shot who plays on the right side — where Sam Reinhart and, upon his return, Matthew Tkachuk play.

In the end, you figure that out. If you have a Mikko Rantanen, you will find a place for him to play.

Which is why the Panthers had interest in Rantonen. He would be a bear of a player anywhere he ends up, but on a team like the Panthers, watch out.

They just do not have the pieces to make it work.

The Panthers also like what they have.

As much fun as it would be to see Rantonen playing with Sasha Barkov and killing it on the power play, perhaps the high cost would simply affect what Florida has built not just for now, but for years down the road.

This is not fantasy hockey. The Panthers are a close-knit bunch who all mesh well together. You do not want to mess up what they’ve got.

If and when Rantonen ends up in Dallas, watch out for the Stars.

Dallas has been knocked out in the Western Conference finals the past two years and need to make a deal like this work.

Do the Panthers?

They seem to be doing just fine.

Florida goes into Deadline Day with some money left under the cap and will make some more deals before 3 p.m.

It just won’t be this one.

Maybe.

ON DECK: GAME No. 64

BUFFALO SABRES at FLORIDA PANTHERS

• When: Saturday, 6 p.m.
• Where: Amerant Bank Arena, Sunrise
• Local TV: Scripps Sports — WSFL 39 (Miami/FTL); WPTV 5/WHDT 9 (WPB); LAFF 36.3 (SWFla)
• Streaming: Panthers+; ESPN+
• Radio: WPOW 96.5-FM2; WBZT 1230-AM (Palm Beach); WCTH 100.3-FM (Florida Keys); SiriusXM
• Panthers Radio Streaming: SiriusXM 932, NHL App
• Last Season: Panthers Won 3-0
• This Season (Tied 1-1) — At Buffalo: Sabres 5, Panthers 2 (Oct. 12); Panthers 5, Sabres 2 (Oct. 28). At Florida: Saturday; April 12.
• All-time Regular Season Series: Florida leads 58-46-8, 4 ties
• Up Next for the Panthers: Tuesday at Boston Bruins, 7 p.m.