4 of the Best Trades in Florida Panthers History

The Florida Panthers have made plenty of trades over the years as part of efforts to improve their roster. An expansion franchise in 1993-94, the Panthers made 16 trades alone during their first season in the National Hockey League (NHL). While the team has lost several transactions, notably sending goaltender Roberto Luongo to the Vancouver Canucks for Todd Bertuzzi and two other players, it has also been on the winning end of many trades.  

Below is a look at four of the best trades in Panthers history. 

Matthew Tkachuk for Jonathan Huberdeau 

Arguably the Panthers’ best trade in terms of immediate impact, the team acquired forward Matthew Tkachuk from the Calgary Flames on July 22, 2022 for Jonathan Huberdeau, MacKenzie Weegar, Cole Schwindt, and a lottery protected 2025 first-round draft pick. Tkachuk, a 24-year-old budding star with impressive offensive instincts, was an All-Star for the first time in 2021-22, recording a career-high 104 points (42 goals, 62 assists) in 82 regular season games. He had one year left on his contract, but reportedly told the Flames in the summer he didn't intend on re-signing with the team. Subsequently, he signed an eight-year contract with the Panthers for an average annual value of $9.5 million. 

Tkachuk improved upon his career year in 2022-23, recording 109 points (40 goals, 69 assists) in his first season with Florida. He was named an All-Star for the second consecutive season and finished third in Hart Trophy voting. He helped the Panthers enter the playoffs as the eighth seed and upset the Boston Bruins in the first round before leading the team to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 1996. Tkachuk had 11 goals and 13 assists in 20 playoff games. 

Panthers win trade with Islanders 

There's no denying the Panthers won their June 2000 trade with the New York Islanders. Florida traded Oleg Kvasha and Mark Parrish, both serviceable forwards, to the Islanders for young and unproven players Olli Jokinen and Luongo. Kvasha and Parrish both played more than four seasons in New York. Kvasha scored a career-best 15 goals with the Islanders in 2003-04 and Parrish scored 30 goals in 2001-02, but neither player was as impactful as Jokinen and Lunongo in Florida. 

Jokinen, who was just 21 with one season of experience before the trade, recorded 419 points (188 goals, 231 assists) in seven seasons with the Panthers and served as the team's captain from 2003 to 2008. He was the franchise leader in goals and points but has since been passed by Huberdeau and Aleksander Barkov.  

Similarly, Luongo had played just 24 NHL games before joining the Panthers. He played 317 regular season games during his first of two stints in Florida, recording a .920 save percentage and 2.67 goals against average (GAA). He was a finalist for the Vezina Trophy in 2003-04 and is the franchise's all-time leader in wins (230), saves (16,086), and shutouts (38). He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2022. 

This trade is arguably the worst of many disastrous deals made by former Islanders general manager Mike Milbury. He also traded Zdeno Chara and a draft pick that became Jason Spezza to the Ottawa Senators for Alexei Yashin.  

Re-Acquiring Roberto Luongo 

While the Luongo-Bertuzzi swap is among the Panthers worst all-time trades, Florida won another trade involving the Hall of Fame goaltender prior to the 2013-14 trade deadline. Florida traded goalie prospect Jacob Markstrom and center Shawn Matthias to the Canucks in exchange for Luongo and forward Steven Anthony. Luongo, 34 years old at the time, played 255 more games with the Panthers after the trade and recorded a 2.57 GAA and .918 save percentage. He retired as a Panther following the 2018-19 season. 

Matthias produced 34 points in 96 games with the Canucks. Markstrom spent seven seasons in Vancouver, posting a 99-93-27 record with a 2.73 GAA and .913 save percentage.  

Acquiring the Russian Rocket 

Although he didn't stay with the team long enough to be among its franchise leaders, Pavel Bure is easily one of the most talented forwards to play for the team. The "Russian Rocket," acquired from the Canucks on January 17, 1999 along with Brad Ference, Bret Hedican, and a third-round draft pick, was an All-Star and won the Rocket Richard Trophy as the league's top goal scorer in his only two full seasons in Florida. He had 251 points (152 goals, 99 assists) in 223 career regular season games with the team. 

Hedican and Ference were quality defensemen for several years in Florida. In exchange for those players, the Panthers gave Vancouver Ed Jovanovski, Mike Brown, Dave Gagner, and Kevin Weekes. Jovanovski had a solid stint in Vancouver, recording 234 points in six-plus seasons. He later returned to Florida to play three more seasons before the team bought out his contract following the 2013-14 season.