Panthers clear cap space by sending Frank Vatrano to Rangers

The Florida Panthers may be preparing to make a major splash.

Florida has dealt depth winger and pending unrestricted free agent Frank Vatrano to the New York Rangers for a fourth-round draft selection, the teams announced on Wednesday.

The move will clear out just over $2.5 million in salary for Panthers GM Bill Zito, presumably paving the way for a more substantial addition ahead of Monday's trade deadline.

While the deal certainly appears to be more about what the Panthers may have up their sleeve, Vatrano is a useful player in his own right. He'll add another measure of grit to the Rangers, who have made a concerted effort to add functional toughness to their roster under head coach Gerard Gallant.

The 28-year-old Vatrano can also put the puck in the net at a decent rate for a secondary scorer, having notched 93 goals in 379 games for his career, including 10 this season.

As two of the top teams in the Eastern Conference, it's possible that this trade will serve as a storyline of minor importance in a future postseason series, depending in some ways on how the Panthers use their newfound financial freedom. Zito has plenty of levers to potentially pull as he prepares the Panthers for perhaps their most meaningful postseason run since their surprise appearance in the Stanley Cup Final in 1996.

An impact defender might make the most sense, but the team is reasonably equipped at the backend already. It's entirely possible that the Panthers, who lead the league while averaging a historic four-plus goals per game, double down on their strength and bring in one of the few talented scorers believed to be up for grabs in the trade market.

Just 119 teams in history have averaged more than four goals per game over the course of a season, and the last team to accomplish that feat was the 1995-96 Penguins. The Panthers are on the path to being the most explosive team from an offensive standpoint in the salary cap era.

It seems adding another dimension to the offence would further solidify the Panthers as one of the favourites to win the Stanley Cup.

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