By The Associated Press (AP) — The back-to-back Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers acquired goaltender Daniil Tarasov from the Columbus Blue Jackets on Thursday, sending a fifth-round draft pick in exchange for Sergei Bobrovsky's new backup and potential future successor.
Tarasov, 26, is a restricted free agent who is 10 years younger than Bobrovsky, who has backstopped the Panthers to consecutive championships. They come from the same Siberian town of Novokuznetsk, and Tarasov's father, Vadim, was Bobrovsky's idol.
The Blue Jackets are getting the 160th pick in this weekend's draft.
“On behalf of the Blue Jackets, I’d like to thank Daniil for his contributions to our organization over the past four years,” Columbus general manager Don Waddell said. “He is an outstanding young man, and we wish he and his family well in the future.”
Filling that spot with Vitek Vanecek expected to depart as an unrestricted free agent, Florida now turns to trying to re-sign some combination of playoff MVP Sam Bennett, trade-deadline pickup Brad Marchand and longtime cornerstone defenseman Aaron Ekblad.
The Panthers made another move later Thursday, trading away forward Justin Sourdif to Washington for a second-round pick in 2026 and a sixth-rounder in 2027.
Sourdif appeared in four regular-season games for the Panthers over the last two seasons and scored a goal in his lone appearance this season — a victory at Nashville on Feb. 25. He spent most of the last three seasons playing for Florida’s AHL affiliate in Charlotte, scoring 35 goals and adding 61 assists in 149 regular-season games there.
Among other moves around the NHL, the Minnesota Wild traded veteran center Freddy Gaudreau to the Seattle Kraken for a fourth-round pick.
Gaudreau, 32, has three years remaining on his contract with an annual average value of $2.1 million. He had 18 goals and 19 assists while playing in all 82 regular-season games in 2024-25 before going without a point in six playoff games for Minnesota.
The pick from the Kraken is the 102nd in the draft and gives the Wild five selections this weekend. They have only one, No. 52 in the second round, in the top 100.
Gaudreau has 152 points in 410 career games over eight NHL seasons, including three with Nashville and one with Pittsburgh.
“Frederick’s a versatile skater who plays a strong two-way game,” Kraken general manager Jason Botterill said. “He gives us depth down the middle and has the ability to produce offensively. He’s a player that can be trusted on the defensive side of the puck, especially on the penalty kill. We’re excited to welcome him to the team.”
These trades come on the heels of Utah acquiring two-time 25-goal scorer JJ Peterka from Buffalo early Thursday for forward Josh Doan and defenseman Michael Kesselring. More action is expected with the first round Friday night and Rounds 2-7 on Saturday.
AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/NHL
FILE - Columbus Blue Jackets goaltender Daniil Tarasov (40) watches the puck against the Carolina Hurricanes during the second period of an NHL hockey game in Raleigh, N.C., on Jan. 23, 2025. (AP Photo/Karl DeBlaker, File)
FILE - Vegas Golden Knights center Brett Howden (21) and Minnesota Wild center Frederick Gaudreau (89) battle for the puck during the first period of Game 5 of a first-round NHL hockey playoff series on April 29, 2025, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/David Becker, File)
