The Florida Panthers are at it again.
Just moments after acquiring Jiri Hudler from the Calgary Flames, they have landed another desirable rental.
The Panthers have sent a third-round pick in 2016 to the Edmonton Oilers for Teddy Purcell, and they’ve also acquired defenseman Jakub Kindl from the Detroit Red Wings for a sixth-round pick in 2017.
Like Hudler, Purcell is in the final year of his contract.
Both forwards will slide into top-nine roles with the Panthers right away.
Purcell has shown that he’s a player who can produce between 35-45 points at this stage in his career.
Acquiring him for a third-round pick is a low-risk move. If he doesn’t work out in Florida, the Panthers can just let him walk at the end of the year.
Edmonton seems to be in continuous rebuild mode and this trade certainly doesn’t change that.
They probably weren’t going to bring back Purcell next season, so the fact that they were able to acquire a solid pick makes this move worth it for them.
Florida has also added Jakub Kindl from the Detroit Red Wings for a sixth-round pick.
The Wings had put Kindl of waivers multiple times this year, but they couldn’t find a taker for his services.
If everyone on Florida’s back-end is healthy, there probably isn’t a spot for Kindl. He’s more of a depth defenseman.
Detroit will retain 15 percent of Kindl’s salary. The 29-year-old has one year remaining on his contract at a cap hit of $2.04 million in 2016-17.