Panthers Acquire Hagg from Sabres

The Florida Panthers continued their busy trade deadline, acquiring Robert Hagg from the Buffalo Sabres for a sixth-round pick.

The Florida Panthers just won't stop loading up ahead of Monday's trade deadline. 

The Panthers continued their massive weekend on the trade market on Sunday, acquiring defenseman Robert Hagg from the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for a sixth-round pick in the 2022 NHL Entry Draft. 

In order to make this move possible from a cap perspective, the Panthers placed star defender Aaron Ekblad on Long-Term Injured Reserve on Sunday morning, sidelining Ekblad for at least the next 10 games. 

After paying a heavy price to acquire Ben Chiarot from the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday, the Panthers seemingly felt as if there is no such thing as too much defensive depth, with Hagg projecting to land on the fringe of their lineup heading into the playoffs. 

Still, the 27-year-old has some value to bring, having been a key piece in the trade that sent Rasmus Ristolainen to the Philadelphia Flyers over the summer, and proceeding to log around 17 minutes per night in his 48 games with the Sabres this season. 

With Ekblad on the shelf, Hagg can provide NHL quality minutes until the former is ready to return. And for the price of just a sixth-round pick, that's not too steep at all. 

As for the Sabres, GM Kevyn Adams did well to recoup some sort of value for a player that almost certainly did not factor into the future of the team. With Hagg set to become an unrestricted free agent at year's end, a sixth-round pick is better than letting him walk for free. 

Buckle up. The trade market is beginning to reach a fever pitch.