Florida secures exclusive negotiating rights for the towering Swiss netminder, fortifying their crease ahead of free agency to address critical goaltending vacancies following a championship season.
The Florida Panthers completed a trade on Monday evening to add some goaltending depth to their organization, acquiring Akira Schmid from the Vegas Golden Knights in exchange for a third-round pick in the 2028 NHL Draft.
The trade comes directly after the Golden Knights extended a qualifying offer to the 26 year old goalie earlier in the day.
Schmid will still become a restricted free agent on July 1, but the trade gives Florida his exclusive negotiating rights heading into the opening of the open market on Wednesday.
Panthers' GM Bill Zito had this to say about trading for Schmid:
“Akira is a talented and athletic goaltender who has shown poise in high-pressure moments, we are excited to welcome him to our organization.”
The 6-foot-5 Swiss goalie is coming off a regular season where he made 34 appearances for Vegas, posting a 16-10-6 record along with a 2.59 goals-against average and two shutouts.
With veteran starter Sergei Bobrovsky and backup Daniil Tarasov both set to hit the open market Wednesday. Florida had an immediate need to address its situation in goal. Now, with the addition of Schmid, they at least have a capable starting goalie or a very strong 1B in a tandem.
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