It's wild to think about considering their salary cap space and already moving mountains to acquire Brady Tkachuk earlier in the off-season. But could the Florida Panthers find a way to acquire Winnipeg Jets superstar Connor Hellebuyck?
With Connor Hellebuyck officially on the trade market after publicly requesting a trade from the Winnipeg Jets, several NHL teams will try to put together their best offer for GM Kevin Cheveldayoff.
As wild as it may sound, could the Florida Panthers be one of those teams that have a real shot at acquiring the former Hart Trophy and three-time Vezina Trophy winner?
First and foremost, Hellebuyck has a no-move clause in his contract. So while he's asked to be traded, and no matter how open he may be to waiving his clause for many different teams, the fact is he has the final say.
Recent history would suggest that players who do have trade protection in the process of a trade seem to have the Panthers as a destination they would agree to. Brady Tkachuk's deal from the Ottawa Senators is proof of that, and Dylan Larkin, including the Panthers on his short list of teams he'd be willing to go to, is another indication.
Now, whether Hellebuyck is interested in moving to Florida or not, GM Bill Zito would need to clear an abundance of salary to make that move possible. The Panthers have less than $35,000 in cap space, and many players on the payroll aren't moveable. Eleven skaters on the roster have full no-movement clauses going into this coming season.
While that's a large number that limits Zito's activity, there still are a few others that can be expended. Some of those names include center Anton Lundell, left winger Eetu Luostarinen and goaltender Jacob Markstrom.
Lundell has no trade protection for the four years remaining on his contract. He costs $5 million against the cap and could certainly notch 20 goals and 50 points in an elevated role.
Luostarinen, earning $3 million against the cap this year, doesn't have a trade-protection clause in his contract for this coming season. He will have a no-move clause on his next deal, which is an eight-year, $5 million-per-season contract beginning in 2027-28. Nonetheless, he is eligible to be supplied in a trade to the Jets for Hellebuyck before that new deal kicks in.
As for Markstrom, he was acquired by the Panthers just before the opening day of free agency to replace Sergei Bobrovsky. Markstrom has a 20-team no-trade list, which would make it difficult to send him to Winnipeg, assuming the Jets are one of these teams he wouldn't be interested in joining.
There's also goaltender Akira Schmid, who carries a $2-million cap hit for the Panthers, and he has no clauses to stop a trade from happening.
Ultimately, if Zito and the Panthers wanted to add Hellebuyck to an already stacked roster that should be competing for the Stanley Cup next season, it would take some serious creative thinking.
Lundell and Luostarinen would certainly have to be sacrifices in that situation. Those two forwards alone would create $8 million in cap space, which is $500,000 short of Hellebuyck's $8.5 million annual salary. Add Schmid, who is still 26 years old, to the potential haul, and that would make the Panthers cap-compliant.
From the perspective of the Jets, they would receive two quality middle-six forwards, giving them a pretty strong top-nine forward group. Not to mention, the loss of Hellebuyck could be revived by a Stuart Skinner and Schmid goalie tandem.
It's not the prettiest picture for either club, but Florida would be able to truly round out a super team, while Winnipeg would grant Hellebuyck's wish while still getting a respectable return for players that can push them into the playoffs for 2026-27.
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