Funny, no one really heard about the tax advantage that the Florida Panthers supposedly have when they plucked Gustav Forsling off waivers five years ago because nobody else wanted him.

Or how they offered Carter Verhaeghe a two-year deal worth $2 million back in 2020 when Tampa Bay didn't even give him a qualifying offer.

And what exactly does the fact that Florida has no state tax have to do with GM Bill Zito's ability to execute swing-for-the-fences trades for the likes of Matthew Tkachuk, Sam Reinhart, Seth Jones and Brad Marchand?

Nothing. That's what.

The Panthers are where they are because they are well-run by one of the smartest men in hockey.

Is the no-tax aspect an advantage? Yes.

But is it unfair? That's negligible.

After all, Tennessee and Washington are also no-tax states and it hasn't exactly made the Nashville Predators or the Seattle Kraken juggernauts. Neither did it do so for the Panthers a decade ago when they were awful and nobody wanted to play there.

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