Panthers defenseman Brandon Montour speaks after Florida's 3-2 overtime win over Ottawa on Feb. 20. The Florida Panthers are in a unique position as the NHL Trade Deadline approaches. Between the way the team has been playing over the past couple months, leading the NHL with an 18-3-2 record since late December, or the combined health and depth that has been built on the roster, Florida heads toward the deadline in a comfortable spot. Entering play on Tuesday, the Panthers are one point behind Boston for the top spot in the Eastern Conference, with a game in hand, and four points behind Vancouver for best in the league, with two games in hand. The Cats are cruising, but they’re also bruising, famously, or perhaps infamously depending on whether you have to play against them, playing a fast and physical style that can best be described as ‘playoff hockey’. Image [https://thehockeynews.com/.image/c_fit,h_600,w_600/MjAwNjE3OTM2NjIzMjQ4NDky/img_6014.jpg] Gearing up for the postseason is really the only potential move that Florida General Manager Bill Zito has left, but the team already looks great and has limited assets to move. It’s an interesting situation that will play out over the next two week, with the deadline coming on Friday, March 8. On Monday, an interesting piece of information came from Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman on his latest 32 Thoughts podcast [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9OdaR3lOeR4]. According to Friedman, Florida is among several contending teams with potential interest in acquiring Calgary Flames defenseman Noah Hanifin. The 27-year-old former fifth overall pick will be an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season and is expected to test the open market this summer. Hanifin could fetch the Flames a pretty penny from a contending team ahead of the deadline, as Calgary won’t want to lost him for nothing when the season ends. Florida already boasts one of the deepest defensive corps in the league, and the unit has only gotten better and more cohesive as the year has gone by. It’s hard to think that adding a player of Hanifin’s caliber wouldn’t give even a group as good as the Cats’ have been a boost, but whether or not it would be worth the cost is the question. Florida doesn’t have either of its next two first-round picks – one went to Philadelphia for Claude Giroux at the 2022 deadline, one went to Calgary for Matthew Tkachuk that summer – and has a limited, though enticing, prospect pool. So how likely are the Panthers to make a move for Hanifin, and how would he fit in with Florida? THN Florida reached out to a couple experts, NHL insider David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period and Shayna Goldman, analytics and data specialist from The Athletic, to get their takes on what a potential deal would entail and how Hanifin could fit in with Florida. Pagnotta: The Panthers have one thing going for them leading up to the trade deadline: cap space. Among the top contenders, they’re in a good cap spot. What they lack, however, is top-end draft capital. Without a first-round pick until 2026, Florida will have to use its prospects pool to lure a team into sending someone like Noah Hanifin to Sunrise. That will be a difficult task. I do not envision Bill Zito moving someone like Anton Lundell for a rental, either. Unless the Panthers get super creative, adding to the blueline might come in another form. Goldman: As the only true number one caliber defenseman on the market, Noah Hanifin should have a positive impact wherever he lands. He doesn’t dominate in any one particular area of the game, but is all-around solid despite playing a challenging role — he can help retrieve pucks and push play up the ice, and shutdown top competition. Hanifin’s presence in Florida would likely only bolster the top four. He could help share the burden of taking on top opponents, and push someone like Niko Mikkola to a depth role on the third pair. Having that utility in the top four would help Florida when matching up to other contenders with two high-end line combinations. The big question is whether the Panthers need to shoot that high, and if the cost of acquisition would be worth it. But if Florida sees him as a longer-term fit, considering some of their two pending UFA defenders, then it could be worthwhile. Thank you to both Shayna and David for taking some time to provide their expertise and insight for us. With the deadline only a couple short weeks away, it will be very interesting to see how Zito and his staff maneuver the situation. Stay tuned. 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