Tarasenko scored the game and series-winning goal on Saturday, sending the Panthers to their second straight Cup Final.
At the NHL trade deadline this year, former Ottawa Senator Vladimir Tarasenko was armed with a no-trade clause and wasn't afraid to use it.
There was reportedly just one team he was willing to be traded to: the Florida Panthers. The biggest reason for that was family. Tarasenko's wife and children have made South Florida their full-time home for over a year now.
But the chance at another Stanley Cup ring didn't hurt either.
The Senators traded Tarasenko to Florida for a handful of magic beans and Panther fans are glad they did. His third-period goal against the New York Rangers on Saturday night was the game and series winner, propelling the Panthers into the Stanley Cup Final for a second straight year.
If Tarasenko and the Panthers win the Cup, the Senators would gain a small benefit from it, although they'll have to wait two years for it. It comes down to what they want more: a fourth rounder right now, or a third rounder in two years?
In return for Tarasenko, the Sens got a 2025 third-round pick and a 2024 fourth-rounder. But the latter selection upgrades to a 2026 third-rounder if Florida wins the Cup later this month.
At 32, Tarasenko seems to be settling in now as a 20-25 goal scorer who can get you 50-55 points. He has just six points in 17 playoff games this spring.
Tarasenko was acquired by Senators GM Pierre Dorion last summer, and while he was a good player in his short time here (and good in the community), his signing was always an odd fit for both sides.
From the Senators' point of view, Tarasenko was a big name, but not the kind of player they lacked. His $5 million also put them in such cap trouble that they couldn't dress a full roster on opening night. Their cap runneth over.
For Tarasenko, he signed with Ottawa last summer almost four weeks after free agency started. It's believed he was waiting around, wanting to re-sign with the Rangers, rejecting other offers. When it became clear in the first week that the Rangers couldn't or wouldn't re-sign him, a lot of his other free agent suitors had moved on.
So Tarasenko fired his agent and eventually landed the best deal he could a few weeks later. Given that he was reportedly working out in Florida last summer with goalie Sergei Bobrovsky, maybe this Panthers-at-the-deadline plan was always in the works.
If Tarasenko is still put off by the Rangers, or perceives that they strung him along last summer, it's hard to imagine a better form of revenge than what he did on Saturday night.
Meanwhile, it's also hard to imagine that one of the Ottawa Senators who laced 'em up on that flawed, shorthanded roster last October will now play for a Stanley Cup.