The Florida Panthers
Florida Panthers Acquire:
Claude Giroux (C/RW)
Ben Chiarot (D)
Robert Hägg (D)
Florida Panthers Trade:
Frank Vatrano (W)
The Florida Panthers grabbed the best forward available in Claude Giroux who will likely be their second line centre. Claude Giroux, who is putting up elite WAR numbers even at his advanced age, has 42 points in 52 games so far this season.
When everyone’s healthy, Chiarot will probably be on the second pairing and Hägg is probably their seventh defenseman. Even if you’re a Chiarot fan, his stats are not good, so there is at least a debate to be had about how much this helps.
Vatrano played on Florida’s fourth line, so not a big loss. Their biggest loss is losing Aaron Ekblad’s to injury for the rest of the season. I’d say the Florida Panthers look to be the biggest winners of the deadline in the Atlantic Division so far.
However, it really depends on Ekblad’s injury. If he doesn’t return, or returns and isn’t the star he was previously, adding Giroux won’t make up for that. Still, you have to respect the Giroux add, since no one else really added a star player, barring a renaissance from Mark Giordano.