Busy Day For Panthers and Oilers

The Florida Panthers added some scoring punch to their offense Saturday, acquiring winger Jiri Hudler from the Calgary Flames and Teddy Purcell from the Edmonton Oilers in separate trades.

The Flames received a second-round draft pick this June plus a fourth-round pick in 2018 for Hudler. The Oilers got a third-round pick for Purcell.

Hudler, a pending unrestricted free agent, has 10 goals and 25 assists this season for the Flames.

Drafted in 2002, Hudler, 32, played his first seven seasons with the Detroit Red Wings before heading to Calgary as a free agent in 2012.

Purcell has 11 goals and 21 assists in his second season with the Oilers. A 30-year-old forward, he also has played for the Kings and Lightning.

The Panthers also announced they acquired veteran defenseman Jakub Kindl in a deal with the Red Wings for a sixth-round pick in the 2017 draft.

The Panthers' flurry of moves come as they prepare for what would be the franchise's first playoff appearance since the 2011-12 season.

In a move to hopefully help them in the future, the team announced the signing of Moose Jaw Warriors forward Dryden Hunt. The WHL's leading scorer will be eligible to join the Panthers or one of their minor league teams once his season in Moose Jaw comes to an end.


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The Edmonton Oilers have lost their whipping boy for what has been another terrible season.

On Saturday, the Oilers  traded defenceman Justin Schultz, to the Pittsburgh Penguins for a third-round 2016 pick, following on the heels with a trade of winger Teddy Purcell to Florida, also for a third-rounder this June which means they have three of them.

Earlier in the day, the Oilers sent backup goalie Anders Nilsson to St. Louis for a fifth-rounder — they now have two of those — and Swedish prospect goalie Niklas Lundstrom, who’ll report to Bakersfield.