Brock
Registered User
The Florida Panthers held a press conference this morning to announce several minor trades that the club has completed. These trades include several Panther prospects as well as roster players.
The first trade the Panthers completed with the Phoenix Coyotes. Here, Panthers farm player David Clarkson was traded for Boston College forward Benn Ferreiro. Clarkson was originally signed by the Panthers last season and is a solid pest/checking line forward prospect. "Yotes GM Yessie came to me with an interest in Clarkson, so we worked something out. Our scouts have seen Ferreiro and were interested in originally drafting him. He's a solid two way player who may have a little more professional potential than Clarkson," said Panthers GM Brock Otten.
The second trade announced was with the Columbus Blue Jackets, where 2006 overage euro draft pick Bjorn Melin was traded for North Dakota forward Chris Vande Velde. "Melin gets a better opportunity to make the Jackets farm club team, after ours began to become cluttered. In return we get a project prospect who is a long way from making a professional impact. Vande Velde is a very interesting player and we look forward to following his development as a member of UND," said Otten.
The third trade announced was another with the Phoenix Coyotes, where the club traded another 2006 draft pick in defenseman Cody Wild. In exchange, the Panthers obtained the rights to Russian winger Anton But and also received a 2007 6th round draft pick. "Much like the Clarkson trade, the Yotes came to us with an interest in Wild, so we managed to work something out. But is a former top prospect with a proven RSL record. Their were rumours that he was to come over to North America finally this offseason, but that never materialized. We are hopeful that we can be successful in luring him overseas," said Otten.
The fourth and final trade announced was with the Colorado Avalanche. In this trade, the Panthers sent defenseman Anders Eriksson to the Avs for a 4th round pick in the 2007 draft. Eriksson was recently signed to add more depth to the Panthers blueline. "We signed Anders to be our 7th defenseman for the upcoming season, however the Avalanche came to us with a deal that intrigued us. We still have Radek Martinek to fill in that 7th spot and the ability to use Brent Burns on defense if need be. We gain a 4th round pick in the upcoming draft without significantly hurting our depth," said Otten.
These are expected to be the last deals before the 2006-07 HFNHL season opens up this weekend. The fans in Florida are ready and hungry.
Esteban Santour,
Florida Post
The first trade the Panthers completed with the Phoenix Coyotes. Here, Panthers farm player David Clarkson was traded for Boston College forward Benn Ferreiro. Clarkson was originally signed by the Panthers last season and is a solid pest/checking line forward prospect. "Yotes GM Yessie came to me with an interest in Clarkson, so we worked something out. Our scouts have seen Ferreiro and were interested in originally drafting him. He's a solid two way player who may have a little more professional potential than Clarkson," said Panthers GM Brock Otten.
The second trade announced was with the Columbus Blue Jackets, where 2006 overage euro draft pick Bjorn Melin was traded for North Dakota forward Chris Vande Velde. "Melin gets a better opportunity to make the Jackets farm club team, after ours began to become cluttered. In return we get a project prospect who is a long way from making a professional impact. Vande Velde is a very interesting player and we look forward to following his development as a member of UND," said Otten.
The third trade announced was another with the Phoenix Coyotes, where the club traded another 2006 draft pick in defenseman Cody Wild. In exchange, the Panthers obtained the rights to Russian winger Anton But and also received a 2007 6th round draft pick. "Much like the Clarkson trade, the Yotes came to us with an interest in Wild, so we managed to work something out. But is a former top prospect with a proven RSL record. Their were rumours that he was to come over to North America finally this offseason, but that never materialized. We are hopeful that we can be successful in luring him overseas," said Otten.
The fourth and final trade announced was with the Colorado Avalanche. In this trade, the Panthers sent defenseman Anders Eriksson to the Avs for a 4th round pick in the 2007 draft. Eriksson was recently signed to add more depth to the Panthers blueline. "We signed Anders to be our 7th defenseman for the upcoming season, however the Avalanche came to us with a deal that intrigued us. We still have Radek Martinek to fill in that 7th spot and the ability to use Brent Burns on defense if need be. We gain a 4th round pick in the upcoming draft without significantly hurting our depth," said Otten.
These are expected to be the last deals before the 2006-07 HFNHL season opens up this weekend. The fans in Florida are ready and hungry.
Esteban Santour,
Florida Post
