Nikita Kucherov wants out of Tampa Bay, and the Florida Panthers are nowhere on one list of landing spots.
According to Sportsnet, the reigning Hart Trophy winner has told the Lightning he won't sign an extension and has requested a trade. He was on the ice last night in Nashville, picking up three assists in a 5-4 shootout loss.
The production hasn't dipped. Kucherov has 4 goals and 14 assists through 13 games this season, and he sits on 1141 career points in 892 games.
He is in the final year of a deal that pays $9.5 million, and CBS Sports writer Austin Nivison reports he has a 10-team trade list. Nivison's five suggested destinations are Montreal, Minnesota, Carolina, Utah and Dallas. Florida didn't make the cut.
That's fine as far as it goes, since Florida hasn't been linked to Kucherov by anyone. The Panthers are 8-4-2, riding a three-game winning streak after Friday's 5-2 win over Winnipeg, and Brad Marchand is listed on injured reserve until at least Nov. 21. Paul Maurice's Barkov and Marchand update says both are on schedule.
The name that should bother Panthers fans is Montreal. The Canadiens have won five straight, they're 9-3-2, and they sit second in the Atlantic while Florida is fifth. Adding Kucherov to that group would make a division rival much harder to play.
Zito has a Kucherov call to make before the market moves
Bill Zito shouldn't ignore this. A 33-year-old winger with 18 points in 13 games and a trade request on the table is exactly the kind of player a contender calls about, even if the answer is no. Florida's +5 goal differential is fine. It isn't dominant.
Zito has already shown he can stay patient. He kept his distance from Detroit on the Dylan Larkin situation, and Bill Zito's stance on Larkin trade talks shows Larkin has the Panthers on his list. Florida hasn't engaged with Detroit so far.
Larkin has 6 points in 10 games for the Red Wings this season. He arrives in Sunrise on Monday, when Florida hosts Detroit, and the questions about who the Panthers might chase will follow him into the building.
Should the Panthers call Tampa Bay about Nikita Kucherov?
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