SUNRISE — The Florida Panthers made a pair of moves Wednesday, acquiring bruising forward Garnet Hathaway from the Philadelphia Flyers and releasing a trimmed four-game preseason schedule that opens Sept. 20 against the Stanley Cup champion Carolina Hurricanes at Amerant Bank Arena.

The Hathaway deal brings a Naples, Fla., native back to his home state. Panthers President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Bill Zito sent Florida’s fifth-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft and a fourth-round pick in 2027 to Philadelphia in exchange for Hathaway and the Flyers’ sixth-round selection in the 2026 draft. Philadelphia will retain 50% of Hathaway’s contract.

“Garnet is a physical and highly competitive player who will complement our group well,” said Zito. “We’re excited to add his veteran presence to our group for the upcoming season.”

Hathaway, 34, is one of the NHL’s most prolific hitters. The 6-foot-2, 212-pound forward led the Flyers with 252 hits in 66 games last season — the ninth most among all NHL skaters — and produced three points (1-2-3). He was also Philadelphia’s nominee for the King Clancy Memorial Trophy and added two points (1-1-2) over eight Stanley Cup Playoff contests.

Over 11 NHL seasons with Philadelphia, the Boston Bruins, the Washington Capitals and the Calgary Flames, Hathaway has appeared in 672 games, amassing 163 points (76-87-163), a plus-45 rating and 739 penalty minutes. He has ranked in the top 10 in the league in hits every season since 2020-21, accumulating 1,532 hits in that span — second most in the NHL. In the playoffs, Hathaway has logged eight points (4-4-8) over 39 career games. Undrafted out of Brown University, he compiled 58 points (20-38-58) over 121 NCAA games across four seasons.

The preseason schedule, meanwhile, is notably leaner than last year’s seven-game slate, Florida Hockey Now reported. The Panthers open at home against Carolina on Sept. 20 at 7 p.m., then travel to Lenovo Center in Raleigh on Sept. 22 at 7 p.m. for the return matchup against the Hurricanes.

The schedule closes with a home-and-away set against intrastate rival Tampa Bay. The Panthers visit Benchmark International Arena in Tampa on Sept. 24 at 7 p.m. before hosting the Lightning at Amerant Bank Arena on Sept. 26 at 6 p.m. The reduced schedule means there will be no Panthers-Lightning game in Orlando this year, a departure from recent preseasons.

All four preseason games will air on the Scripps Sports South Florida broadcast network and will be available to stream free on PanthersPlus.TV with registration.

The Panthers face a busy summer before the puck drops. The 2026 NHL Draft begins Friday at KeyBank Center in Buffalo, where Florida holds no first-round picks but six selections overall. Free agency opens July 1, and development camp is expected in late June or early July at the IcePlex in Fort Lauderdale. Rookie camp is slated for late August or early September, with the main training camp following in early to mid-September in Fort Lauderdale.

Preseason single-game tickets are expected to go on sale in July through SeatGeek. The 2026-27 regular season is set to open in late September, with the Panthers’ opponent and site still to be announced.