SUNRISE — The Florida Panthers overhauled their goaltending in a 24-hour span, acquiring 36-year-old Jacob Markstrom from the New Jersey Devils and 26-year-old Akira Schmid from the Vegas Golden Knights in back-to-back trades that signal the end of the Sergei Bobrovsky era in South Florida.
The moves, completed Monday and Tuesday, leave the two-time Stanley Cup champion Panthers with roughly $4.5 million in salary cap space heading into NHL free agency, which opens Wednesday at noon, Florida Hockey Now reported. General manager Bill Zito acknowledged the tight margins when asked about the cap Saturday, smiling as he said the Panthers “will use as much of that cap space as they can.”
Markstrom, who carries a $6 million average annual value with two years remaining on his contract, arrives as the presumptive starter. Florida sent Evan Rodrigues ($3.075 million cap hit), Jesper Boqvist ($1.5 million) and prospect Ben Steeves to New Jersey in the deal, along with depth forward Angus Crookshank coming back to Florida. The Schmid trade cost the Panthers a 2028 third-round pick.
Bobrovsky, who spent seven seasons in Sunrise, won two championships and made three trips to the Stanley Cup Final with the Panthers, appears headed to the open market. Schmid is expected to serve as the backup, effectively ending Daniil Tarasov’s tenure after one season. Tarasov signed a one-year, $1.05 million deal last year, below his $1.2 million qualifying offer.
Schmid brings 82 career NHL games to Fort Lauderdale, posting a 32-28-10 record with three shutouts across stints with the Devils (2021-24) and Golden Knights (2024-26). His 16 wins led all Vegas goalies last season, though coach John Tortorella did not use him in the playoffs. The 6-foot-5 native of Bern, Switzerland, has notable postseason credentials: in 2023, he went 4-4 with two shutouts for the Devils and became the fifth rookie goalie in NHL history to post a shutout in a Game 7. He also went 3-0 at the most recent World Championship as part of Switzerland’s Olympic team.
Schmid is a restricted free agent whose qualifying offer sits at $918,750. Assuming he signs at that number, Florida Hockey Now calculated the Panthers would have just under $3.53 million remaining under the $104 million cap limit. The Panthers are also working to re-sign pending unrestricted free agent defenseman Radko Gudas, whom they reacquired Monday from the Anaheim Ducks in exchange for forward A.J. Greer’s UFA rights. Gudas, 36, is coming off a three-year, $12 million contract ($4 million AAV) with the Ducks and would need to accept a significant pay cut.
With Rodrigues, Boqvist and unrestricted free agent Tomas Nosek all departing, the Panthers still need at least one fourth-line center. Florida added depth winger Garnet Hathaway from the Philadelphia Flyers last week at a $1.2 million cap hit after Philadelphia retained 50 percent of his $2.4 million contract. Jonah Gadjovich and Cole Reinhardt round out the fourth-line wing options.
Panthers development camp is underway at the IcePlex in Fort Lauderdale through Thursday. The preseason opens Sept. 20 against the Carolina Hurricanes.