On Sunday, the Florida Panthers, winners of the 2024 and 2025 Stanley Cups, decided to reload talent massively. The Panthers completed a blockbuster trade with the Ottawa Senators, sending 26-year-old superstar Brady Tkachuk to Florida and uniting him with his brother, Matthew Tkachuk. This is some interesting news, news that is most likely good for fans of the Panthers, but also, in a way, good for the Utah Mammoth.
Florida clearly has no intention of going young
The Panthers already traded away Mackie Samoskevich to the Seattle Kraken in return for the 25th overall pick in the 2026 NHL Draft. This showed that Florida was probably building up for something pretty big, and they traded away a pretty good young 23-year-old, Samoskevich, in return for the pick. The Panthers, however, wasted no time in getting rid of the pick, as they quickly completed a trade with Ottawa to bring Tkachuk to Florida.
The Senators got two 2026 first-rounders, with the 9th overall pick and the 25th overall pick of this draft. Ottawa will also get a 2029 first-round pick and a 2027 second-round pick. For the Panthers, it was a good trade, as the team is probably the best team in the NHL now, at least the offense. For the Senators, they got a lot of picks, but it seems the team is rebuilding, as they got no NHL-ready talent in return. Ultimately, though, the trade is interesting for the Utah Mammoth for one thing.
The Panthers can no longer trade for Dylan Larkin
Florida essentially can no longer trade for the other interesting superstar on the trade market, Dylan Larkin. The Mammoth are definitely in the mix for Larkin, and no longer have to worry about the Panthers. To put it simply, if Florida doesn't win another Stanley Cup soon, they won't for a while, given how experienced and older the team is, and they don't really have any assets for a guy like Larkin anymore. The Mammoth were reportedly on the list of teams Larkin could be traded to, and with the Panthers out, the team has a better chance at Larkin.
The Mammoth would have to essentially give up a lot of its younger players or picks, which is something that the Mammoth haven't exactly been quick to do over the last few seasons. However, with the rebuild probably complete, trading for a guy like Larkin could bring the team to the level of the Panthers or maybe even better (the Panthers' goalie situation isn't good). The trade of Brady Tkachuk may, in the end, work out for the Mammoth, who probably wouldn't mind having a game-changing center like Larkin.
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