The Florida Panthers are looking to add a veteran defenseman to their roster on a professional tryout offer (PTO) per general manager Tom Rowe, as reported by Harvey Fialkov of the Sun Sentinal. The Panthers are coming off of an interesting offseason in terms of defensive moves.
Rowe said coach Gallant would like to add veteran defenseman for depth on a PTO #flapanthers
— Harvey Fialkov (@hfialkov) August 31, 2016
While the team traded away Erik Gudbranson to the Vancouver Canucks for Jared McCann and lost veteran Brian Campbell to the Chicago Blackhawks through free agency, they also managed to make two big splashes to fill the voids. Two of the biggest names on the defensemen market this going into offseason were Keith Yandle and Jason Demers. The Panthers were able to swing a trade to acquire the rights of Yandle from the New York Rangers ahead of July 1, ultimately signing him to a big contract, and they also managed to sign Demers to a five-year deal as well.
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While the team made a conscious effort to improve on defense this season, there is still room for veteran leadership to compete throughout training camp and the preseason. With the NHL season quickly approaching, the Panthers will need to work quickly to pick up a defenseman on a PTO to help bolster their depth in the coming weeks, and potentially even the coming season.