Florida Panthers: Trading Alex Petrovic seems ideal

Colossal early season struggles have arguably cost Alex Petrovic an opportunity to solidify himself as a customary starter on the struggling, in stable Florida Panthers’ blue line. Perhaps a change in scenery would suit both sides.

Petrovic has been a healthy scratch for the past seven games, following the Panthers shootout loss verse the surging Detroit Red Wings in Sunrise weeks ago.

Rewinding backwards to that particular game, Alex Petrovic was manhandled by the highly skilled Gustav Nyquist inevitably leading to a ridiculously effortless goal. Nyquist essentially sliced through Petro easily and outmatched James Reimer (proved to be a momentum-turning goal).

Bob Boughner evidently lost all confidence he previously had for Petro following his horrendous performance verse the Wings. From that moment on, Alex Petrovic has been healthy scratched quite frequently. Ultimately, improving youngster MacKenzie Weegar has seamlessly stepped into the vacated third pairing and played incredibly well.

Alex is expected to demand a mid-term extension (warrants increased yearly salary) following the conclusion of the regular season due to his impending RFA status. Alex Petrovic’s days in a Florida Panthers’ uniform are certainly numbered and a potential trade could be imminent or already in the works.

Fans and management are undoubtedly becoming increasingly frustrated with Alex Petrovic; chiefly because of never-ending inconsistency and recurring injuries plaguing the development of his career. The Cats have allowed more goals when Petrovic is on the ice as opposed to off the ice, thus validating and strengthening the initial claim of trading instead of keeping Petro.

More from Editorials

• Best Panthers prop bets for Stanley Cup Final Game 3
• Best Panthers NHL prop bets for Stanley Cup Final Game 2
• Panthers prop bets for Stanley Cup Final Game 1
• Panthers Get An Early Christmas Present From NHL
• Panthers vs. Flyers: Players to watch closely

Petrovic’s services are clearly no longer required, as Weegar serves as a more promising and inexpensive replacement. Receiving a quality top 6-9 forward in exchange for Petrovic and a pick seems certainly reasonable.

Prominent names continuing to circulate in trade rumors consist of James van Riemsdyk, Connor Brown , Alex Galchenyuk , Evander Kane and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins. Dale Tallon would most likely attach a second-third round draft pick alongside Alex Petrovic to finalize a trade involving an aforementioned trade-bait player.

While Petrovic has notably produced 2 points in 11 games from limited ice-time, Dale could mention Alex’s previous success (playoffs included) in recent seasons to heighten Petro’s plummeting trade value.

Currently, Petrovic is undeserving of reclaiming the job from Weegar, especially since Petro’s physicality, mental toughness, grittiness, offensive production and defensive stability have all collectively disappeared. Alex requires a different team to flourish on, which could bring out his true potential.

Next: Florida Panthers: Possible trades that could be made to improve the roster

Both sides are drifting apart, as the Panthers’ tumultuous season gradually wanes. Florida has clearly demonstrated their disinterest in retaining Petro and handing him ice-time. An incoming trade is highly expected and shouldn’t be surprising; especially since Florida is preserving his health from potentially becoming deteriorated.