Florida Panthers: What To Do With Goaltender James Reimer?

With the Florida Panthers rumored as the front-runner in the Sergei Bobrovsky sweepstakes, many have speculated as to what will come of their goalie situation.

After the Columbus Blue Jackets were knocked out of the playoffs by the Boston Bruins in six games, Sergei Bobrovsky put his condo up for sale and posted a picture of him and fellow teammate Artemi Panarin in Miami on social media.

It seems like all indicators point to both Panarin and Bobrovsky coming to the Florida Panthers this summer. If they were to sign, many are wondering what the Panthers will do with their goaltending.

Sam Montembeault had a great cameo this past season, proving he can compete and win at the NHL level.

Roberto Luongo is a quasi-fan favorite and is coming up to the last years of his career and contract. It doesn’t appear that the Panthers will look to move on from him; although, there are very good reasons to do so.

The question then becomes, what to do with James Reimer?

Reimer currently has two years remaining on his contract signed back in 2016 which carries a cap hit of $3.4 million and a salary of $3.1 million this year, according to CapFriendly.

His contract is friendlier than Luongo’s in terms of cash leaving next year, as Luongo is only scheduled to make $1.6 million next year.

However, Luongo’s contract carries a $4.5 million cap hit compared to that of Reimer at $3.4 million. As mentioned before, it’s tough to envision the Panthers dealing Luongo at this point in his career.

Perhaps retirement could be in play with Luongo, but based on new information surfacing, it appears Bobrovsky is favored as the Panthers’ number one with Luongo backing him up and Montembeault ready for a call-up for injury purposes.

That leaves little options left for Reimer. He could be sent to the minors; Although, that would be an expensive backup netminder for the minors, as one would expect Montembeault to continue to carry the workload if he remains with Springfield in the AHL.

The most realistic option for Reimer would be a trade at some point this summer. This is, unfortunately, going to cost the Panthers in that, it’s very unlikely a team will trade a player of value to the Panthers straight up for a player like Reimer, who, as most believe, has been given his last shot as a starter in this league.

His value has diminished and while his cap hit is not outrageous, $3.4 million for an undervalue goalie is a tough pill to swallow.

The most probable outcome will be a trade with a team entering a rebuild (Ottawa, New York, Edmonton, Detroit). A trade with Ottawa seems to be the most realistic, given every other team isn’t in a complete overhaul like Ottawa currently is.

A possible trade with the Senators could look like Reimer and a third-round draft pick in exchange for a lower-level prospect. If not, the Panthers could possibly add in a prospect or retain some of Reimer’s salary.

Overall, the Panthers have a few options for Reimer; retain as a backup netminder, potentially drop him to the minors, or trade him with an asset so he can be moved.

In addition to the fan appeal, Luongo carrying less of the burden during the season can improve his sustainability throughout the year. Without a doubt, a healthy Luongo is better than a healthy Reimer.

And, with Montembeault progressing quite smoothly, there’s little appeal to the idea of Reimer being sent down and sitting on the bench for Springfield.

In short, the Panthers should and will look to move Reimer in the offseason, and although they may have to take a bit of hit, the move will set the team up favorably for both the present and the future.