The Florida Panthers rocked the NHL world by swinging a major trade on July 22, 2022. The Panthers landed RFA forward Matthew Tkachuk in a trade with the Calgary Flames.
At the time, the deal was a bit of a head-scratcher. Until then, the Panthers weren’t known as a premier destination for free agents. The Panthers had historically struggled to lure top-name players.
Of course, that’s not the case anymore, but the Tkachuk trade, as insider Frank Seravalli noted, tilted hockey’s axis.
It was the type of trade that only top-tier teams could have pulled off. Teams like the Boston Bruins, New York Rangers or Toronto Maple Leafs could have managed such a deal.
But it was the Panthers that did it. The deal cost the Panthers Jonathan Huberdeau and solid defenseman Mackenzie Weegar. In hindsight, the price was well worth it.
For Calgary, it was a major coup. The Flames managed to get back a highly-talented player despite the risk of heading into a stalemate with Tkachuk.
Three years ago today: the trade that tilted hockey’s axis. https://t.co/sM3fFb3OKe
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) July 22, 2025
The trade put the Panthers over the top. The next season, the Cats went to the Stanley Cup Final. While they lost to the Vegas Golden Knights, the seed for back-to-back championships had been sown. Tkachuk was the piece that the Panthers needed to help them change the culture and get them over the top.
Matthew Tkachuk was the sort of young power forward that the Panthers needed. Tkachuk, Sam Bennett, Sam Reinhart, Aleksander Barkov, and Carter Verhaeghe became an uber-talented core that took on the NHL’s best.
Fast-forward to two Cups later, the Panthers are poised to make it a three-peat. Other teams will have a say in the Panthers’ making it three Cups in a row. But as far as building a modern-day dynasty, the Cats are as close to it as they come.
Panthers fleeced Flames in Tkachuk deal
Since hindsight is 20/20 vision, it’s easy to conclude that the Panthers fleeced the Flames in the Matthew Tkachuk trade.
Along with Huberdeau and Weegar, the trade also cost Florida prospect Cole Schwindt and a first-round pick. That first-round pick was the 32nd overall selection in the 2025 NHL Draft. The Flames took Cullen Potter with the pick.
Unless Potter turns into the next great NHL superstar, the Panthers had to chuckle about it. Because the Panthers won the Cup, the pick was the last of the first round. By all standards, that pick is essentially a second rounder.
Even if Huberdeau continued to put up 100-point seasons in Calgary, even if Weegar had won a Norris Trophy, and even if Potter becomes a Hart Trophy winner, the Panthers fleeced the Flames by making it to three-straight Cup Finals and winning two.
Ultimately, that’s what counts. Cups and titles are what drive professional sports. Yes, individual achievements are great. But championships are the best marker of success.
Thus far, the Panthers have two Cups and the Flames have none. Calgary is still looking for its first Stanley Cup title since the Lanny McDonald days of 1989. That’s just the reality of the business.