The Florida Panthers were only supposed to lose one player in the NHL expansion draft.
They also traded one away.
Not only did the Vegas Golden Knights officially select Jonathan Marchessault off Florida’s unprotected list, but Florida traded Reilly Smith and his $25 million contract to Vegas as well.
Canadian NHL insider Bob McKenzie first reported Wednesday evening that Vegas would take Marchessault (a 30-goal scorer last season) and Smith as well.
The Golden Knights reportedly have over a dozen deals in the works and either Smith or Marchessault (perhaps both) could be temporary Vegas players, headed somewhere else in a trade.