The Florida Panthers have traded Rocco Grimaldi to the Colorado Avalanche for goaltender Reto Berra.
The Florida Panthers had a need for a backup goaltender with starting goalie Roberto Luongo beginning to age. Meanwhile, the Colorado Avalanche needed to get rid of a goaltender with Semyon Varlamov, Calvin Pickering, and Reto Berra all proving to be NHL caliber goaltenders.
In a move that benefits both teams, the Panthers have traded forward Rocco Grimaldi to the Avalanche in exchange for goaltender Reto Berra.
.@GeorgeRichards have traded Rocco Grimaldi, get back Reto Berra...
— George Richards (@GeorgeRichards) June 23, 2016
Florida is getting an upgrade over Al Montoya in net, who will likely be leaving the Panthers in free agency. Berra has proven that he can handle a backup role with 53 career starts over three seasons. He has a career save percentage of .906, though his save percentage during his time with the Avalanche was a much more respectable .915.
Berra is coming off his best NHL season with a .922 save percentage and a career best 2.41 GAA. He has a cap hit of $1.45 million and will become an unrestricted free agent after the 2016-17 season.
Colorado will be getting a solid bottom six forward. Grimaldi likely didn’t have a spot on the Panthers’ NHL roster and Florida likely would not have been able to sneak him through waivers. The Avalanche were in a very similar situation with Berra, especially with Pickering’s AHL success. Grimaldi has a $925,000 cap hit and will be a restricted free agent after the 2016-17 season. He had five points in 20 games with the Panthers last season.
Both teams get something for a player who they would have had to risk losing for nothing in a few months.
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