Panthers interested in trade, and contract extension, for Sergei Bobrovsky

The Florida Panthers are interested in trading for Blue Jackets goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky, and they may also double-down with an excessively long contract.

The Columbus Blue Jackets may be ready to part with goaltender Sergei Bobrovsky, as he goes through a down season and approaches unrestricted free agency.

The Florida Panthers have surfaced with interest, perhaps in the summer when he’s freely available, but according to Larry Brooks of the New York Post they are willing to trade for Bobrovsky and are willing to entice him with an eight-year contract extension.

Players can only get an eight-year deal from the team they spent the previous trade deadline with, so the Panthers can offer that extra year if they get Bobrovsky before the deadline.

He has a no-move clause, but previous reports suggest he is willing to waive it and has given Columbus a list of teams he’d approve a trade to. It’s anyone’s guess right now if the Panthers are on that list, or have been added to it.

An eight-year deal for a goalie who will be in his age-31 season next season would be bad enough.

But the Panthers have Roberto Luongo and James Reimer currently in place between the pipes, at a combined cap hit just shy of $8 million and with three and two seasons left on their contracts respectively.

For a deal to be done, the Blue Jackets would surely have to be open to taking one of Florida’s two current goaltenders along with just-acquired forward Derick Brassard.

Columbus reportedly engaged the Pittsburgh Penguins on Brassard before he was dealt to Florida, so that piece of a trade for Bobrovsky shouldn’t be difficult to navigate.

The Blue Jackets would have a void to fill if they move Bobrovsky, but seeing Luongo or Reimer as a viable replacement is a different question.

Despite a five-game losing streak going into Monday, Columbus still holds the first Wild Card spot in the East. Florida is nine points behind them, six points back of the second Wild Card spot in the East, and seem ready to be active on the trade market.

But a subsequent contract that would take Bobrovsky into retirement, when his decline seems to have already started, is an albatross the Panthers don’t have to actively invite.