The Calgary Flames have traded star winger Matthew Tkachuk to the Florida Panthers in exchange for Jonathan Huberdeau, Mackenzie Weegar Cole Schwindt and a first-round pick, according to Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. Tkachuk is signing an eight-year deal worth $9.5 million per season.
Tkachuk told the Flames in the off-season he would not sign an extension with the club, setting the stage for the team to lose a second star this summer.
Earlier this month, unrestricted free agent Johnny Gaudreau opted to sign a seven-year deal with the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Calgary filed for club-elected salary arbitration with Tkachuk in mid-July in order to eliminate the possibility of an offer sheet, a move the team said was part of a bid to buy time to work out a long-term deal. But news broke shortly afterward that Tkachuk wasn’t prepared to commit to the Flames.
The 24-year-old is coming off a three-year, $21-million deal with the Flames, who drafted Tkachuk sixth overall in 2016.
Tkachuk is coming off a career-best season, scoring 42 goals to go with 62 assists for 104 points in 82 games. The Flames ultimately fell in Round 2 to the Edmonton Oilers in the playoffs, where Tkachuk produced 10 points in 12 games.
In 431 games across seven seasons, all with Calgary, Tkachuk has 152 goals and 230 points — ranking second in his draft class with 382 points, behind only Auston Matthews.
