As NHL trade rumors heat up ahead of the Olympic freeze, this concept image visualizes what Rangers superstar Artemi Panarin might look like clad in a Tampa Bay Lightning uniform if a blockbuster deal comes to fruition.
The clock is ticking on the New York Rangers. With the Olympic trade freeze set to lock rosters today at 3:00 PM ET, general manager Chris Drury is scrambling to find a resolution to the Artemi Panarin saga. While the Florida Panthers were initially believed to be the winger’s preferred destination, the latest intel suggests the Tampa Bay Lightning have moved into the driver’s seat.
According to Vince Mercogliano of The Athletic, the Lightning are firmly in the mix, and for good reason. Panarin holds all the cards here with his full No-Movement Clause (NMC). He wants a specific destination, and he wants a massive contract extension—rumored to be in the $40-$50 million range over four or five years. Tampa Bay offers the exact tax-free environment Panarin covets to maximize those earnings, and unlike the Panthers, the Bolts might actually have the assets to pull this off right now.
If you’re a Lightning fan, you should be glued to your phone for the next few hours. This isn’t just a rental; this is a franchise-altering move that pairs one of the NHL’s premier playmakers with Nikita Kucherov. But the cost? It’s going to be steep.
The “Tax Advantage” Giving Tampa the Edge
We know Panarin is motivated by financials. The reason the conversation has shifted from “any contender” to “Florida-based teams” is purely about the state tax benefits. This narrows the market significantly, effectively holding the Rangers hostage. They can’t create a bidding war between ten teams; they have to negotiate with two.
This leverage allows Tampa Bay to negotiate a price that, while high, doesn’t completely gut their roster. However, the salary cap is the real enemy here. Panarin carries an $11.6 million hit. Even if New York retains 50%, Tampa needs to shed salary to make the math work.
Proposed Trade Package: What the Lightning Would Send to New York
To satisfy the Rangers’ need for youth and clear the necessary cap space, league sources and speculation point to a deal structured like this:
To Tampa Bay Lightning: Artemi Panarin (50% salary retained).
To New York Rangers: Sam O’Reilly (F), Oliver Bjorkstrand (F), and a 2028 1st Round Pick.
Why this works: The Rangers are looking to retool on the fly. Sam O’Reilly, the gritty, skilled forward prospect Tampa acquired from Edmonton last summer, is exactly the type of “Ranger-style” player Drury covets. He becomes the centerpiece of the return.
Oliver Bjorkstrand is the necessary money-out piece. His $5.4M AAV nearly matches the retained portion of Panarin’s contract, keeping Tampa cap-compliant. For the Rangers, Bjorkstrand is a serviceable middle-six winger who can play now or be flipped later. The 1st Round Pick is the sweetener required to convince New York to eat $5.8 million in dead cap space for the remainder of Panarin’s current deal.
Is it a lot to give up? Absolutely. But adding Panarin to this Lightning core extends their championship window significantly.
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