Rangers acquire Frank Vatrano from Panthers

The New York Rangers acquired forward Frank Vatrano from the Florida Panthers on Wednesday in exchange for a fourth-round pick.

The move cleared salary cap space that the Panthers will need if they’re going to go big game hunting between now and Monday. They have been linked to Ducks defenseman Hampus Lindholm and Flyers forward Claude Giroux, among other targets.

Vatrano is in the final year of his three-year contract with a $2.5 million AAV, and will be an unrestricted free agent this summer. The 28-year-old will be hitting unrestricted free agency for the first time in his career if he doesn’t sign an extension with the Rangers.

Vatrano has 10 goals and 19 points in 49 games for the Panthers this season, and has some versatility at both center and wing. He’ll add some much needed forward depth to the Rangers lineup. He scored twice in his final game as a Panther in an overtime win over the Sharks.

Vatrano leaves one contending team and joins another in a Rangers team that is 38-17-5 on the season, and seems bound for a first-round matchup with the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Rangers have won two straight and may look to continue adding ahead of the March 21 trade deadline.

The fourth-round pick the Panthers receive is for this upcoming 2022 Draft in July, and is conditional: the Rangers held two picks in the fourth round, their own and the Winnipeg Jets. The pick conveyed will be the lower of the two.