The Florida Panthers have acquired veteran goaltender Magnus Hellberg for netminder Ludovic Waeber and a conditional seventh-round pick in 2025.
Hellberg, 32, has a 1-0-0 record with a .922 save percentage with the Penguins this season. The Swedish keeper is heading to his seventh NHL organization since getting drafted 38th overall in 2011. The 6-foot-6 goalkeeper saw his first action with Nashville in 2013-14 before getting his first actual NHL start with the Rangers in 2016-17.
Hellberg would head for the KHL for a few years before playing one game for the Detroit Red Wings to close out the 2021-22 season. The following year, he bounced through waivers and ended up with Ottawa, Seattle and Detroit, while also playing four games with the AHL’s Grand Rapids Griffins. Hellberg has spent most of the season with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton this year, going 9-8-2 with a .905 save percentage. Hellberg is signed until the end of the season at $785,000.
Waeber, meanwhile, made his North American debut with the Charlotte Checkers this year. Serving as a backup to Spencer Knight, Waeber has a 6-6-0 record with one shutout and a .887 save percentage, and also lost his lone start in the ECHL with the Florida Everblades.
Waeber, who went undrafted in the NHL, spent the past three years with the Lions, serving as starter in the first two years. Waeber shared the net with Czech goaltender Simon Hrubec, who took over as the No. 1 and ultimately took over as the starter. Waeber posted an 8-9-1 record with two shutouts and a .914 save percentage in 19 games.
The Panthers are first in the NHL with 90 points, one point clear of the Boston Bruins. Pittsburgh, meanwhile, is eight points behind the Tampa Bay Lightning for the second wild-card spot with 64 points while riding a 4-5-1 record over the past 10 games.
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