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Panthers taking expensive gamble by acquiring Seth Jones from Blackhawks
Defenseman Seth Jones was hoping to get a trade away from the Chicago Blackhawks, and on Saturday evening he got exactly that. Not only did he get the trade, he is going to one of the NHL's best teams and a bona fide Stanley Cup contender.
The Blackhawks are sending Jones and a 2026 fourth-round pick to the Florida Panthers in exchange for goalie Spencer Knight and a 2026 first-round draft pick.
Chicago is also retaining 25 percent of Jones' remaining contract through the end of the 2029-30 season.
trade alert
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) March 2, 2025
➡︎ https://t.co/gjN0lotc2c pic.twitter.com/c2Bkza5FTG
It is an interesting trade for both teams, and perhaps a better than expected return for Chicago.
It is also an especially big gamble for Florida.
The Panthers were in need of additional defensive help as they try to defend their Stanley Cup championship, and Jones will certainly help bring some offense to their lineup. But his contract has always been the big obstacle with him because he has never really played like the $9.5 million player the Blackhawks were paying him to be. At times that contract seemed to be unmovable.
But with Chicago retaining a portion of that remaining contract, the Panthers are now getting Jones as a $7 million per year player, which makes it a little more tolerable. But there is still some debate as to whether or not he is even worth that. For about the past three or four years he's been a player whose reputation — and salary — has at times exceeded his actual on-ice value.
Not only is Florida taking on that significant cap hit, but it's also trading two very valuable assets in Knight and a future first-round pick. Knight is still only 23 years old and will get a chance to take on a bigger role in Chicago than he was ever going to get in Florida behind Sergei Bobrovsky. While his career has seen him produce mostly league average numbers to this point, he still has the potential and ability to be a long-term starter.
Florida has had a great deal of success in recent years in helping defensemen turn their careers around, and Jones certainly fits the mold of players they look for.
With veteran Aaron Ekblad potentially headed to free agency after this season, they had a need for a long-term answer as well.
Now the question is whether or not they can get Jones to play up to his salary.
If he does, it will be another shrewd move for a team that has consistently pushed all of the right buttons in recent years.
If he does not, that will be a big salary cap number to contend with — and two big assets going the other way — for the next few years.
More must-reads:
- Avalanche, Rangers complete big trade: Ryan Lindgren and Jimmy Vesey on the move
- Predators deal veteran forward back to Wild
- The 'Active 20-home run MLB seasons' quiz
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Tim Tebow's hockey team gets expansion approval from league
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