David Pagnotta says Florida circled back on Connor Hellebuyck, and any deal would have to be built around Anton Lundell.
The wording is telling. On DFO Rundown, Pagnotta said the Panthers re-engaged today, that he's heard Eetu Luostarinen's name floated, but he doesn't see it, and he can't see a scenario that doesn't include Lundell.
Cut through the double negative and it's clear. Lundell is the linchpin, the piece Florida would have to surrender for Winnipeg to bite.
Look at who's involved. Hellebuyck is the $8.5M goalie at the center of it. Lundell is a 24-year-old forward with 44 points. A young, controllable pivot.
Luostarinen is the secondary name. He's a 27-year-old forward at $3M with 33 points, useful, but Pagnotta clearly sees him as a sweetener, not the headliner.
Pagnotta laid out the framework.
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Why Lundell is the piece Winnipeg would demand
This builds on earlier reporting, too. Scott Billeck floated Lundell and Niko Mikkola as a Florida package, and Pagnotta now centers the whole thing on Lundell.
Here's the center fit. Winnipeg has been reported to want help up the middle, and Lundell checks that box directly. That's exactly why he'd be the non-negotiable in a Hellebuyck return.
The value logic backs it. You don't trade an elite goalie for spare parts. A 24-year-old center is the kind of get that justifies moving Hellebuyck, which is why Pagnotta sees no version without him.
But it's steep for Florida. Giving up Lundell to add Hellebuyck is a heavy price, especially with Sergei Bobrovsky's $10M already in the crease. The cap and the cost both have to line up.
Here's my read: Pagnotta zeroing in on Lundell makes total sense. He's the piece that satisfies Winnipeg and justifies the deal. Luostarinen sweetens it, he doesn't headline it. The talks are getting specific now.
So the Florida-Hellebuyck framework finally has a centerpiece, not just interested teams.
Whether the Panthers actually part with Lundell, or another club tops their bid, is the thread into the draft. Circled back, not closed.
Should Florida give up Anton Lundell to land Hellebuyck?
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