"Scott has been a good backup for us, but he was unlikely to resign this summer," said the Panthers' GM. "This deal came from the Predators, and it made sense. We know Carter Hart is waiting, and Tomkins can help us through the rest of this year."

Carter Hart's name was rumored to be involved in a number of trade talks, but the GM refused to acknowledge that. "We get inquiries all the time on our younger players. At this point, our hope is that Carter will be playing with us in the playoffs."

So, did the Panthers engage in any other potential deals, or were they completely silent? "We talked about a few rentals, but we like our position. We want to make the playoffs, but we won't give up the farm to do it. Come the postseason, I think you'll see why we didn't make any huge deals. We have got a talented crew in Rochester ready to make their mark."

Florida travels to their in-state rivals in Tampa Bay tonight. They hope to extend their 7th place buffer on the 8th place Hurricanes and get that much closer to playoff hockey.