Report: Florida Panthers have deal in place involving Frank Vatrano

Seattle Kraken general manager Ron Francis has his work cut out for him with the approaching expansion draft, as he'll be selecting the players that will  make up the 32nd NHL franchise. 

Of course, they'll be hoping to replicate the success of the Vegas Golden Knights, who took a group of misfits all the way to within three wins of the Stanley Cup during their inaugural season of 2017-18. 

And like any good GM, Francis is doing his due diligence regarding trades in addition to the Expansion Draft. According to Frank Seravalli, formerly of TSN and now with the Daily Faceoff, the Kraken have a deal in place to acquire forward Frank Vatrano from the Florida Panthers.

Of course, the Kraken are already believed to be closing in on soon to be former Panthers goaltender Chris Driedger; a potential deal for Vatrano would be their second Panthers acquisition as they prepare to take one player from each NHL team in the upcoming Expansion Draft. 

Vatrano was one of the players that the Panthers left unprotected, along with Radko Gudas, Noel Acciari and Markus Nutivaara. In his own right, he's scored 58 goals the past three seasons, and led the Panthers with seven game winning goals in 2021. The Springfield, MA native went undrafted and signed an amateur try-out contract with AHL affiliate, the Providence Bruins making his professional debut to finish out the 2014–15 season.

After a handful of years in the Bruins organization, he was dealt to the Panthers in exchange for a draft pick in February of 2018. For Vatrano, who is entering the final year of his contract that carries a $2.5 million cap hit, he didn't want to depart from sunny Florida after signing his deal. 

“I sat down with my agent, and I said I felt this was the best spot for me,’’ Vatrano said when he signed his extension. “I am really getting an opportunity here, top-six, power play. I love it here, I don’t want anything to change.”

The Expansion Draft is scheduled for July 21.