Report: Panthers sign Ekman-Larsson to 1-year, $2.25M contract

The Florida Panthers are signing defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson to a one-year contract worth $2.25 million, TSN's Darren Dreger reports.

The Vancouver Canucks bought out the remaining four years of Ekman-Larsson's contract on June 16. The soon-to-be 32-year-old scored two goals and 22 points in 54 games last season.

The Swede ranked last on the Canucks with a minus-24 rating in 2022-23. He also had a 47.4% Corsi-for and 45.2% expected goals for at five-on-five, per Natural Stat Trick.

Ekman-Larsson has averaged more than 20 minutes per game every season since 2011-12. The 20:11 of ice time he averaged this season is the lowest of his career since his rookie campaign.

The Canucks acquired Ekman-Larsson along with Conor Garland from the Arizona Coyotes in 2021 for Antoine Roussel, Jay Beagle, Loui Eriksson, and first-, second-, and seventh-round draft picks. The Coyotes drafted Dylan Guenther ninth overall with the first-round selection acquired in the deal.

The Panthers have $8 million in cap space after the signing, per CapFriendly.

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