Panthers Acquire Goaltender Daniil Tarasov from Blue Jackets

Before free agency gets underway on July 1, the Panthers got a head start on filling out its roster for next season.

Florida acquired goaltender Daniil Tarasov from the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for a fifth-round pick (160th overall) in the 2025 NHL Draft, the Panthers announced Thursday.

Tarasov was drafted 86th overall by the Blue Jackets in 2017. Current Panthers President of Hockey Operations and General Manager Bill Zito was an assistant GM in Columbus at the time.

Last season, the 26-year-old appeared in 20 games with the Blue Jackets, registering a 7-10-2 record, .881 save percentage and 3.54 goals against average. Since beginning his NHL career in 2021-22, Tarasov has appeared in 65 games, posting a 19-34-6 record, .898 save percentage and 3.44 goals against average.

The 6-foot-5 netminder is expected to be Florida’s No. 2 behind fellow Novokuznetsk, Russia native and former Blue Jacket Sergei Bobrovsky.

Bobrovsky, who just won his second Stanley Cup with Florida earlier this month, grew up idolizing Daniil’s father, Vadim, who was a fellow goaltender, according to Panthers senior digital content manager Jameson Olive.

Tarasov — a pending restricted free agent (RFA) that will need a new contract —  is expected to replace Vitek Vanecek, who is a pending unrestricted free agent (UFA).