Florida trades D Dmitri Kulikov and 33rd Overall Pick to Buffalo for D Mark Pysyk, 38th overall pick and 89th overall pick.

I did some research and I don’t really like this trade. Since the Panthers are angling for offensive defenseman I did a little calculations on what each of these guys points per game was. Kulikov had 138 career points in 460 career games which was at 0.3 points per game. Pysyk had 26 career points in 125 career games which gives him 0.208 points per game. Kulikov beat him out in points per game this season averaging to the nearest thousandth .230 points per game while Pysyk was a solid .2 points per game. Let’s look at the picks. If we didn’t trade the 33rd overall pick we still should’ve been able to get Mascherin who is very solid and I’m not sure how good Nassen is. Pysyk has very good analytics from what I have heard but analytics doesn’t determine your offense. Kulikov was a better offensive defenseman than Pysyk. We will have to see. I think Kulikov is the better defenseman that the Panthers should’ve kept and both are nearing the end of their developing stages and about to enter their prime. Kulikov was a good locker room guy and the picks don’t make much of a difference.

Pre-Evaluation Grade: C-