Palm Beach Post Wire Services
The Florida Panthers lost one defenseman Thursday but added another, signing Jordan Leopold to a one-year contract on the same day that free agent Karlis Skrastins agreed to terms with the Dallas Stars.
Florida acquired the negotiating rights to Leopold when it traded Jay Bouwmeester to Calgary on Saturday but could not sign him before he became a free agent Wednesday. Randy Sexton, the Panthers’ assistant general manager, said the chances of signing Leopold looked remote.
“I’m pumped to get it done,” Sexton said Thursday. “We are absolutely ecstatic to have Jordan in Florida. … I did think it was remote yesterday. That’s one of the interesting things about free agency.”
Leopold, 28, who has been in the NHL for seven seasons and played in 83 games with Colorado and Calgary last season, said there was interest from other teams but “it was a pretty easy decision” to come to Florida.
Leopold has played in 355 games in his NHL career, recording 29 goals, 80 assists and 162 penalty minutes. He was a member of the 2006 U.S. Olympic team and will be reunited in Florida with Keith Ballard, his former teammate at the University of Minnesota.
Skrastins, who spent parts of the past two seasons with the Panthers, was offered a one-year deal by Sexton. Skrastins signed a two-year contract with Dallas.
The Panthers also announced that defenseman Clay Wilson, who played in 14 games during the past two seasons for Columbus and Atlanta, signed a two-year contract. On Wednesday, the team signed defenseman Ville Koistinen, who spent last season with Buffalo. More – PalmBeachPost.com
