Revisiting the Panthers’ Trade of Nathan Horton to the Bruins

In 2010, Florida Panthers general manager Dale Tallon and Boston Bruins general manager Peter Chiarelli made a deal with ramifications for both franchises for a few seasons. On June 22, the Panthers acquired Dennis Wideman, a 2010 first-round pick and a 2011 third-round pick in exchange for Nathan Horton and Gregory Campbell.

Nathan Horton with Florida

With the Panthers, after being selected third overall in the 2003 draft, Nathan Horton played six seasons with the club. Over those six seasons, he appeared in 422 games and registered 142 goals and 153 assists for 295 points. He finished his run as a Panther at plus-27 and posted 382 penalty minutes.

He had 74 power-play points while with the club, contributed five short-handed goals, and placed 42nd in Selke Trophy voting in the 2007-08 campaign. As a young player, he was a valued contributor from the get-go, starting in his age-18 season, but was ultimately dealt to Boston before his age-25 season.

Nathan Horton with Boston

With the Bruins, Nathan Horton certainly left an impact and was a critical piece on the route to the Stanley Cup championship. After the deal that sent him to the Bruins, he appeared in parts of three seasons and played 169 games. In that time, he totalled 56 goals and 51 assists for 107 points. He finished as a plus-30 and concluded his run with 161 penalty minutes.

He helped the Bruins capture the Cup and appeared in 43 playoff games and posted 15 goals and 21 assists for 36 points with the franchise. He was a key piece across their deep playoff runs and was vital to their success.

Gregory Campbell with Florida

With the Panthers over parts of six seasons, Campbell appeared in 363 games. In that run, he registered 29 goals and 56 assists for 85 points, a minus-39 rating, and 312 penalty minutes. He was able to provide a physical presence with 516 hits. He played with the Panthers from his age-20 season through his age-26 season before heading to Boston.

Gregory Campbell with Boston

As a member of the Bruins, his highlight was being on the Cup championship team, but was with the team for parts of five seasons. He played in 358 games and contributed 39 goals and 52 assists for 91 points. He finished his Bruins tenure as a plus-12 and with 306 penalty minutes, and even tacked on eight shorthanded points. He had four points during the Bruins’ Stanley Cup push across 25 games.

Dennis Wideman with Florida

In his part of one season with the Florida Panthers, Wideman was a valuable defenseman appearing in 61 games and recording nine goals and 24 assists for 33 points. That season, he finished with a minus-26 rating and 33 penalty minutes. He had 135 shots on goal in his time as a Panther, and didn’t finish the season with them as he was dealt to the Capitals on Feb. 28 in exchange for Jake Hauswirth and a 2011 third-round pick.

Dennis Wideman with Boston

While with the Bruins, Wideman played parts of four seasons, totalling 256 games. Over that stretch, he had 33 goals and 86 assists for 119 points, a plus-26 rating, 165 penalty minutes. He contributed 58 power-play points on Bruins’ back end and madfe some post-season appearances, but was ultimately moved out before the two long successful runs, including the Stanley Cup championship.

Nick Bjugstad

Part of this deal netted the Panthers draft pick capital. The biggest piece was a first-round pick in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft. The Florida Panthers using the first round pick they got from Boston, moved around the draft board ultimately selecting Nick Bjugstad 19th overall. The pick they received from Boston was 15 and in moving down four spots received additional draft capital.

While with the Panthers, Nick Bjugstad appeared in 394 games and registered a combined 87 goals and 104 assists for a total of 191 points. He finished his Panthers tenure as a minus-49 and with a total of 176 penalty minutes. He concluded his run with 43 power-play points while with the Panthers. His eventual move away from the Panthers was part of a bigger deal that sent Jared McCann to the Penguins in return for Derrick Brassard, Riley Sheahan, and additional draft picks.

Kyle Rau

The Panthers used the third-round pick to select Kyle Rau 90th overall, and he played parts of two seasons. In that time, he played 33 games and had two goals and one assist for three points. He finished his Panthers tenure as a minus-4 and with six penalty minutes. He averaged 10:25 of time on ice per game. He eventually moved on from the Panthers and joined the Wild as a free agent.

This deal helped set up the Bruins for two deep playoff runs, including a Stanley Cup championship in 2011, in which Nathan Horton and Gregory Campbell were key contributors. The Panthers used this deal to build for the future and got some viable contributors for a decent run but ultimately didn’t reach the same level of team success the Bruins did as a direct result of this deal.