Rantanen was acquired in a trade with the Colorado Avalanche on Friday for forwards Jack Drury and Martin Necas, along with a second-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft and a fourth-round pick in the 2026 NHL Draft. Hall was acquired from the Chicago Blackhawks for a third-round pick in the 2025 Draft.

After missing each of the last seven games, top-pair defenseman Aaron Ekblad will return to the blue line for the Florida Panthers when they face-off against the San Jose Sharks at SAP Center on Saturday.

A crucial piece on the blue line, Ekblad, despite missing time due to his injury, still leads Florida’s defensemen in both assists (18) and points (20). He also ranks third in hits (59) and blocked shots (56), while averaging a team-leading 23:32 of ice time per contest.

After a strong first period in which they scored two goals in less than a minute, the San Jose Sharks went south quick and hard Saturday night in a 7-2 loss to the visiting Florida Panthers.

The Florida Panthers could have defenseman Aaron Ekblad back in the lineup tonight against the San Jose Sharks, coach Paul Maurice said. Ekblad has missed eight games, including the past seven, after blocking a shot against the Penguins in the first period on Jan.

Florida Panthers defenseman Aaron Ekblad (upper body) is good to go for Saturday's game against the San Jose Sharks. After missing eight of the last nine games, Ekblad came through Friday's practice session without any issues.

Matthew Tkachuk scored once in a three-point outing while Aaron Ekblad collected one goal and one assist in his return to the lineup to pace the visiting Florida Panthers to a 7-2 victory over the San Jose Sharks on Saturday.

Good to go against Sharks

Never a huge goal-scorer, Granlund is on pace to hit 20 for the third time in his 13-year career and the first since 2017-18 with Minnesota. But the 32-year-old has been a point producer with the Sharks. He’s leading the team with 44 points in 51 contests after a scoring a team-high 60 points in 69 games last season.

Cody Ceci and Will Smith scored for the Sharks (14-32-6), who have lost six straight and nine of ten. Alexandar Georgiev allowed four goals on 15 shots before being pulled early in the second period for Yaroslav Askarov, who stopped 14 of 17 shots in relief.

(AP) — Defenseman Aaron Ekblad had a goal and an assist in his return from an upper-body injury and the Florida Panthers routed the San Jose Sharks 7-2 on Saturday night. Matthew Tkachuk had a ...