Florida Panthers do not Qualify Niclas Bergfors, two others

Late this afternoon, Harvey Fialkov of the Sun Sentinel (@hfialkov on Twitter) broke the news that the Florida Panthers and GM Dale Tallon had made the decision to not tender qualifying offers to Niclas Bergfors, Byron Bitz, or Steve Bernier.  The move, a surprising one for a Panthers team that is scratching and clawing to make their way to the salary cap floor, will leave the three players as unrestricted free agents heading into July 1st.

Niclas Bergfors (11) is rubbed out by Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin (8)

Although the move, for Panthers fans, may seem the right one, it raises some questions about former first round draft pick Niclas Bergfors.

Bergfors, the 23rd selection of the 2005 NHL entry draft by the New Jersey Devils, was said to be one of the big bargaining chips that was needed from the Devils in order to complete the trade that saw Russian superstar Ilya Kovalchuk head to the Swamp.  In the trade that took place in February of 2010, the Devils shipped off Bergfors along with prospect Patrice Cormier, defenceman Johnny Oduya, and a first-round selection in the 2010 entry draft for Kovlachuk and young defenceman Anssi Salmela.