The Florida Panthers traded goaltender Tim Thomas and center Marcel Goc in separate deals during the final hours before Wednesday's 3 p.m. ET NHL trade deadline.
Thomas was sent to the Dallas Stars a day after Florida acquired veteran goalie and former Panther Roberto Luongo from Vancouver. From the Stars, the Panthers will receive goalie Dan Ellis, who is signed through next season.
Goc was dealt to the Pittsburgh Penguins for two draft picks. The Panthers will receive a third-round selection in 2015 -- when they will host the NHL Draft -- and a fifth-round selection this year.
Thomas, who turns 40 next month, led the Boston Bruins to a victory in the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals against Luongo and the Canucks. After taking the 2012-13 season off, Thomas signed with the Panthers over the offseason. He was 16-20-3 with a 2.87 goals-against average and a .909 save percentage in 40 games.
Thomas likely will back up Kari Lehtonen as the Stars (29-23-10) fight for a playoff berth. Dallas began Wednesday as the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference.
Goc, 30, recorded 11 goals and 12 assists in 62 games this season, his third with Florida. He's in the last year of his contract, with a cap hit of just less than $2 million.
The nine-year veteran became more expendable after the Panthers acquired center Brandon Pirri from Chicago on Sunday. Florida looks young and strong up the middle with Aleksander Barkov, Nick Bjugstad, Drew Shore and Pirri.
Goc, reliable at both ends of the ice, is excellent on face-offs and penalty killing.
You can follow Charlie McCarthy on Twitter @mccarthy_chas or email him at mac1763@bellsouth.net.
