The Florida Panthers announced they have invited veteran forward Martin Havlat to training camp on a professional try out.
Havlat spent last season with the New Jersey Devils, scoring 5 goals and 9 assists in 40 games.
The 34-year-old was originally drafted by the Ottawa Senators, 25th overall, in the 1999 Entry Draft and has appeared in 788 career NHL regular season games, racking up 241 goals and 593 points. In addition to suiting up for the Sens and Devils, Havlat has spent time with the Chicago Blackhawks, Minnesota Wild and San Jose Sharks.
The move, coming one day after the club signed David Booth to a PTO, is somewhat surprising as Panthers GM Dale Tallon and Havlat failed to come to an extension when both were with the Blackhawks after the Czech was named Team MVP after the 2008-09 season. A move that left a bitter Havlat tweeting:
@UhLeasha Didn’t leave them…they left me.
— Martin Havlat (@martinhavlat) July 4, 2009
I guess time heals all wounds. Welcome aboard, Marty!
This is shaping up to be a very interesting training camp, indeed. The Panthers will open camp on September 17.