Panthers could land Hellebuyck, and Brian Hayes says the NHL should worry

Connor Hellebuyck's name landed in Florida Panthers rumors on Thursday's Overdrive, and TSN's Brian Hayes did not sound thrilled about it.

Hayes did not hold back on the panel, comparing a Hellebuyck landing spot in Florida to something baseball fans know all too well.

"If he ends up in Florida, you got a Dodgers situation," Hayes said, live on set Thursday evening.

The Panthers already carry Matthew Tkachuk at 9,500,000 and Seth Jones at that same number on their cap sheet.

Brady Tkachuk sits at 8,205,714, and Brad Marchand adds another 5,250,000, all before anyone talks about a franchise goalie.

Hellebuyck isn't cheap either. Winnipeg carries his cap hit at 8,500,000, fourth-highest among NHL goaltenders, behind only Igor Shesterkin, Sergei Bobrovsky and Andrei Vasilevskiy.

He posted 18 wins in 57 appearances this past season, with a .895 save percentage that still holds up against anyone in the league.

Why Florida's tax edge keeps scaring the rest of the NHL

Florida's lack of state income tax has been the league's open secret for years. Teams rarely say it out loud. Hayes just did, on live television.

The Panthers finished 40-38-4 this past season, good for 84 points and a -25 goal differential, numbers that don't exactly scream dynasty.

They closed the year on a three-game winning streak, capped by an 8-1 rout of Detroit, and still finished 25th overall in the league.

Winnipeg's side of the ledger looks rougher. The Jets stumbled to a 35-35-12 finish and finished 26th overall under Scott Arniel.

They closed the season with a 1-6 loss to San Jose, the fourth straight defeat to end the year.

Stacking a franchise goalie on top of Marchand, Jones and both Tkachuk brothers turns competitive balance into a punchline. All players acquired.

Nothing is signed, nothing is official, and Hellebuyck has not said a word about Florida publicly. But Hayes put the question out there on live television, and it is not going away quietly.