Jason Demers is Heading to South Florida

The Florida Panthers seem to be loading up on a lot of good players. And today, they just got themselves another defenseman.

Today, the Panthers announced that they have signed Jason Demers to a five-year contract. The deal is reported to be worth $4.5 million per season. That's actually a good value, considering that Demers is somewhat of an average player that can really help a team have success.

Demers had seven goals and 16 assists in 62 goals for the Dallas Stars last season. He can move the puck very well and he could possibly help in the Panthers transition game as well as on the power play and penalty kill squads.

Demers joins many new faces on defense for the Panthers, along with Keith Yandle and Mark Pysyk, as well as returning defenseman Aaron Ekblad.

The Panthers are certainly doing their homework and figuring out what they need to do to improve their team and I believe that getting Demers helps them. In an earlier blog post, I questioned the Stars' recent free agent moves, like trading away Alex Goligoski and signing Dam Hamhuis, but now I'm questioning why they didn't take any serious interest in resigning Jason Demers? Either way, the Panthers won out on a good deal with Jason Demers and that is why the Panthers are still one of my winners in NHL free agency so far: They know how to find good talent to improve themselves. Look for that to help them next season.