Florida Panthers center Stephen Weiss will undergo wrist surgery that will end his season, according to NHL.com. The team’s general manager Dale Tallon made the announcement on Tuesday morning.

Weiss, 29, has had ongoing issues with the wrist all season long which has hampered his performance on the ice. The former first-round (fourth overall) pick has had just one goal and four points in 17 games this season. Weiss scored at least 20 goals in each of the past three seasons. He’s gone through recent difficulties including a benching and the death of his grandmother.

FLA can't catch a break lately. If healthy, Weiss would've been major trade deadline (rental) chip to play. Now he's gone to UFA in July.—
Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) March 05, 2013

Can't blame Weiss for shutting it down. Wrist has really limited him. Needs to be healthy by summer to get a new contract in UFA.—
Bob McKenzie (@TSNBobMcKenzie) March 05, 2013

Florida Panthers goaltender Jose Theodore has a torn groin and could miss the remainder of the 2013 NHL season, RDS’ Renaud Lavoie reported on Sunday.

Theodore was injured just more than two minutes into Saturday’s game against the Carolina Hurricanes when he kicked out his right pad to stop Jussi Jokinen on a 2-on-1 rush. If he needs surgery on the injury, he’ll likely have to miss the rest of the season.

Theodore, a veteran of more than 16 NHL seasons, was only 4-6-3 in 15 games with the Panthers this season. His 3.29 goals against average was his worst mark in that area since the 2005-06 season with the Montreal Canadiens, and he had an .893 save percentage.

The Panthers called up 23-year-old top prospect Jacob Markstrom to replace Theodore. The Panthers’ current backup is Scott Clemmensen, who is only 2-2-2 with a 4.31 GAA and .857 save percentage.

If the Panthers’ goaltenders continue to struggle, it could reignite trade rumors involving Vancouver’s Roberto Luongo. The Panthers sit tied for last place in the Eastern Conference, though they’re only six points behind the eighth-place Philadelphia Flyers.

Torn right groin for #panthers Jose Theodore last night. Question is if he’ll need a surgery or not. Season in jeopardy. Bad timing. #RDS

— Renaud Lavoie (@RenLavoieRDS) March 3, 2013

The Panthers’ playoff chances may affect the team’s desire to trade Stephen Weiss before he becomes a free agent. (Eliot J. Schechter/Getty Images)

A 1-4 start to a shortened season has placed center and alternate captain Stephen Weiss in the middle of Florida Panthers trade talk, according to reports via The Hockey News.

Last week, Bruce Garrioch of the Ottawa Sun pointed to the team’s lack of cash to re-sign their alternate captain in reporting trade “talk” about Weiss days after he was removed from the Panthers lineup on Jan. 24. The team responded to Twitter trade speculation with a report that he had suffered a lower-body injury.

The Panthers aren’t expected to shop Weiss and his six-year, $18.6 million contract in the event they can rebound and make a playoff run, but they will feel the weight of possibly losing him as a free agent if they continue to lose this season.

CBSSports.com’s Brian Stubits likens the Panthers’ dilemma to their situation with Jay Bouwmeester a few years ago.

The Panthers rolled the dice then and hung onto Bouwmeester in an attempt to make the playoffs. They just missed and Bouwmeester’s rights were traded to Calgary in the summer. It’s a different group in Florida’s front office now but surely they know the risks and potential rewards in this scenario.

If the Panthers opt to trade Weiss, their first choice might be the Canucks as part of a deal for goalie Roberto Luongo. Weiss’ control via a “no-movement” clause and the Canucks’ desire to re-sign him could be obstacles for such a swap.

Vancouver Canucks goaltender Roberto Luongo has been on the trading block since well before the June draft, but September has rolled around and he’s no closer to finding a new home.

Luongo did, however, tell Harvey Fialkov of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel on Tuesday that he would love to return to his former team, the Florida Panthers.

“[Florida] makes sense for myself, for my career and my family,” said Luongo, who still has 10 years remaining on his contract. “This is a preferred location for obvious reasons, but I’m not shutting the door on other possibilities.”

Luongo makes his off-season home in South Florida. He still holds Panthers franchise records for games played by a goalie, wins and shutouts.

The Florida Panthers have acquired forward Wojtek Wolski from the New York Rangers in exchange for a 2013 draft pick and a minor league defenseman, according to NHL.com.

Wolski has appeared in just nine games this season for the Rangers, recording three assists. The report states that he is in the final year of a $3.8 million contract.

“We are very pleased to have acquired Wojtek,” Florida general manager Dale Tallon said, according to the report. “He is a skilled forward with scoring ability who will fit in very well to our lineup.”

The Rangers received little in return, but they will no longer have to pay Wolski’s contract, which has been speculated as a potential reason for the deal.

The Florida Panthers have acquired forward Jarred Smithson from the Nashville Predators, according to the Associated Press.

The trade was announced Friday, and Nashville will get a sixth-round draft pick in the 2012 draft in return.

Smithson appeared in 497 games for the Predators, which is sixth in franchise history.

Florida Panthers goalie Jose Theodore will miss at least two weeks with a knee injury, according to Renaud Lavoie.

#panthers José Théodore (knee) will be out for two weeks. Could be longer.—
Renaud P Lavoie (@renhockey) January 03, 2012

Theodore was injured in Florida’s game with the Montreal Canadiens when two players collided with him. He left the game and did not return.

Head coach Kevin Dineen has announced that Jacob Markstrom will get the start in place of Theodore, who was having one of his finest seasons in goal.