Rangers Trade Wojtek Wolski To The Panthers

NEW YORK (AP) — The Rangers traded exiled forward Wojtek Wolski to the Florida Panthers for minor league defenseman Michael Vernace and a third-round pick in the 2013 draft.

The deal was completed Saturday, two days before the NHL trade deadline.

Wolski has been a disappointment since being acquired by New York from Phoenix for popular defenseman Michal Rozsival on Jan. 10, 2011. The 26-year-old left winger played in only nine games for the Rangers this season, posting no goals and three assists.

He missed 27 games between Nov. 5-Jan. 5 because of sports hernia surgery and managed to get into the New York lineup for only three games since recovering. Wolski's final game with the Rangers was Jan. 15 at Montreal.

Vernace has skated in 348 career AHL games with Albany, Lake Erie, Chicago, Hamilton, Norfolk, and San Antonio, posting 18 goals and 97 assists. He was chosen by San Jose in the seventh round of the 2004 draft.