Vernon Traded to Panthers

Goalie Mike Vernon, a winner of two Stanley Cups, was traded from the San Jose Sharks to the Florida Panthers on Thursday in a three-way deal.

The New York Rangers also were in on the trade, which saw Florida right wing Radek Dvorak joining the Rangers and forward Todd Harvey and a fourth-rounder in 2001 going from New York to San Jose. Florida also receives a third-round pick from San Jose in the upcoming draft.

Vernon, 36, was replaced by Steve Shields as the Sharks’ starting goaltender this year. He had a 6-5-1 record and a 2.49 goals-against average in 15 starts.

Vernon, who won Stanley Cup titles with Calgary in 1989 and Detroit in 1997, fills a need for Florida. Starting goaltender Trevor Kidd is out for two months after dislocating his shoulder Dec. 13.

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Scoring and league-wide attendance are each at three-year highs. In 513 games through Dec. 29, the 28 teams produced 2,759 goals. Average attendance in those games was 16,144. The average was 16,130 at the same stage last season. . . . The News & Observer of Raleigh said restricted free agent and holdout center Keith Primeau would have been traded Tuesday but, according to unnamed sources, Carolina owner Peter Karmanos blocked the deal. The trade would have sent Primeau, an unnamed minor-league player and two draft picks to Phoenix for either Jeremy Roenick or Keith Tkachuk.