BOSTON – The Florida Panthers traded forwards Nathan Horton and Gregory Campbell to the Boston Bruins on Tuesday for defenseman Dennis Wideman, the No. 15 pick in this weekend’s NHL draft and a third-round selection next year.

The 25-year-old Horton had 20 goals and 37 assists in 65 games last season. In a conference call with reporters, new Panthers general manager Dale Tallon said Horton expressed interest in a trade.

“He obviously was frustrated with what’s gone on in the past and was leaning toward maybe if we could help him out, seeing what was out there for him. And that’s how this all began,” Tallon said. “We’ve got to move forward here. We’re certainly not in a position to sit still. … We have a lot of work to do.”

Horton has scored at least 20 goals in five straight seasons, including 31 in 2006-07.

Boston scored only 206 goals last season, the fewest in the Eastern Conference. Florida was next with 208.

“Nathan is a big, powerful young man,” said Bruins GM Peter Chiarelli. “He is a shooter who plays a power game.”

Campbell, 26, played in 60 games with the Panthers last season, posting two goals and 15 assists.

Wideman increased his point total in every season of his career until this one, when he dropped from 50 points to 30 and a career-low six goals.

“Dennis had a terrific three years in Boston. He hit a couple of bumps along the way this past year. This happens sometimes with skill players and their confidence,” Chiarelli said. “He rebounded to be one of our best players in the stretch run and in the playoffs. He is a clutch competitor and is one of the best passers in the game.”

 

SHARKS: San Jose is cutting ties with goalie Evgeni Nabokov.

GM Doug Wilson said the team told Nabokov he will not be offered a contract when he becomes an unrestricted free agent next month.

Nabokov has been one of the top goalies in the league the past few years, winning an NHL-best 131 games over the past three seasons. He has a 293-215-29 record in 10 seasons with the Sharks, with a 2.39 goals-against average. He helped the Sharks reach the Western Conference final this year, where they were swept by Chicago.

 

OILERS: Tom Renney replaced Pat Quinn as coach.

Quinn was removed as coach after his team finished with the worst record in the league in his first season. He was assigned to the front office as a senior adviser.

 

CANADIENS: Montreal signed leading scorer Tomas Plekanec to a six-year contract.

Financial terms weren’t immediately available. Plekanec, a center, was eligible to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1.

 

DUCKS: Defenseman Scott Niedermayer, who helped lead Anaheim to its only Stanley Cup title in 2007 and was named MVP of the playoffs that year, is retiring.

Niedermayer, 36, is the Ducks’ captain and a four-time Stanley Cup champion with New Jersey and Anaheim.

He has 172 goals and 568 assists in an 18-year NHL career, the last five seasons spent with the Ducks.

 

THE NHL Players’ Association is extending its current collective bargaining agreement with the league through the 2011-12 season.

The decision to stretch the agreement for another season was made during the union’s executive board meeting on Tuesday. The CBA was originally set to expire after the upcoming season, but the players’ association exercised its right to extend it for a seventh year.

The players also voted to retain the five percent growth factor for next season, which ensures the salary cap will rise for a fifth straight time.

As part of the CBA, the players may include five percent of growth in calculations for the following season’s cap once revenues exceed $2.1 billion.

The current cap of $56.8 million is expected to rise to about $59 million. The official number will be announced before the free-agent signing period begins on July 1.

 

THE HOCKEY HALL of Fame is no longer just for male inductees.

Cammi Granato and Angela James changed that when they became the first women elected to be enshrined in Toronto. Along with former NHL All-Star Dino Ciccarelli, Granato and James will go in as part of the players category during an induction ceremony in November.

Longtime Red Wings executive Jimmy Devellano and the late Daryl (Doc) Seaman — a founding owner of the Calgary Flames — were elected as builders.

While women had always been eligible for induction, the Hall made it easier for them to be voted in when it established a women’s subcategory this year.

Eric Lindros and Joe Nieuwendyk were potential contenders among NHL players in their first year of eligibility, but weren’t elected.

Granato played on the U.S. women’s hockey team for 15 years and led the club to a gold medal at the 1998 Nagano Olympics.

Her brother, Tony, played and coached in the NHL.

 

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