The next seven days could go down as a time period that changed the fortunes of the Carolina Hurricanes for years to come. With the NHL Entry Draft less than a week away, and trade rumors swirling, a team seeking to end a nine-year playoff drought faces a number of key decisions.
The first choice should be a fairly easy one. Thanks to some serious good luck in the lottery, the Canes moved up from the 11th overall pick to the second, the highest pick they’ve had since taking future star center and team captain Eric Staal second in 2003.
Getting a top-two pick allows a team to land a potential generational talent that can help turn things around. Friday night’s pick definitely holds that possibility for the Hurricanes, and it’s fairly obvious who the choice should be.
Assuming the Buffalo Sabres select Swedish defenseman Rasmus Dahlin at No. 1, Hurricanes general manager Don Waddell’s first draft pick of his tenure should be Russian right winger Andrei Svechnikov.
Svechnikov, who scored 40 goals in 44 games as an OHL rookie for the Barrie Colts, would bring some much-needed offensive punch to a lineup that ranked 23rd in the league in goals per game last season.
By all accounts, he’s ready to contribute at the NHL level right away. A scout quoted in The Hockey News magazine said he has “all the pro tools” and can “beat you with power and skill.” Svechnikov definitely brings a blend of size, at 6-foot-3 and 187 pounds, and talent, and a scoring power forward is near the top of the need list for the Canes.
In Svechnikov, Carolina has a chance to draft the type of homegrown star a team can build around and count on to lead the way for the long haul. It’s all but a lock Svechnikov will be the Canes’ pick, with Waddell telling the News and Observer that he expects to take him if the team stays put at No. 2 and someone doesn’t blow him away with a trade offer for the pick.
Of course, drafting Svechnikov is not the only potential game-changing move the Canes could make this week. With draft week comes trade talk.
With owner Tom Dundon looking to make changes in his first offseason and essentially declaring that no one but forward Sebastian Aho is untouchable, a few big-name Hurricanes are front and center of this year’s speculation.
Forward Jeff Skinner is reportedly being shopped, with TSN’s Bob McKenzie saying he’s very likely to be dealt. The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun reported Waddell is asking for a first-round pick and prospect for Skinner.
Dealing Skinner, who has just one year left on his contract and has been in Carolina for eight years without seeing the postseason, and giving him a change of scenery definitely makes some sense. The Canes; however, need to be sure to maximize their return for arguably the best natural goal scorer on their roster.
Another pair of players rumored to be available are blueliners Justin Faulk and Noah Hanifin. Faulk, though coming off a down year, is a good offensive defenseman who would likely garner plenty of interest and a strong return.
Hanifin, the fifth overall pick in 2015, is a restricted free agent and a talented young blueliner with room to grow. While they could get a good return for Hanifin, it may make more sense to deal Faulk and try and lock up Hanifin as part of the long-term future. Dealing one or the other, however, definitely makes sense to try and leverage a position of strength for needed help at forward or in net.
Speaking of which, the Canes are in the goalie hunt again. With Cam Ward a free agent and Scott Darling coming off a miserable first year in Carolina, the team will likely need to add another netminder.
LeBrun reported that the Canes are interested in Washington Capitals backup Philipp Grubauer. Grubauer is a restricted free agent, and, with a career .923 save percentage and 2.29 goals-against average in six seasons, may be ready to get out from under Braden Holtby’s shadow in Washington and try his hand at a full-time starting job.
There are also always a few surprise names that become available the week of the draft, and with Waddell and Dundon apparently in deal mode, the Canes’ projected opening-night lineup could look dramatically different after the coming days.
The NHL Entry Draft brings an opportunity like no other for teams to make moves to turn things around. If the Canes can play their cards right both at the draft podium in Dallas and working the phones with rival GMs, the 2018 draft could be remembered as a turning point for the franchise for years to come.
