It’s that time of year again in the NHL: trade fever season. Speculation and rumors are running rampant, and some minor deals are already starting to trickle in with the league’s Feb. 26 trade deadline only three days away.
This year’s deadline finds the Carolina Hurricanes in a bit of uncharted waters. At the first three trade deadlines under general manager Ron Francis, the Canes found themselves more or less out of the playoff picture. Francis used those deadlines to further his plan of building the Canes for the long haul, trading away players on expiring contracts for assets in the form of picks and prospects.
In year four, however, Carolina is squarely in the playoff hunt. Despite losing their past three games, to divisional opponents no less, the Canes are currently one point back of the Columbus Blue Jackets for the Eastern Conference’s final wild-card spot, and will be no worse than three points back when they return to action against the Pittsburgh Penguins Friday at PNC Arena in one of two remaining games before the deadline.
It seems very unlikely Francis will sell this year, and outside of forwards Lee Stempniak and Derek Ryan and perhaps goalie Cam Ward, the Canes don’t have much to offer in the way of enticing rentals.
Given the circumstances this year, with the Canes in the hunt to end an eight-year playoff drought that stands as the longest active in the NHL, and added financial flexibility and a desire to win now from new majority owner Tom Dundon, Francis seems much more likely to add, at least moderately, to his roster.
With the number of picks Francis and his staff have made in the past three drafts, the Canes have one of the deepest prospect pools in the NHL, and may be willing to sacrifice either one or two of those prospects or some of their picks in the upcoming draft to bring in help.
If the Canes decide to make a “hockey trade” for a bigger name, long-term piece, the team’s stable of young defensemen could come into play.
So, what do the Canes need to use these assets for? Scoring, scoring and more scoring.
Carolina ranks 26th in the NHL with 2.65 goals per game, and has struggled to put the puck in the net all year. A big part of the recent three-game losing in pivotal games against the New Jersey Devils and New York Islanders was Carolina’s anemic offense, with the team potting just four goals in the four games. Getting shut out by Isles goaltender Thomas Greiss, who currently ranks 47th out of 49 goalies who have played at least 20 games with a .891 save percentage was perhaps the low point of the team’s season.
While the team has a pair of dynamic young scorers in leading scorer Sebastian Aho and fellow Finnish forward Teuvo Teravainen, and sniper Jeff Skinner is heating up with five goals in his last five games, those producers need help.
Francis has a few options available. With the Canes still relatively early in his building process, it seems unlikely he will spend big in terms of picks and prospects to bring in a rental player that may only be with Carolina for a few months, but he does have options if he chooses to go that route.
Forwards Rick Nash and Michael Grabner of the New York Rangers and Evander Kane of the Buffalo Sabres are the top options, but all are likely very expensive. Kane is the top rental prize on this year’s market, but Sabres general manager Jason Botterill reportedly wants an arm, leg and firstborn child from a rival GM for him.
Thomas Vanek of the Vancouver Canucks represents a cheaper option, and while he’s aging and not the sniper he once was, he could still add another scoring option for the Canes, particularly on the power play.
What might appeal more to Francis is a “hockey trade” that could add a piece to the Canes’ long-term puzzle up front. In that vein, Max Pacioretty and Alex Galchenyuk of the Montreal Canadiens and Mike Hoffman of the Ottawa Senators are all reported to be available. Any of those would probably cost Francis a young blueliner off his roster, but would arguably be worth it to add scoring help for the present and future.
Heading into the 2018 NHL trade deadline, the Canes remain in the playoff hunt with a legitimate shot at playing postseason hockey for the first time since 2009. However, with games tightening up down the stretch, Carolina simply needs another scoring option. Without added help up front, the Canes will be in tough to avoid a ninth straight long summer.
