Carolina Hurricanes Free Agent Frenzy
By Jenny Lana
Carolina Hurricanes sign veterans Stempniak and Stalberg. Along with Tennyson and Miller.
The Carolina Hurricanes didn’t make any blockbuster signings on July 1st. Like most Caniacs, I expected something big, since Ron Francis said he wasn’t going to buyout anyone, and then at the last minute on the day before free agency news broke that the Carolina Hurricanes bought out defenseman James Wisniewski. Anyways the signings that did happen I’m pretty happy about. The Carolina Hurricanes announced the signing of Lee Stempniak, Viktor Stalberg, Andrew Miller and Matt Tennyson.
[related post=”Carolina Hurricanes buyout James Wisniewski” url=”https://cardiaccane.com/2016/06/30/carolina-hurricanes-buyout-defenseman-james-wisniewski/”]
Lee Stempniak
On Friday, mere hours after the free agent market opened, Stempniak signed a two-year, $5 million contract with the Carolina Hurricanes. He’s a veteran guy who is a great guy on the ice and in the locker room.
“Carolina was one of the teams we identified right away as being a good fit where I could play and be an important player,” Stempniak said in a Friday evening phone interview. “I’m very excited about joining Carolina with the young players they have.”
Lee Stempniak went on to put up his best numbers since 2006-07, his second season in the NHL. He posted 51 points (19g, 32a) and was the Devils leading scorer with 41 points before they flipped him for two of Boston’s draft picks at the trade deadline.
Stempniak is excited about the potential that the Carolina Hurricanes have with the talent on the team and the young guys.
http://hurricanes.nhl.com/club/m_news.htm?id=888437
Viktor Stalberg
At 6-foot-3 and 209 pounds, Stalberg adds size and depth to the Hurricanes’ forward corps. He tallied 20 points (9g, 11a) in 75 games with the New York Rangers last season and inked a one-year, $1.5 million contract with the Hurricanes.
Stalberg, 30, appeared in 75 games for the New York Rangers in 2015-16, netting nine goals and adding 11 assists (20 points). The Gothenburg, Sweden, native has totaled 152 points (71g, 81a) in 413 career NHL games with Toronto, Chicago, Nashville and the New York Rangers.
Prior to turning professional, Stalberg was finalist for the 2009 Hobey Baker Award (top collegiate player) for the University of Vermont, where he totaled 84 points (41g, 43a) in 117 games. He is also a 2013 Stanley Cup Champion with the Chicago Blackhawks.
http://hurricanes.nhl.com/club/m_news.htm?id=888172
Andrew Miller
The Carolina Hurricanes announced they have agreed to terms with forward Andrew Miller on a one-year, two-way contract. The deal will pay Miller $650,000 at the NHL level, or $200,000 at the American Hockey League (AHL) level, with a guarantee of $250,000.
Miller has scored 53 goals and earned 86 assists (139 points) in 170 career regular-season AHL games with Oklahoma City, Bakersfield and Charlotte. The Oilers signed Miller as a free agent following his four-year collegiate career at Yale University where he captured the NCAA championship with the Bulldogs in 2013.
http://hurricanes.nhl.com/club/m_news.htm?id=888205
Matt Tennyson
The Carolina Hurricanes have agreed to terms with defenseman Matt Tennyson on a one-year, two-way contract. The deal will pay Tennyson $675,000 on the NHL level or $275,000 in the American Hockey League (AHL) in 2016-17.
“Matt gives us added depth on the blueline, as a right-shot defenseman who has proven he can play at the NHL level,” said Francis.
Matt has earned 65 points (17g, 48a) in 169 career AHL games with Worchester and San Jose. He has played in four NHL games under his belt with the San Jose Sharks (1g, 3a); and was also a member of the San Jose Jr Sharks team.
http://hurricanes.nhl.com/club/m_news.htm?id=888532
Would I like to see some of my favorites resigned? Hell yeah, but I don’t think that’ll be the case. I would like to see what else Ron Francis has up his sleeve in terms of signing and re-signing players. I still don’t understand the Wisniewski buyout as previously stated, but I’m sure it’ll be worth it in the end and hopefully this team will be a Stanley Cup Playoff contender and prove every hater wrong.