The Carolina Hurricanes were among the National Hockey League’s biggest stories in the 2018 off-season. The team underwent many changes, but the free agent acquisition of defenseman Calvin de Haan has perhaps been Don Waddell’s most unheralded move.
With as many roster changes as the Carolina Hurricanes underwent – from the draft day trade for Michael Ferland and Dougie Hamilton, to parting with longtime netminder Cam Ward – they remained a frequent topic of discussion for hockey pundits over the course of the 2018 off-season. However, with those headline moves and the draft selection of Andrei Svechnikov taking most of the column inches, one addition casually gets over looked on and off the ice: defenseman Calvin de Haan.
De Haan came to Raleigh by way of Metropolitan Division rivals the New York Islanders. His signing was almost seen as an afterthought due to the abundance of right-handed shooting defenseman on the Carolina Hurricanes roster. Any discussion into the addition of Calvin de Haan was seen as almost a lead in to the frequently asked question, “Where is Justin Faulk going?”
The reaction to de Haan signature after news of his arrival has since been mirrored by the acknowledgement of his play on the ice. At the time of writing de Haan ranks joint first on the Carolina Hurricanes in hits with 117, and third on the team in blocks with 73, just two behind the leader Jaccob Slavin. De Haan does all this, while playing an effective 19:27 a night and maintaining an excellent +8 rating. His Corsi For % is 55.1%, behind only Dougie Hamilton on the Canes’ blueline, and he sits third on the team in takeaways with 44. All in all, he’s proven to be a quality addition to what was already a very good Carolina Hurricanes defense. We awarded him a B- in our mid-season report card, but he’s well-positioned to gain an even better grade if his recent performances continue.
While de Haan’s impact often does not directly affect the scoreboard, he complicates scoring for
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opposing teams and is a steady stay-at-home defenseman on the blueline, something which the Carolina Hurricanes have lacked since Ron Hainsey‘s departure at the 2017 trade deadline. De Haan’s steady blue line presence frees up the much maligned fanbase whipping boy Justin Faulk to play the attacking game that made him a 3 time All-Star. It is no co-incidence that Faulk is having a rebound year now that he has such a dependable partner alongside him.
There are surprisingly very few rivals for Calvin de Haan for the accolade of the Carolina Hurricanes’ best UFA signing in recent years. Petr Mrazek has been a solid signing, but hasn’t had the impact that de Haan has; Justin Williams re-joined the team in 2017 and has almost had as much impact off the ice as on the ice; Lee Stempniak was fine for a season after he signed in 2016. 2011’s marquee signing, Tomas Kaberle, didn’t work out, nor did 2010’s return for Anton Babchuk. With such a barren run of UFA success, it’s clear that de Haan is already one of the best UFA signings the Canes have made in the last ten years – and he’s already rivalling Justin Williams for the title of ‘best UFA signing’.
We look forward to seeing Calvin de Haan continue his Carolina Hurricanes career, and look forward to seeing whether Don Waddell can repeat his success in next summer’s free agency.