Carolina Hurricanes: Reviewing the Dougie Hamilton Trade

On June 23rd 2018, the Carolina Hurricanes and Calgary Flames took part in a trade that would shake the hockey landscape. What does that look like now?

Only a single day after the Carolina Hurricanes drafted future Russian superstar Andrei Svechnikov, they made a blockbuster trade with the Calgary Falmes that forever changed the team. The trade would help course correct the Carolina Hurricanes back towards the Playoffs as they changed their culture and identity.

So the official trade was:
Calgary acquire: RFA rights to Elias Lindholm, RFA rights to Noah Hanifin
Carolina acquire: Dougie Hamilton, Michael Ferland, rights to Adam Fox

Now, to digest this piece by piece. Let’s start with what Carolina gave up. Noah Hanifin first of all. The Boston native has played all of 80 games with the Flames, recording 5 goals and 28 assists. Although he was thought to be the major piece in this trade for Calgary at the time, it has come to surface that the other piece they acquired has been of far more value.

Elias Lindholm has fast become the principal point of value for Calgary in that trade, as it has become clearer over time that he has been far more productive with Calgary’s Johnny Gaudreau and Sean Monahan. He has put up 27 goals and 51 assists for 78 points through his 81 games in Calgary.

Carolina Hurricanes

In this trade, Carolina acquired Micheal Ferland who recorded 17 goals and 23 assists for 40 points in 71 games in Carolina. Ferland signed with the Vancouver Canucks in the summer of 2019, but was crucial in getting points earlier in the 2018-19 season that saw Carolina clinch it’s first playoff birth in 10 years, and it’s first Eastern Conference run in the same time span.

Carolina also acquired Dougie Hamilton who has recorded 18 goals and 21 assists for 39 points in 82 games with the Bunch of Jerks, but to start the 2019-2020 season,  He’s been a crucial part of the Canes relentless machine. He also was the most productive goal scoring blueliner in the 2019 part of the 2018-19 season.

Now, the most confusing part of this trade. Adam Fox was a pending free agent who wasn’t going to sign in Calgary, so Carolina decided to take a run at the New York native. It quickly became clear he was going to go to New York in free agency. Carolina managed to acquire a couple of picks for the pending free agent.

The Hurricanes acquired a 2019 2nd round pick and a conditional 2020 3rd round pick. The 2020 3rd round pick becomes a 2nd round pick if Adam Fox plays more than 30 games. Although we do not know for sure that Fox will play 30 games, it seems very likely as the Harvard product has become an integral piece of the Rangers blue line.

Carolina traded the Rangers 2nd round pick in 2019 (37th Overall). They acquired the 42nd overall pick and the 83rd overall pick. Pick 42 became Jamieson Rees, and pick 83 became Anttoni Honka. Both have looked incredibly bright in their young careers.

Question for Cardiac Cane readers: Who do you think won the Dougie Hamilton- Noah Hanifin trade?