Three Hurricanes that Deserve a New Contract Now

The Carolina Hurricanes will have six Free Agents this summer to who they will lose without a contract in place on 1 July. Here are three that deserve new contract now!

The Carolina Hurricanes are coming into the time of year where they will need to turn on the jets and make a play for the playoffs. Sometimes a little stability towards the future is just the motivation players need to help them turn things on.

Last season saw the Carolina Hurricanes re-sign Jordan Martinook and Teuvo Teravainen to team friendly deals midway through the season and that helped push both players towards focusing on the game. Each player signed for their own special reason and together they became special players for the Carolina Hurricanes.

This season there is a chance to do the same as the Hurricanes have three unrestricted and three restricted free agents to take care of before 1 July where the UFAs get a shot at the open market, and the UFAs get a shot at getting offer sheeted. And we all know how those deals seem to go down.

So who should get the opportunity to sign an extension with the Carolina Hurricanes this season and what kind of contract should they get? As you sip your eggnog and thank your aunt for those lovely pair of socks she seems to think you want every holiday season just because you do not have the heart to tell her that you will never wear them, take a gander at our glorious list.

Joel Edmundson

• Status: 1 Year Standard Contract, UFA 1 July
• Current Cap Hit: $3,100,000
• Age: 26

Joel Edmundson thought he was going to play for the St. Louis Blues once again when he signed a one year contract with them this last summer. Fate had other plans and a deal that involved Justin Faulk sent the chippy defender to the Carolina Hurricanes. Trading one Stanley Cup Champion team for hopefully (*knocks on wood*) another.

There is a lot to love about the way Edmundson plays. If you had told me at the beginning of the season that between him, Trevor van Riemsdyk, and Haydn Fleury, he would be the player that would not miss a single game, I wouldn’t have believed you. But fast forward to today and the numbers do not lie.

In the 37 games played so far this season he has contributed three goals and six assists for a total of nine points. He is sitting pretty at a +7 rating and has been one of the better defenders on the ice. The only problem is the 43 minutes of penalties taken that have cost the Carolina Hurricanes a game or two.

That said, there is no other reason not to bring him back to the Carolina Hurricanes on an extended contract that can see him play here for at least another three years. Now this might seem counterproductive with all the defensive talent that is currently sitting in the minor leagues, but if the right price can be procured for the Joel, this team should pursue it.

So what does the right price look like? Joel hasn’t signed anything longer than a two year contract with the blues since playing out his ELC. His current contract is only $100,000 more than the previous single year contract he signed to play in the 2018-2019 season.

For the next three years, he should be valued at no more than $3,500,000 AAV. However a full NTC or NMC is out of the question with the upcoming Seattle Expansion Draft coming up. Joel Edmundson is a great defender, but not worth protecting over the likes of Jaccob Slavin and Brett Pesce. Waddell would be smart to rather let him walk if he asks for those clauses.

Warren Foegele

• Status: 3 year ELC, RFA 1 July
• Current Cap Hit: $746,667
• Age: 23

Warren Foegele is criminally underrated this season. That is what happens when you are on a team of guys that includes Sebastian Aho and Andrei Svechnikov. You have to respect the grind he brings to the game day in and day out. In fact, with help from the aforementioned Svechnikov and Jordan Staal, Foegele is one of the best lines in the whole league:

But now his ELC is coming to a close. Warren Foegele will soon need to have a new contract. Now granted he is a RFA and they have until well into next season to secure him a new contract. But Why wait? Why not give him a reason to double down his focus and continue to grind and chip away helping guys like Staal and Svechnikov secure their position on the team?

So what would a new contract for Warren Foegele look like? Not much history to look back at with him. Perhaps a similar player on the team can help establish his value. I am talking of course of Brock McGinn, who signed last offseason before going into arbitration for $2,100,000 for two years. I can see Foegele getting something similar but for a little more value.

In fact I would say that a two year $2,500,000 deal is exactly the value the team needs to secure him at now and save themselves the trouble of going into the offseason with Foegele possibly applying for arbitration like McGinn did.

Considering his age and his high ceiling I can understand if that new contract came with an NMC or NTC. After all I would protect him during the upcoming Seattle Expansion Draft. He is a big part of this team moving forward and quite honestly, a big part of the success we see today.