February 24th, 2020: Carolina Hurricanes trade Erik Haula, Lucas Wallmark, Chase Priskie and Eetu Luostarinen to the Florida Panthers for Vincent Trocheck.
The first of the deadline deals the Carolina Hurricanes pulled the trigger on involved the Florida Panthers. Trading away Erik Haula and Lucas Wallmark off the NHL roster, along with prospects Chase Priskie and Eetu Luostarinen, the Carolina Hurricanes received Vincent Trocheck in return.
With Haula being traded, Vegas revives a 2021 5th. As a pending UFA, his return to the Canes next season was highly unlikely. Wallmark is a pending RFA, and will likely cost a bit more than Carolina would be comfortable paying this summer, so his inclusion in the deal makes sense, albeit a tough pill to swallow for Canes fans.
Lucas has been everything you could want from a depth player. He’s solid in the faceoff dot, sound defensively, and can chip in offensively. Priskie was signed this summer as a free agent, but the Keane move made him expendable. Like most the other prospects traded, Luostarinen, although having some NHL potential, didn’t have much of a future with Carolina.
Trocheck isn’t a rental by any means, and should be a nice addition to the Carolina Hurricanes’ top six. He is a few years removed from a dominant season, and will look to get back to that level of play after recovering from a serious injury. He will slot in nicely behind Sebastian Aho as the team’s second line center, allowing Brind’Amour to use Jordan Staal in a more favorable role on the third line.
February 24th, 2020: Carolina Hurricanes trade Janne Kuokkanen, Fredrik Claesson and a Conditional 2020 draft pick (4th if he plays 5 regular season games, 3rd if he plays 12 or more regular season games or 70% of the games in the playoff) to New Jersey for Sami Vatanen.
With the Carolina Hurricanes losing both Dougie Hamilton and Brett Pesce long term, they were in need for some help on the blueline. Long rumored to be interested in Sami Vatanen, they were able to agree on a deal with the Devils right before the deadline passed.
Although he’s currently on IR, Waddell expects him to be back early March. As a righty, he fills a massive void on the Canes injury-riddled defense. He will be a big upgrade on the powerplay, and should help replace some of the offense lost with Hamilton out.
The pick is conditional on how many games he plays down the stretch. Should he appear in at least five regular season games, the Devils will get a 2020 4th. If he plays 12 or more regular season games, or 70% of the games in the playoffs, the Devils will get a 2020 3rd. Otherwise, they won’t receive a pick from the Canes.
Departing from the organization is Janne Kuokkanen and Fredrik Claesson. Like Luostarinen and Gauthier, Kuokkanen wasn’t going to be a full time NHLer with Carolina. He has had a few looks up in Raleigh and hasn’t impressed much. As one of Charlotte’s best players, they took more of a hit deadline day than Carolina. Claesson earned a two way deal during training camp, but was nothing more than a depth piece.
February 24th, 2020: Carolina Hurricanes trade a 2020 1st round pick to the New York Rangers for Brady Skjei.
The final deal of the day once again saw the Carolina Hurricanes and New York Rangers swapping pieces. This time, the Hurricanes sent a 2020 1st rounder to the Rangers for defenseman Brady Skjei.
Waddell had been adamant on not giving up a first for a rental player and instead moved one of Carolina’s two firsts for a player under contract long-term. New York will get the later of the two firsts this June. To make the move work cap wise, Hamilton had to be placed on Long Term IR.
Skjei will instantly slot into the Carolina Hurricanes’ top four. He is a mobile guy who has been very consistent over his five year NHL career. At 25 years of age, he fits perfectly into the age of the Hurricanes’ core going forward.
His addition to the team rounded out all of the deals made by Waddell and Co. over the past calendar year. Some of these moves have already looked to be steals, while others look like they have the potential to be. At times, fans were a bit skeptical of the moves, but it appears as if the organization is in good hands with Tom Dundon as the owner. His commitment to winning has been noticed in the Hurricanes locker room, by fans, and around the league. It’s just a matter of time before Carolina is consistently considered a Stanley Cup contender.
Question for CC readers: Of the trades made in the last calendar year, which one do you think will have the biggest impact for the organization long term?