Joel Edmundson
Now, we get to the interesting stuff. Joel Edmundson, who was the roster player acquired in the Justin Faulk deal, has really had an up-and-down season in terms of his overall play in Carolina.
On one hand, he’s managed to tie his career-high in goals (7), and set new career-bests in assists (13) and points (20). He’s not an offensive creator at all, but he manages to pop up at the right place/right time for the team, and has benefited from it, statistically.
Don't let Eddy get on the rush! pic.twitter.com/Q8oDJ0AG0f
— Carolina Hurricanes (@Canes) March 7, 2020
As far as his defensive play goes, he’s had moments of good, and moments of awful. He leads all Canes’ defensemen in hits (118), and leads the team in penalty minutes (72), but I can’t say he’s been the imposing physical presence many were expecting him to be. He is, however, a regular on the penalty kill (2:48 per game) with solid results (5.2GA/60).
Beyond that, meh. It’s obvious Rod trusts him (as evidenced by his 55% defensive zone shift starts) but his Corsi percentage of 50.8 is a team-low in that regard, and his expected-goals percentage is also a team low -10.0, which is quite terrible, and proof that the Carolina Hurricanes give up far more dangerous scoring opportunities than they create when Edmundson is on the ice.
The picture those stats paint is a weird one – he’s a stay-at-home defenseman that has 20(!) even-strength points (despite poor analytical 5-on-5 stats) and has struggled at times defensively. Overall, that isn’t exactly a confidence booster if you’re committing long-term money to a guy. If his breakout offensive year is an aberration – then what exactly is this guy?
I don’t think the Carolina Hurricanes will take the chance on finding that out. They have 5 defensemen currently signed at 4M+ against the cap next year, as well as Haydn Fleury with RFA status. That gives the Canes 6 NHL D for next year, and leaves Edmundson, who’ll likely want a raise on his currently 3.1 million-dollar salary, on the outside looking in.
Edmundson will likely command a long-term deal at an increased AAV (he asked for 4.2 million at salary arbitration in August 2019) and with his breakout offensive output, could probably get a nice contract for himself on the open market.
But when considering the Carolina Hurricanes’ contract situation on D as well as Edmundson’s inconsistent play for the team as a whole, I find it very hard to envision any scenario that Edmundson is back in Raleigh next year.
Stay or Go: Go.