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A new rumor has arisen regarding the Hurricanes search for defensemen

By Conor Power

TORONTO, ON - FEBRUARY 7: Tony DeAngelo #77 of the Carolina Hurricanes warms up prior to playing against the Toronto Maple Leafs in an NHL game at Scotiabank Arena on February 7, 2022 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images)
TORONTO, ON - FEBRUARY 7: Tony DeAngelo #77 of the Carolina Hurricanes warms up prior to playing against the Toronto Maple Leafs in an NHL game at Scotiabank Arena on February 7, 2022 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Claus Andersen/Getty Images) /
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ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA – OCTOBER 18: Jordan Staal #11 of the Carolina Hurricanes shoots the puck past Hampus Lindholm #47 of the Anaheim Ducks during the second period of a game at Honda Center on October 18, 2019, in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA – OCTOBER 18: Jordan Staal #11 of the Carolina Hurricanes shoots the puck past Hampus Lindholm #47 of the Anaheim Ducks during the second period of a game at Honda Center on October 18, 2019, in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) /

Hampus Lindholm

We start with a player that currently calls Orange County, California home. The Anaheim Ducks selected Hampus Lindholm. Lindholm was the sixth overall pick of the Ducks back in 2012. With the 28-year-old left-handed defenseman set to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of the year and if the Ducks cannot agree to a deal with the player, they could potentially move on from him before the trade deadline.

Of the three defensemen that  I’m going to end up talking about here, Lindholm is by far the most complete of the trio. Fantastic in his own zone and a player with no real weakness in his game, Lindholm can play in all situations and plays a 200-foot game. When Hampus Lindholm is at his best, he’s one of the better defensemen in the NHL and completely deserving of his top pairing minutes.

I say when he’s at his best for a reason. Lindholm has issues, and it’s not even that the level of his play fluctuates. It’s that he’s got a long list of injuries in his past. A fantastic player, but he’s got trouble staying in the lineup. In his career, Lindholm has never played a complete 82 game season. He’s come close several times, but he was also a much younger player when he did it. He played 80 in 2015-16.

if you acquire Lindholm (assuming nothing moves off the roster to do it) he’s very likely the 2LD moving forward. He’s just too complete to have on the bottom pair, and it allows you to even have the option of playing defensemen on their offside while some are still out injured. You could also arguably play Lindholm on the top pair and flip 74 to his offside, where he played a little at the end of the 2019-20 season.

To go out and get Lindholm, that’s not going to be cheap. It’s likely going to cost someone like Ryan Suzuki, possibly a Noel Gunler or an Aleksi Heimosalmi and picks. He won’t be cheap, but the Canes have the prospect pool to do this and add to the roster without damaging the future excessively. It’s a very enjoyable situation for the team to be in.

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