Ranking every 2021-22 Hurricanes player

The 2021-22 Carolina Hurricanes season has been one of the best in franchise history, and the depth of the Hurricanes lineup has been a major factor in that. In this article, I am going to attempt to rank every Hurricanes player based on performance over the course of this season.

I am not going to rank any of the COVID/injury call-ups because their sample size was so small, but shout out to Jack Drury and company on an amazing 2-game stretch.

I will leave a link here to Hockey-Reference. If you want to look at anything more about any of the players, there’s a link for you.

Honorable mention:

Jalen Chatfield- I found it incredibly hard to rank Jalen because we really didn’t get to see a lot of him. I think I speak for everyone when I say we really enjoyed his few games as a Hurricane and hope to see him in the red and black more next season. Chatfield was very good and fun to watch in the little time he got with the team.

23. Jordan Martinook

It’s been a weird one for Jordan Martinook. He has not even come close to matching his career-high in goals of 15 in 2018-19, in fact over the last 3 seasons combined he only has 10. He hasn’t been awful this year but he is clearly the 14th best forward on this team.

Despite his struggles, Martinook continues to be placed in the lineup. He has infamously spent some time in the top 6 where his weaknesses have really been exposed. I think we can all agree the “Marty party” has been disappointing during this 21-22 campaign.

22. Brendan Smith

Brendan Smith is the weirdest and hardest player to evaluate on the Canes. He is known for his toughness with his shot-blocking and fighting, which he has done well this season, but other times he plays incredibly lazy in his own end and has his less than stellar foot speed get taken advantage of.

Smith is a 7th D that got used as a 6th D sometimes and that was when he was at his worst. I’m not really sure if he’s even an NHL-level defenseman sometimes but his heart and grit cannot be questioned.

21. Steven Lorentz

Lorentz is Warren Foegele light. I say that because for 10 games you forget he exists until he randomly decides to score a highlight-reel goal, and then the cycle repeats. Lorentz is fine for what he is, a solid 4th liner who knows the system well. I don’t think he has much potential but he has carved out a nice role for himself.

Lorentz has been a good sport with how often he’s been asked to sit out, and every one time he is in the lineup he is as advertised. Stevie is extremely energetic and an aggressive forechecker, and next season he will likely play a bigger role on this team.

20. Derek Stepan

I really liked what Stepan brought to the lineup and I wish we got to see him more. What Stepan lacked in footspeed he made up for with smart plays, which allowed him to keep up with the young guys on his line.

Stepan could be a huge asset to the Canes in the playoffs, that 4th line is most effective when he’s on it. In my opinion, Derek should be playing over Martinook and Lorentz in the postseason. Derek has 54 points in 106 career playoff games.

19. Max Domi

A small sample size makes it hard to evaluate Domi, and in fairness to him he has played on three different lines during his short tenure as a Hurricane, but Domi is fine. His best game came playing center on the third line but obviously, he won’t be retaining that role in the playoffs.

Domi could benefit from potential mismatches if he does end up playing on the fourth line in the playoffs. Max is a good middle 6 player whose reputation is going to coast off of his 2018-19 production for probably the rest of his career, and you know what? Good for him.

18. Ethan Bear

I wanted to put him higher, I really did. Bear had a very strong start to this season playing on the first pair but after a battle with COVID in November never really seemed the same. Ethan is turnover prone and sometimes looks lost on plays, but at the same time is very valuable to the team’s transition game and overall has good impacts offensively.

The potential is there and I hope we see him in the Canes lineup come September. Ethan infamously became a scapegoat in Edmonton after their first-round elimination, and I doubt Bear has forgotten that. Ethan has a chance to get back to his early-season form and contribute to a potentially deep playoff run.

17. Jesperi Kotkaniemi

Kotkaniemi had a slow start to the season playing as a winger but has shown flashes of his potential as a center since being moved back to his natural position. On the fourth line, he has shown major improvements compared to where he was last year.

Kotkaniemi played his best hockey in December and January but has since cooled back down. The injury was a factor in it, but KK tied his rookie year goal total a few months ago but was never able to get his 12th of the year. Jesperi will be a lot higher on this list next year, and seven more years after that.

16. Ian Cole

Cole has quietly added a lot of stability to the Carolina defense in the form of a veteran presence. Ian has been VERY good defensively and has been a staple in the Hurricanes’ penalty kill all year. The two-time champion knows what it takes to win and will more than likely continue his steady play into the playoffs.

15. Antti Raanta

Backing up a Vezina candidate has led to Raanta kind of being forgotten about, but the “Finnish father” has been extremely serviceable for Carolina this season. It took him some time to get adjusted but since then he has been great in the few starts he’s gotten.

Raanta’s best moment of the season came when he shut out the Colorado Avalanche in mid-March. He keeps them in pretty much every game and has stolen a few for them too which is all you can ask for from a backup goalie.

14. Jesper Fast

Fast and the Canes checking line is a match made in heaven. Jesper has been incredible in his mostly defensive role and his line has probably been the most consistent one the team has had this year. Fast just always seems to be in the right place at the right time, and the Canes’ bottom 6 wouldn’t be nearly as strong without him.

13. Martin Necas

It’s fair to say Necas had a disappointing season. It is also fair to point out that Martin is only 23 and still has a ton of time to develop. The problem for Necas was he never really found a place in the lineup. Martin played on literally every line and never really stuck anywhere, and we only got to see the game-breaking ability he showed us last year a few times.

There are a good amount of people who want to trade Necas already but think that would be a very bad idea. I strongly believe Necas’ breakout is on the horizon, we just have to continue to be patient.

12. Brett Pesce

Pesce had quietly been a great top 4 defenseman and played a major part in the Canes’ league-best penalty kill. In a surprising twist though, Pesce has arguably been weaker defensively and stronger offensively than he usually is. His pairing is the epitome of Hurricanes hockey, with a lot of chances for both teams whenever they are on the ice.

Even if it wasn’t his best season, a worse than usual Pesce season is still very good. Brett is a core piece of the Hurricanes’ top 4 who brings high-level play year in and year out. Pesce is probably the most underappreciated defenseman on the team and has been for a few years now.

11. Jordan Staal

Wow, talk about a tale of two seasons. The captain struggled to get on the scoresheet for the first half of the year, going over 3 months without a goal from late October to early February. Since the all-star break, Jordan has been an entirely different player, scoring 23 points in 34 games, which is 4th best on the team during that time.

All 23 of his points from February 6th to now have been at even strength, and that leads the team. His 14 goals in his last 34 games are second on the team, all while his defensive game has improved throughout this season. Staal has shown that he can still go during these last two months, and the team will need him to continue this production into the playoffs.

10. Brady Skjei

2022 has been the year of Brady. Since the start of the calendar year, Brady has 27 points in 47 games, all of which are at even strength. Only 3 defensemen in the entire NHL have more EVP since January 1st.

Beyond that, though Brady’s defense has also been very solid aside from a few classic Skjei hiccups. He and Pesce have been one of the best offensive-defensive pairings in the league this season as they’ve built on their chemistry from last season.

9. Seth Jarvis

The rookie looked extremely comfortable starting his NHL career. Jarvis had the usual rookie slump while adjusting to this level in the middle of the year, but he has emerged yet again to contribute to this team. Not only that, he’s been playing first-line minutes and excelling for the team.

It is weird to think that he wasn’t on the opening night roster considering how crucial he has been to the team dynamic this year. Seth likely won’t be a Calder candidate but it can’t be understated how important he was to the team’s success so far this year.

8. Vincent Trocheck

“Vinny” relished last year in his role as second-line center, and although he hasn’t had quite the same success this year, he has yet again been a big contributor to the team. A 20-goal, 50-point season is very solid and I don’t think anybody has complaints regarding how Trocheck has played this year.

Just an extremely good 2-way second-line center who is looking for a big pay raise this offseason. Since his trade from Florida in 2020, he has seemed to be the missing puzzle piece for the Canes’ center depth and he will be sorely missed next season.

7. Nino Niederreiter

Nino is a top-6 forward who is playing on the third line and absolutely dominating his competition. Alongside Jordan Staal and Jesper Fast for most of the season, Nino has yet another great season as a Hurricanes under his belt. 23 goals on the season while being underrated defensively in a checking role is the perfect place for Niederreiter.

It feels like every goal Nino has scored this year has been a big one. His combination of natural skill and big size makes him a true modern-day power forward. Hopefully, Don Waddell and the front office can find a way to retain his services next season.

6. Tony DeAngelo

Tony was brought in to replace Dougie Hamilton’s offensive production, and he has done that quite well. Although the defensive lapses that plagued him in New York are still there, playing alongside one of the best defensemen in the league has helped make that less obvious. It’ll be interesting to see what his next contract will be as he is in line to get a big upgrade from his current 1 million dollar contract.