Three potential trade chips to bolster the haul from the 2022 NHL draft
With the 2021-22 NHL season finally concluding with the Colorado Avalanche dethroning the Tampa Bay Lightning, we can finally start to look forward to the next step in the hockey world. That is the 2022 NHL Entry Draft being held on July 7th and 8th in Montreal, Quebec. Carolina will be attending an in-person draft for the first time since the 2019 draft and this is going to be an interesting draft.
Known for their prowess and cleverness on the draft floor, this is usually one of the highlight events for the Carolina Hurricanes organization. Despite the fact this team almost single-handedly tacked hours onto the 2021 NHL entry draft, the excitement of yet another NHL draft is building and we get to see if the players selected will contribute to becoming the next generation of Hurricanes players.
As it currently stands, Carolina holds their own draft selection in the second, fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh, accompanied by the Chicago third-round selection, Anaheim sixth-round selection, and the Columbus seventh-round pick. In a particularly deep draft, we’re likely going to see the Hurricanes returning to the well of trading down wherever possible. But that doesn’t have to be the only approach to adding picks ahead of this draft.
With the draft happening in a little more than a week’s time, get to approach the time where the Hurricanes will have to force some answers out of themselves. If they know that there are players that do not want to be here next season or the team cannot afford to keep here for the future, it might be best to see if you can recoup draft picks for there here and invest in the future now while you can.
Recently, it has been reported that there are a few players that the Hurricanes do not know what to do with, or that the player wants more than the Canes can afford or have deemed them to be worth. With the Hurricanes’ track record of underwhelming offers to their previous free agents, it is safe to assume that those results are viable and could see the Hurricanes move on from a few members of their current roster.
Tony DeAngelo
When we talk about the Carolina Hurricanes players that can be moved out ahead of the draft, the one that some fans are going to want to throw out the door first is Tony DeAngelo. With the Sewell, New Jersey native expecting a big raise this summer, the Hurricanes have been rumored to have him on the trade block due to the inability to afford the offensively talented defenseman.
Coming off the back of 10 goals, 41 assists, and 51 points season in just 64 games, DeAngelo has seemed to have repaired his value that was once so shattered. His one-year $1 million contract with the Hurricanes seemed to have helped him repair his reputation and with talent like his, there could be a case to have the 5’11 defenseman on the move.
Frank Seravalli reported a couple of weeks ago that the Hurricanes may be seeking to move on from the powerplay quarterback and that there has been a lot of interest in the defenseman. With the Hurricanes not having a first-round pick in this draft, it does raise the question of – could DeAngelo be on the move to a team that he hammers out a deal with? It’s unlikely but possible.
Carolina lost their first-round pick this year in the offer sheet last summer, which is fine. However, a lot can change in the months between August and July. If the Hurricanes are a little higher on a prospect now than they were a few months ago and do desire to trade back into the first round, it seems that Tony DeAngelo could be the piece moved to do that. Is it likely? No. But it wouldn’t be unlike the Hurricanes to do that.
Ethan Bear
Someone we all expect to move during this summer is another one of the right-handed defensemen on this roster. Ethan Bear is the man and there are a couple of reasons for this. There’s the issue of the Carolina pipeline and the fact that the team seemed to cope without the Cree defender with very few issues. If Bear is trying to get every penny he is worth, he’ll likely get moved.
With a qualifying offer of $2.4 million, Bear is unlikely to be offered that and has recently been given permission to seek a better offer from another team as reported by Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman. While we are not certain whether or not the Canes will retain the services of the Regina, Saskatchewan native, he is certainly a player in demand in the hockey world. Rightfully so.
Bear is just 25 years of age and is a cost-controlled right-handed defenseman that started the season on the top pairing of one of the best teams in the NHL. Now, it is true that his season never recovered after his stint on the NHL’s Covid-19 protocol list, and it was discussed in his end-of-season press conference about him potentially suffering from the long-term effects of the virus.
Bear also seemed to have a nagging ankle injury. Another thing mentioned in his press conference after the Canes’ game seven loss to the New York Rangers was Bear having “a little something” removed from his foot after walking into his interview on crutches with a protective boot on it. It’s a worrying sign, but it does explain the dropoff that came after his injury at PNC Arena against Calgary when he hobbled off the ice at the final buzzer.
While Bear is not exactly a flashy player, I think it is more than fair to say that he could return a mid-round draft pick. Something like a third-round pick from a team like Vancouver is more than achievable. Recouping assets for players you do not plan to keep around is just good asset management. If it is possible to do, the Hurricanes will find a way to get something back, I’d imagine.
One of the netminders
I am going to preface this by saying that this is one I fully believe shouldn’t happen. I would rather keep the two William M Jennings winners than move one out and try to force a kid into the NHL right now.
However, the crease seems to be a little crowded right now and a lot of fans would enjoy seeing the youngest of the three goalies get a shot in the NHL next year. I personally believe that the team should stay with Frederik Andersen and Antti Raanta, but I do understand the appeal of bringing Pyotr Kochetkov into the NHL full-time. We know that the Russian netminder is borderline NHL-ready, and fans are excited.
Raanta was the Canes stalwart this postseason as he filled in for the injured Andersen as the duo made sure that they took home the William M Jennings Trophy for the lowest goals-against by a duo in the NHL. They became the first duo to win this trophy with both netminders being in their first seasons with a franchise. Not only did they win trophies, but they broke records by winning them.
Andersen’s injury in the playoffs accompanied by Raanta’s performances has some fans of the opinion that the team can move on from the netminder that came fourth in Vezina voting. Making just $4.5 million against the cap for next year and the goalie free-agent market being relatively thin, Andersen could net a good haul if the Canes look to move him.
Raanta is the other prime candidate to get moved. At $2 million against the cap and the numbers he put up this summer, he’s going to hold a lot of value. It’s very Hurricanes to sell high on their assets and right now, Antti Raanta’s value is at an all-time high. Father Finn will hold a lot of value to a team like Edmonton or Toronto looking for cost-controlled netminding.