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Five unqualified restricted free agents the Canes should sign

By Conor Power

MONTREAL, QUEBEC - JULY 07: General manager Don Waddell of the Carolina Hurricanes prior to Round One of the 2022 Upper Deck NHL Draft at Bell Centre on July 07, 2022 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images)
MONTREAL, QUEBEC - JULY 07: General manager Don Waddell of the Carolina Hurricanes prior to Round One of the 2022 Upper Deck NHL Draft at Bell Centre on July 07, 2022 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) /
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TORONTO, ONTARIO – AUGUST 19: Jordan Martinook #48 of the Carolina Hurricanes is called for a roughing penalty on Ondrej Kase #28 of the Boston Bruins during the second period in Game Five of the Eastern Conference First Round during the 2020 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Scotiabank Arena on August 19, 2020, in Toronto, Ontario. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
TORONTO, ONTARIO – AUGUST 19: Jordan Martinook #48 of the Carolina Hurricanes is called for a roughing penalty on Ondrej Kase #28 of the Boston Bruins during the second period in Game Five of the Eastern Conference First Round during the 2020 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs at Scotiabank Arena on August 19, 2020, in Toronto, Ontario. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /

Ondrej Kase

Moving quickly onto one of the long-term targets of the Hurricanes organization and Czech winger Ondrej Kase. He went unqualified because he had arbitration rights and Toronto had issues with their cap space. Kase has been a very long-term target, going back to 2019 when Carolina was rumored to have a trade fall through with Anaheim for him. He’s been so good for so long that you might wonder why he went unqualified.

It’s not a lack of talent. It’s the question marks regarding his health. When Kase puts it together, there’s not a lot Kase cannot do. From the perspective of underlying numbers, he’s been one of the best players in all three zones for a substantial amount of his career. Ondrej Kase is going to be one of the biggest analytical darlings in this free-agent class and that will have teams looking at him.

During his time in Toronto last year, Kase collected14 goals and 13 assists in 50 games. He’s another really good depth player that can fill needs throughout the lineup in any role. When he is healthy, he’s going to be one of the most consistent players in the lineup. His issue is that his injury history leaves him in a position where one more concussion could have him considering retirement.

I really like Ondrej Kase and if there is a way for the Hurricanes to land him, I will scream and shout a lot, but I’m not sure how this would work given his previous status with concussions, he has a lot to like, but balancing the risks with the reward here is difficult. This for me would entirely depend on his contract. He’s well worth anything up to around the $3 million mark when including UFA inflation.

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