Hurricanes pushed hard for Tkachuk before his trade to Florida
By Conor Power
This past week has seen a lot happen in Calgary, Alberta, but nothing more entertaining than watching the gutting of what was one of the best teams in the NHL last season. Matthew Tkachuk didn’t want to sign a long-term deal in Alberta and was known to be on the trade block. Earlier this morning, he was shipped off to Florida for a return of riches that could make Queen Elizabeth II envious.
Frank Seravalli of Daily Faceoff reports that the Hurricanes were on Tkachuk’s list of teams that he would have been willing to sign an 8-year deal with and that the Canes themselves were pushing hard to land the NHL’s largest unicorn for his abilities. However, it became incredibly obvious that the Hurricanes had neither the assets nor the cap space to make this work in the long run.
It seems very much like the organization to push for any superstar that hits the trade market. With the organization’s hunt for a truly elite player continuing, it makes sense to see the team being linked to players like Tkachuk who put up 42 goals and 104 points last season. Carolina needs a truly elite scorer, and we know that. What this does mean is that the team is still looking for that big-name addition to the roster.
Sources say one of the teams that was in deepest in trade talks on Matthew Tkachuk (and also on his short list) over last few days: #Canes.
— Frank Seravalli (@frank_seravalli) July 23, 2022
Believe #stlblues were also in deep as well, but you can understand with another 100-point player in the mix, why Cats had the upper hand.
If the Hurricanes are going to eventually find the player that becomes their face of the franchise, it seemingly will not be this year. A relatively young forward core will need to take a step forward this year, but it could still look to be bolstered by adding a young, franchise-changing talent. Where they might get this, I am not certain. But we know that the team wants to keep looking for it elsewhere.
It bodes well that whenever a player of this quality wants out of his current team, the Hurricanes seem to be one of the first organizations to be in on that player. With Tkachuk they pushed hard, with others before, they have been in the hunt. The biggest message I would take from this one is that Tkachuk was willing to sign an 8 year deal in Raleigh. That’s what players think of this team and city.
Next. Bear and Lajoie have arbitration dates. dark