Canes Acquire Puljujarvi But Still Have Cap Space
By Glenn Brewer
Today, the Carolina Hurricanes did what everyone has been waiting for the last few days and made a trade with the Edmonton Oilers. Don Waddell and the Canes acquired forward, Jesse Puljujarvi.
Going back to Edmonton is Patrik Puistola. The Oilers did not retain any of Puljujarvi’s contract.
What does this mean for the Canes and their plans moving forward before the NHL trade deadline?
The hope of the organization is that the Fin will find the form that made him a first-round draft choice. Maybe teaming up with fellow countryman Sebastian Aho will assist in a resurgence.
As far as the money goes for any additional moves before Friday, let’s take a quick look at the available cap space.
Puljujarvi has a $3 million cap hit this year and is a restricted free agent at season’s end.
After completing this transaction, the Hurricanes have $7,106,667 per CapFriendly. Even after the acquisition, the team is still in an excellent position to make another move.
Additionally, Waddell has kept the draft choices as the building blocks for another trade. With their own free agents to take care of this summer, the Canes would surely give a higher draft pick for some cap coverage by the opposing team.
I would not rule out the possibility of landing Jakob Chychrun. The offense can come from the blue line and hope that Puljujarvi picks up his play and uses his big frame to push around the opposition.