The Carolina Hurricanes have signed as many contracts over the last three days as they have for nearly the entire summer. On Tuesday, they brought in Pierre-Olivier Joseph on a one-year deal. On Wednesday, they re-signed a trio of Wolves to play for the Calder Cup finalists. On Thursday, another defenseman returned to the fold, one with his name on the Stanley Cup.
The team announced on Thursday afternoon that Mike Reilly was back for one more year, signing a two-way deal worth $850k in the NHL and $450k in the AHL. The news is a bit of a surprise after Reilly spent all summer on the open market, but it brings yet another defender back to Raleigh and fortifies a position of strength for the organization.
Reilly signed a contract last summer with the Canes after missing most of the 2024-25 season with the New York Islanders, as a previously undiagnosed heart condition was brought to light after suffering an injury early in the year. Reilly was brought in to be the team's seventh defenseman, but he was called into action much sooner than we'd expected.
He recorded an assist in his team debut against the Sharks and added his first goal against the Islanders at the end of the month, scoring a beautiful wrap-around goal while short-handed. Reilly had points in five of his first nine games. He was in and out of the lineup the rest of the season, finishing with a goal and eight assists in 42 games.
After Alexander Nikishin suffered a concussion in Game 4 against Ottawa, Reilly drew into the lineup to begin the Philadelphia series. In Game 1 of the second round, Reilly assisted on both of the team's first-period goals. He played in Game 2 as well, and that was it for his season. Still, by playing in 42 games during the regular season, Reilly met the requirement to have his name engraved on the Cup.
The rich get richer on defense, leaving the Canes with decisions to make
With Reilly's return, the Hurricanes have nearly two lineups' worth of defensemen with NHL experience. Along with the five players from their Stanley Cup lineup (Slavin, Miller, Chatfield, Walker, and Gostisbehere), they also have Reilly, Joseph, Joel Nystrom, Charles Alexis Legault, Juuso Valimaki, and Ronan Seeley. This doesn't include Nikishin, who is yet to sign a new deal.
There's one small caveat to this, though. Reilly is a left-shot defenseman. Seven of the other players I just mentioned, including Nikishin, are as well. Only Chatfield, Walker, Nystrom, and Legault are righties. I know that I've said there's no such thing as having too many defensemen, but I wouldn't be opposed to seeing another righty or two.
There is a world where Reilly comes into camp and impresses, winning a role on the Opening Night roster as the seventh defenseman. There's also the possibility that the team needs to send him through waivers to get him to Chicago at the end of camp. We'll have to see how it plays out. Until then, it's nice to see that the Hurricanes are getting most of the band back together.
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