Carolina Hurricanes Have High Expectations for William Carrier
On the final day of September, the Carolina Hurricanes are half way through the preseason schedule and looking to build strength and get the regulars ready for the bright lights of opening day. One of the new faces this season will be William Carrier. After a brief injury, Carrier debuted against the Florida Panthers at Lenovo Center.
As NHL free agency began, the story around Raleigh was all the faces leaving the organization and at a fast pace. it was a real challenge for a first year general manager, Eric Tulsky. As much as fans want to replace the exits quickly, the front office's goal was to get the right players under a fair contract for the organization.
Carrier was a name that fell under the radar on a crazy free agency day, but Tulsky clearly felt Carrier was a priority signing him to a six year contract worth $12 million, with an annual salary cap hit of $2 million.
Having lost some scoring up front with the departures of Teuvo Teravainen and Jake Guentzel, the 29-year-old is going to provide a scoring punch to the bottom six forwards and the organization is expecting big production from Carrier under Rod Brind'Amour.
A former second round draft choice of the St. Louis Blues in the 2013 NHL Draft, Carrier has always had great hands and puck control. He has yet had the chance to play big minutes in his career with an average time on ice of 10:32. The season he played the most minutes was the year the Vegas Knights won the Stanley Cup, averaging 12:35. That season happened to be his career high in goals with 16.
Playing in Vegas for the last seven seasons, the Quebec native has had a lot of experience in the playoffs with 81 games played. Standing at 6'2 218lbs, Carrier has a big net front presence and could be a stronger version of Stefan Noesen. The power play may be an option for Carrier to cause chaos in front of the goalie while Shayne Gostisbehere fires from the blue line.
The biggest concern with Carrier, which Carolina has already experienced, is his health. Staying on the ice has been a problem for the new arrival as he only played in 39 games last season. The highest game total for the former Buffalo Sabres forward is 71 in 2019.
Although this is a depth signing, expect to see Carrier have a chance to contribute on special teams and potentially contribute on the top lines to change the pace. Either way, if he stays healthy, Carrier will help add offense to Jordan Staal line. The relentless, hard work on the forecheck will fit right in with the rest of the Canes team.