Hurricanes Sign Nikolaj Ehlers To Six-Year Deal
The Hurricanes are signing top free agent Nikolaj Ehlers, ESPN’s Kevin Weekes and Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman report. The team has announced the contract, which comes in at six years and $51MM for an $8.5MM cap hit.
Ehlers, No. 2 on our board of top UFAs this summer, had been linked to Carolina since the outset of free agency. Although it became clear he wouldn’t sign on July 1, instead waiting things out after most of the top names decided not to test the market, the Hurricanes were an implied frontrunner while the Capitals and Lightning had also spoken to his camp. Tampa was no longer in the conversation as of Thursday morning, but it appears the Caps, as well as the Mammoth, were in talks with Ehlers’ camp until his decision to choose Carolina in the last hour, David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period reports.
The 29-year-old Dane will capitalize on one of the better seasons of his NHL career in 2024-25 and make the jump to Carolina from Winnipeg. The Jets made him the No. 9 overall pick in the 2014 draft, and for the most part, he’s lived up to that billing. He scored 225 goals and 520 points in 674 games in 10 years in a Jets uniform, leaving the club as its fifth-leading goal-scorer in franchise history.
While Ehlers isn’t the answer to the No. 2 center question that’s plagued Carolina for the past few seasons, he’s that elusive additional top-six winger the club has chased with expensive in-season rentals over the past couple of years, bringing names like Jake Guentzel and Mikko Rantanen in for brief stops in Raleigh. Ehlers scored 24 goals and 63 points in 69 games last season – a 29-goal, 75-point pace had he played in all 82 games. That would have made him one of two 70-point scorers on the Canes last season, along with Sebastian Aho.
It remains to be seen whether Carolina will pair the play-driving winger with Aho on a first line or have Ehlers anchor his own line. He’s hoping it’s the former after years of having his even-strength ice time oddly limited in Winnipeg. Despite averaging north of 60 points per 82 games over his career, Ehlers has only averaged more than 17 minutes per game twice and averaged just 15:48 last year, making him one of the most efficient scorers in the league on a per-minute basis.
The signing caps off what’s been a week of big spending in Raleigh. They rewarded rising sophomore Logan Stankoven with an eight-year, $48MM extension on Tuesday before acquiring defenseman K’Andre Miller from the Rangers in a sign-and-trade, taking him on with an eight-year, $60MM commitment – the largest contract signed since the market opened (Mitch Marner‘s eight-year, $96MM contract was registered on June 30).
While not the bona fide No. 1 winger Carolina’s been searching for, he is a legitimate top-line threat that adds another layer of depth to one of the league’s more balanced offensive attacks. He fits the Hurricanes’ model of being one of the league’s strongest possession teams. Not once has Ehlers ever posted a shot share or expected goals share below 50% at even strength in his career, and he had a remarkably strong 4.9% relative Corsi share over his time in Winnipeg.
Even after registering Ehlers’ contract, the Hurricanes have plenty of flexibility to work with if they want to pursue additional signings or trade acquisitions. They’re still left with $10.64MM in cap space, per PuckPedia, and are equipped with four first-round picks in the next three years to leverage in trade talks as they see if they can acquire another top-six piece.
Image courtesy of James Carey Lauder-Imagn Images.
Spencer Martin Signs With CSKA Moscow
Now-former NHL goaltender Spencer Martin has signed a two-year contract with CSKA Moscow, according to a release from the Kontinental Hockey League.
Martin, 30, heads overseas for the first time in his career after spending the last 10 seasons bouncing between the NHL, AHL, and ECHL. Instead of settling for the unenviable life of a third-string netminder in North America, he’ll be the undisputed starter for one of Russia’s premier clubs with Islanders 2024 fourth-rounder Dmitri Gamzin as his backup.
Martin split last season between the Hurricanes and AHL Chicago, his third NHL organization in the last three years. In 31 AHL games in 2024-25, Martin posted a 2.34 GAA, .909 SV%, three shutouts, and a 20-8-2 record. He struggled when called upon for NHL minutes, though, languishing with a .846 SV% and 3.89 GAA in seven starts and two relief appearances.
A third-round pick by the Avalanche in 2013, Martin has also made stops in the Lightning, Canucks, and Blue Jackets organizations in addition to his time in Colorado and Carolina. He has a 24-30-8 record in 66 career NHL appearances, logging a 3.56 GAA and .883 SV%.
Carolina anticipated Martin’s departure and replaced his spot on the depth chart by acquiring and signing netminder Cayden Primeau from the Canadiens. He’ll serve as the No. 3 behind Frederik Andersen and Pyotr Kochetkov in 2025-26.
Hurricanes Re-Sign Tyson Jost, Noel Gunler To Two-Way Contracts
The Hurricanes have re-signed center Tyson Jost to a two-way contract, according to a team announcement. PuckPedia also reported that RFA winger Noel Gunler has accepted his qualifying offer and will be back with the team on a two-way deal.
Jost was a UFA after spending the 2024-25 season with Carolina on a one-way contract, so there’s a potential for a pay cut if he ends up on waivers and in the minors. His deal pays him a $300K AHL salary with a $600K guarantee.
The 27-year-old spent most of last season as the Canes’ extra forward. He made 39 appearances, his lowest in a season since his six-game trial as a rookie with the Avalanche in 2016-17, and scored four goals and five assists for nine points while averaging 10:22 per game.
The 2016 No. 10 overall pick never reached his top-six potential but remains a valuable depth option with nearly 500 games of NHL experience. However, he’s cleared waivers multiple times successfully in the past few seasons, so it doesn’t look like there’s much risk for Carolina if they try to sneak him back to AHL Chicago at some point. He scored four goals and five assists in 14 games for the minor-league club last season.
Jost’s spot as the extra forward looks safe for now when looking at Carolina’s depth chart, but the team still has plenty of cap space to burn and is in on Nikolaj Ehlers, the top remaining UFA. They could pursue more depth forward signings as well – potentially a return to Raleigh for names like Jack Roslovic or Jeff Skinner, both of whom are still available. If the Canes make multiple forward additions ahead of Jost, he’ll likely be a waiver candidate if everyone is healthy in training camp.
As for Gunler, his QO will pay him a salary of $813,750 if he’s in the NHL next season and $80K in the AHL. The 23-year-old was a second-round pick in 2020 but has yet to make his NHL debut. The 6’2″ winger has spent parts of the last three seasons with AHL Chicago, where he scored 13 goals and 26 points in 58 games last season.
Nikolaj Ehlers Expected To Sign Today
July 2: Ehlers’ stay on the open market isn’t expected to last more than a few more hours. He’s down to a few teams and will make his decision at some point Wednesday, Chris Johnston of TSN and The Athletic says.
July 1: Entering today, the top free agent on the board was now-former Jets winger Nikolaj Ehlers. He’s due for a big payday after teams looking to land an impact winger in the form of Mitch Marner, who’s off to Vegas in a sign-and-trade, or Brock Boeser, who’s staying in Vancouver on a seven-year deal, failed.
Many pegged Carolina as the favorite to land Ehlers entering today. They’ll certainly have more competition now with other teams looking to circle back and regroup after their day-one activities, but they still have immense spending flexibility with $19MM in cap space and no other moves to make, even after today’s pickup of K’Andre Miller.
As Ehlers likely takes another day – maybe even longer – to mull offers, the Hurricanes did confirm they’ve been in contact with Ehlers’ camp and are “waiting to see where that goes,” general manager Eric Tulsky told reporters Tuesday evening (including the team’s Walt Ruff). ESPN’s Emily Kaplan reported earlier in the day that the Capitals and Lightning were also in contact with Ehlers’ camp, but nothing will be imminent until tomorrow at the soonest.
Ehlers would really need to prefer going to Tampa or Washington to make that a reality. Neither has the cap space to pay him his market value, surely over $8MM per season at this stage on a seven-year deal, and would need to make corresponding moves to make him fit in. Carolina has both a pressing need for him, a system that plays to his analytically inclined game, and the cap space to address his financial needs out of the gate.
Beyond that, his list of realistic destinations might be limited. There will be other teams like the Maple Leafs who may want to create room and add him as an impact top-line piece in the absence of Marner.
Still, Toronto – or any other Canadian team, for that matter – is likely not on Ehlers’ radar, considering his newfound ability to be picky about where he ends up thanks to how the market broke in his favor. He prefers a warmer and less intense market than Winnipeg, Frank Seravalli said on today’s coverage of free agency from B/R Open Ice.
East Notes: Primeau, Lettieri, Leonard
Hurricanes RFA goaltender Cayden Primeau signed a one-year, league minimum deal yesterday, according to a team release.
Primeau saw his signing rights transferred from Montreal to Carolina on Monday in exchange for a 2026 seventh-round pick. The 25-year-old bounced between the NHL and AHL for his first four professional seasons coming out of Northeastern University, but won a full-time roster spot with the Habs in 2023-24, in part due to their unwillingness to expose him to waivers.
He looked good in a three-goalie rotation with Sam Montembeault and Jake Allen that year but struggled mightily as Montembeault’s full-time No. 2 to begin last season. He posted an .836 SV% and sky-high 4.70 GAA with a 2-3-1 record in seven starts and four relief appearances before being waived in December, clearing and heading to AHL Laval.
Primeau got things back on track with a .926 SV% and 2.00 GAA in 25 games with Laval. The Canes hope he can carry that momentum into 2025-26 as he serves as the No. 3 behind the returning NHL tandem of Frederik Andersen and Pyotr Kochetkov, assuming he clears waivers again in the fall.
Here are a couple of other league minimum signings from yesterday:
- The Maple Leafs brought in veteran depth center Vinni Lettieri, per PuckPedia. While a one-way deal, that’s presumably to guarantee him more compensation. They’re hoping he clears waivers and can be an impact player for AHL Toronto after they lost some important pieces like Nicholas Abruzzese and Alex Steeves yesterday. The 30-year-old spent last year with the Bruins organization, recording five points in 26 NHL games and 48 points in 46 AHL games.
- The Red Wings announced a one-year, one-way league minimum deal for winger John Leonard yesterday. He joins their July 1 haul that also included James van Riemsdyk, Jacob Bernard-Docker, and Ian Mitchell. It’s the 26-year-old’s first NHL contract in a year – he spent last season on an AHL deal with Charlotte, leading the Calder Cup runner-ups in scoring with 36 goals, 25 assists, and 61 points in 72 games.
Two-Way Deals: 7/1/25
As major signings come in around the NHL today with the 2025-26 league year beginning, teams are shoring up their minor-league depth as well by signing players to two-way contracts. We’re keeping track of those signings today in this article, which will be continuously updated. Deals are one year unless otherwise noted.
Boston Bruins
F Riley Tufte ($775K NHL) – Ty Anderson of 98.5 The Sports Hub
D Jonathan Aspirot ($775K NHL) – Ty Anderson of 98.5 The Sports Hub
G Luke Cavallin ($775K NHL) – Ty Anderson of 98.5 The Sports Hub
Buffalo Sabres
F Riley Fiddler-Schultz ($865K NHL/$90K SB/$35K PB/$85K AHL) – PuckPedia // two years, entry-level
F Carson Meyer ($775K NHL/$350K AHL Y1 – $375K AHL Y2) – PuckPedia // two years
D Mason Geertsen ($775K NHL/$425K AHL) – Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet // two years
D Zachary Jones ($900K NHL/$550K AHL) – PuckPedia
D Zach Metsa ($775K NHL/$250K AHL/$325K gt’d) – PuckPedia
Calgary Flames
D Nick Cicek ($775K NHL) – team release
Carolina Hurricanes
G Amir Miftakhov ($775K NHL/$100K AHL/$240K gt’d) – PuckPedia
Chicago Blackhawks
F Dominic Toninato ($850K NHL) – team release // two years
Colorado Avalanche
F T.J. Tynan (unknown) – team release
D Jack Ahcan (unknown) – team release
D Ronald Attard ($775K NHL/$450K AHL/$500K gt’d) – PuckPedia
Columbus Blue Jackets
F Owen Sillinger (unknown) – team release
D Christian Jaros (unknown) – team release
Dallas Stars
D Niilopekka Muhonen (unknown) – team release // three years, entry-level
Edmonton Oilers
D Riley Stillman ($775K NHL/$475K AHL) – PuckPedia // two years
G Matt Tomkins ($775K NHL/$400K AHL/$450 Y2 gt’d) – PuckPedia // two years
Florida Panthers
F Nolan Foote ($775K NHL/$150K AHL/$250K gt’d) – PuckPedia
F Jack Studnicka ($775K NHL/$450K AHL) – Chris Johnston of TSN/The Athletic
G Brandon Bussi ($775K NHL/$400K AHL) – PuckPedia
G Kirill Gerasimyuk (unknown) – team release // two years, entry-level
Los Angeles Kings
F Cole Guttman ($775K NHL/$450K Y1 – $475K Y2 AHL/$475K gt’d Y1 – $500K gt’d Y2) – PuckPedia // two years
Minnesota Wild
F Tyler Pitlick ($775K NHL/$300K Y1 – $350K Y2 AHL/$325K gt’d Y1 – $375K gt’d Y2) – PuckPedia // two years
D Ben Gleason ($800K NHL/$475K AHL) – PuckPedia
Montreal Canadiens
F Alex Belzile (unknown) – team release
D Nathan Clurman ($775K NHL/$125K AHL/$140K gt’d) – PuckPedia
New Jersey Devils
D Calen Addison ($775K NHL/$325K AHL/$400K gt’d) – PuckPedia
F Angus Crookshank ($775K NHL/$425K AHL/$475K gt’d) – PuckPedia // two years, one-way in 2026-27
New York Islanders
F Matthew Highmore (unknown) – team release
D Ethan Bear ($775K NHL/$325K AHL/$425K gt’d) – PuckPedia
D Cole McWard (unknown) – team release
New York Rangers
D Derrick Pouliot ($775K NHL/$400K AHL/$425K gt’d Y1 – $450K gt’d Y2) – PuckPedia // two years
Ottawa Senators
F Wyatt Bongiovanni ($775K NHL/$160K AHL) – PuckPedia
F Olle Lycksell ($775K NHL/$450K AHL/$500K gt’d) – Darren Dreger of TSN
Philadelphia Flyers
F Lane Pederson ($775K NHL/$525K AHL) – PuckPedia
San Jose Sharks
F Jimmy Huntington (unknown) – team release
F Samuel Laberge (unknown) – team release
F Colin White ($775K NHL/$425K AHL/$475K gt’d) – PuckPedia
D Cole Clayton (unknown) – team release
St. Louis Blues
F Matt Luff ($775K NHL/$400K AHL) – PuckPedia
Tampa Bay Lightning
F Nicholas Abruzzese (unknown) – team release
F Tristan Allard (unknown) – team release // two years, entry-level
F Boris Katchouk (unknown) – team release
D Simon Lundmark ($775K NHL/$250K AHL/$350K gt’d) – PuckPedia // two years
G Ryan Fanti ($775K NHL/$80K AHL) – PuckPedia
Utah Mammoth
F Kailer Yamamoto ($775K NHL/$500K AHL) – PuckPedia
D Scott Perunovich ($775K NHL/$400K AHL/$500K gt’d) – PuckPedia
Vancouver Canucks
F Joseph LaBate ($775K NHL/$350K AHL) – PuckPedia
F Mackenzie MacEachern ($775K NHL/$575K AHL) – PuckPedia // two years
D Jimmy Schuldt ($775K NHL/$500K AHL) – PuckPedia // two years
Winnipeg Jets
F Phillip Di Giuseppe ($775K NHL/$450K AHL) – PuckPedia
D Kale Clague (unknown) – Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet
Hurricanes Acquire K’Andre Miller In Sign-And-Trade With Rangers
5:51 p.m.: The trade is official as reported, the team announced.
4:33 p.m.: The deal will be a sign-and-trade with the Rangers, per Friedman. It will be an eight-year deal for Miller worth a total value of $60MM for $7.5MM per season. He’ll be Carolina’s highest-paid defenseman by a significant margin as a result. A 2026 first-round pick will be part of the return, per Vince Z. Mercogliano of USA Today. The deal is split evenly across this season and is paid entirely in base salary aside from a $2MM signing bonus up front, per PuckPedia. It also includes a 10-team no-trade clause beginning in 2027-28. Larry Brooks of the New York Post reports the full return is a conditional first, the Hurricanes’ 2026 second-round pick, and right-shot defender Scott Morrow. The condition on the 2026 first is that the Rangers will receive the better of Carolina’s or Dallas’ 2026 first-rounders, and it’s top-10 protected, per PuckPedia.
4:16 p.m.: The trade has been agreed to in principle but has yet to be executed because Miller and the Hurricanes are still in talks on a new contract, per Friedman. He adds the trade was made in lieu of an offer sheet Carolina was preparing for Miller.
11:56 a.m.: The Hurricanes are acquiring the signing rights to defenseman K’Andre Miller from the Rangers, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet reports. The trade return will center around draft pick compensation, per Vince Z. Mercogliano of USA Today.
After a season full of trade rumors, the Rangers have finally moved on from Miller and brought in Vladislav Gavrikov as his immediate replacement. Since the return package consists of draft pick compensation, this trade closely resembles the 2020 deal in which the Rangers traded defenseman Brady Skjei to the Hurricanes for a first-round pick.
Carolina will assuredly bank on the 2022-23 version of Miller, which was arguably the best season of his young career. During that campaign, Miller scored nine goals and 43 points in 79 games for the Rangers with a +12 rating, averaging nearly 22 minutes of ice time per game. Unfortunately, the Rangers only had the financial flexibility to sign Miller to a two-year bridge deal, but the belief at the time was that they would have liked to have retained him for longer.
Hindsight being 20/20, the Rangers were thankful that they didn’t sign Miller to a longer-term agreement. Since his breakout campaign in 2022-23, Miller has scored 15 goals and 57 points in 154 contests with a +5 rating. His possession and defensive metrics have also dropped, falling from a 51.5% CorsiFor% at even strength to 49.2%, and an 89.8% on-ice save percentage at even strength to an 88.7%.
Still, he has maintained a high level of physicality and continues to block over 100 shots each season. There is reason for optimism that many of his advanced metrics will improve in Carolina, considering that the team has a very deep defensive core and is one of the top possession teams in the league.
The trade also carries implications for the Hurricanes’ unrestricted free agents from their defensive core. Given that the team is planning on making Alexander Nikishin a full-time defender beginning in the 2025-26 season, there is little chance that Dmitry Orlov or Brent Burns will return to Carolina. Due to the trade protection given to the team’s other defensemen, the Hurricanes are likely to move out any of their current blueliners to clear a pathway for Orlov or Burns to return.
Hurricanes Sign Mike Reilly
The Hurricanes made a big splash on the back end with the acquisition of K’Andre Miller today. They also have added some depth on the back end as PuckPedia reports that Carolina has signed defenseman Mike Reilly to a one-year, $1.1MM contract. The deal represents a small cut in pay after he made $1.25MM with the Islanders last season.
The 31-year-old was limited to just 18 appearances with New York in 2024-25 but the low number wasn’t performance-related despite notching just two assists. Reilly suffered a concussion in the first game of November and while recovering from that, it was determined that he needed a procedure on his heart, leaving his availability for the rest of the season in question. However, he was able to return to the lineup in mid-March, getting into a handful of games down the stretch.
Reilly is a veteran of over 400 career NHL games but has bounced around along the way, never spending more than three years in the same organization. Overall, he has 18 goals and 106 assists to his name while logging a little more than 17 minutes per game on average.
The Hurricanes will be his fourth team in the last three seasons but the expectations should be the same when he gets in the lineup. Reilly is typically a player who is capable of providing a bit of depth offense and has five years of at least 16 points under his belt. The most recent of those came back in 2023-24 when he had six goals and 18 assists in 61 games between the Panthers and Islanders.
It’s likely that Reilly will start the season as Carolina’s reserve defender as it’s widely expected that top prospect Alexander Nikishin will handle a regular role after joining the Hurricanes for the playoffs. But after the Hurricanes churned through Riley Stillman and Ty Smith through a high amount of recalls and promotions last season, it appears they’ll operate with a full-time seventh option in Reilly who is someone they should be comfortable relying on more frequently than the other two.
Hurricanes Sign Logan Stankoven To Eight-Year Extension
The Hurricanes weren’t able to get Mikko Rantanen to agree to a long-term contract but they got one done with the player they acquired for him. The team announced that they’ve signed forward Logan Stankoven to an eight-year, $48MM contract extension.
The 22-year-old was a second-round pick by Dallas back in 2021, going 47th overall. Quite quickly, it’s fair to say he has outperformed his draft stock. Stankoven made a mark late in the 2023-24 campaign, notching six goals and eight assists in 24 games with the Stars, earning himself a regular spot in their playoff lineup where he chipped in with eight points in 19 contests.
That was enough to have Stankoven as a regular for Dallas to start last season but the per-game offensive production tapered off a bit. That said, he still put up a respectable nine goals and 20 assists in 59 games with them before being one of the key parts of the Rantanen trade back at the trade deadline.
Following the swap, Stankoven’s point production continued at a similar clip as he tallied five goals and four assists in 19 games during the regular season with Carolina while continuing to hover just above 15 minutes a night in playing time. He carried that into the playoffs as well as a secondary offensive contributor, tallying five goals and three helpers in 15 postseason contests.
Stankoven has one year left on his entry-level contract, one that carries a cap charge of just over $814K along with $32.5K in games-played bonuses. That means the extension will begin in 2026-27. He had four RFA-eligible years remaining so Carolina will gain four seasons of team control at that time. Those four UFA years are the only ones in which he’ll be eligible for trade protection.
While Stankoven isn’t the same caliber of player that Rantanen is, the Hurricanes will still get a long-term core piece out of that series of trades. In the long run, while they took a short-term loss in talent compared to the original trade that saw them acquire Rantanen from Colorado, getting Stankoven locked up long-term and adding a pair of first-round picks was a solid rebound for GM Eric Tulsky.
John Matisz of The Score was the first to report that a long-term deal was close. Frank Seravalli was first with the terms of the agreement.
Hurricanes Interested In Nikolaj Ehlers
After today’s flurry of moves, Nikolaj Ehlers has arguably become the top pending free-agent forward available. Commanding plenty of interest already, Murat Ates of The Athletic lists the Carolina Hurricanes, New York Rangers, and Washington Capitals as known suitors. He also mentioned the Tampa Bay Lightning, but it’s incredibly unfeasible given their salary cap circumstances.
It’s unlikely to be an exhaustive list, but, notably, the three prominent teams listed come from the Metropolitan Division. It’s been known for several weeks that the Hurricanes were looking to make a significant addition this summer after falling short in another postseason appearance. With limited cap space themselves, the Capitals and Rangers may be engaging in some gamesmanship, and merely making life more difficult for their intra-division rival.