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No Extension Talks Between Hurricanes And Rod Brind'Amour

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TSN Insider Pierre LeBrun is reporting that the New Jersey Devils continue to work on signing head coach Lindy Ruff to a multi-year extension. Ruff had the option on his contract picked up for this season but will be a free agent at the end of the 2023-24 season. Devils General Manager Tom Fitzgerald told Lebrun that the intention is to sign Ruff long-term, but didn’t give any details as to whether or not there are any sticking points or holdups in the negotiations.

Last season, Ruff led the Devils on their first playoff run since 2018 with a record of 52-22-8 finishing second in the Metropolitan Division. The Devils knocked off the New York Rangers in the first round in seven games before falling in the second round to the Carolina Hurricanes. For his career, Ruff has coached for three organizations (Buffalo Sabres, Dallas Stars, New Jersey) and has a career record of 834-652-78.

In other coaching news:

  • LeBrun added that he believes the Los Angeles Kings and Head Coach Todd McLellan are also working on an extension at this time. Few details were given, but much like Ruff, McLellan is in the final season of his existing contract. In four seasons with the Kings, the 55-year-old has guided the club to a 141-115-34 record that includes back-to-back first-round playoff losses to the Edmonton Oilers. McLellan’s contract negotiation could be interesting as he reportedly is making $5MM in the final year of a five-year $25MM contract he signed in April of 2019.
  • LeBrun said on TSN Insider Trading that the Carolina Hurricanes and Head Coach Rod Brind’Amour have yet to discuss an extension. Much like Ruff and McLellan, Brind’Amour will be a free agent at the end of the year. Lebrun did speak to Hurricanes owner Tom Dundon who said that the Hurricanes do intend to engage Brind’Amour and get him signed to a contract extension very soon. Brind’Amour is widely considered to be one of the top coaches in the NHL and would likely initiate a large bidding war if his services were ever offered up on the open market.

Rod Brind'Amour Expected To Get New Deal In Carolina

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The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun recently broke down what coaches are on expiring deals, and what fans can expect them to do next. He most notably broke down Rod Brind’Amour’s next contract, expressing confidence that the long-running head coach will stick to his word of wanting to stay behind the Carolina Hurricanes bench. This is despite Brind’Amour only making around $2MM in salary, a number that would certainly go up if he became a free agent.

Brind’Amour has spent 22 years with the Hurricanes franchise, including the final 10 seasons of his playing career and now 12 seasons on their coaching staff. It’s clear he’s found a home in Raleigh and isn’t expected to be moving on any time soon.

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Training Camp Cuts: 9/23/23

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The preseason is now officially underway after the Coyotes and Kings played their first of two contests in Australia overnight.  Technically, it was the first of three games on the docket for Arizona as they also have split-squad games set for today against St. Louis.  With the exhibition season now going, teams will start to begin paring down their rosters in the coming days.  We’ll keep tabs on any of today’s cut activity here.

Arizona Coyotes (via PHNX Sports’ Craig Morgan)

F Ben Boyd (to St. Mary’s, USports)
F Josh Prokop (to University of Alberta, USports)
F Elliot Ekefjärd (Almtuna, HockeyAllsvenskan)
D Justin Kipkie (to Victoria, WHL)
D Ryder Thompson (to Portland, WHL)

Buffalo Sabres (via team release)

F Ethan Miedema (to Kingston, OHL)
G Scott Ratzlaff (to Seattle, WHL)

Carolina Hurricanes (via team release)

G Jakub Vondras (to Sudbury, OHL)

Columbus Blue Jackets (via team release)

D Nicholas DeAngelis (released from tryout)
F Kocha Delic (released from tryout)
D Gunner Kinniburgh (released from tryout)
D Joe Leahy (released from tryout)
F Sean McGurn (released from tryout)
F Tyler Peddle (to Drummondville, QMJHL)
F Luca Pinelli (to Ottawa, OHL)
F Nate Schnarr (released from tryout)
F Jakin Smallwood (released from tryout)
F Aidan Spellacy (released from tryout)
F Oasiz Wiesblatt (released from tryout)

Seattle Kraken (via team Twitter)

D Eric Jamieson (to Everett, WHL)
G Tyler Palmer (to Everett, WHL)
D Caden Price (to Kelowna, WHL)

This post will be updated as further cuts come in.

Raanta Left Money And Term On The Table To Stay With Hurricanes

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Hurricanes goaltender Antti Raanta acknowledged to Ryan Henkel of The Hockey News that he left both term and money on the table when he decided to re-sign with Carolina on the opening day of free agency back in July.  The 34-year-old put up back-to-back strong seasons with the Hurricanes and posted a 2.23 GAA along with a .910 SV% in 27 games last year, numbers that seemingly had him positioned for a raise on the $2MM AAV of his previous deal but instead, he accepted a one-year, $1.5MM agreement.  Frederik Andersen also re-signed on July 1st and with Carolina also not having an AHL affiliate this season, Pyotr Kochetkov could also be in the mix as well which means one of the stronger goalie trios remains intact for the upcoming season.

Vasili Ponomarev Suffers Undisclosed Injury

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  • Hurricanes prospect Vasili Ponomarev will be out for a little while, notes Cory Lavalette of the North State Journal (Twitter link). The 21-year-old is coming off a strong first season in North America as he picked up 24 goals and 22 assists in 64 games last season with AHL Chicago.  The injury isn’t believed to be overly serious but as someone who might have had a shot at pushing for a spot with Carolina in training camp, missing any time will make that objective harder to accomplish.

Teravainen: Injured Thumb May Never Return To Normal

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  • Hurricanes winger Teuvo Teravainen dealt with a thumb injury last season that caused him to miss part of the playoffs as well. While he was able to return for the final game of the postseason and is a full participant in training camp, the winger told reporters including Chip Alexander of the Raleigh News & Observer, that while his thumb feels pretty good, he doesn’t believe it will truly get back to ‘normal’.  The 29-year-old is entering the final year of his contract and will be looking for a big year whether it’s with Carolina or elsewhere; significant talks on an extension have yet to begin.

Andrei Svechnikov Expected To Be Ready For Start Of Regular Season

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Carolina Hurricanes winger Andrei Svechnikov is ahead of schedule in his recovery from reconstructive knee surgery performed in March and will likely be cleared to play by the start of the 2023-24 regular season, general manager Don Waddell told The Athletic’s Michael Russo today.

Svechnikov tore an ACL ligament just after the trade deadline had passed, resulting in surgery that kept him out for the remainder of the 2022-23 regular season and playoffs. It was a gigantic blow to the scoring ability of a Hurricanes team that still managed to reach the Eastern Conference Final without him but lost in a sweep to the Florida Panthers. Carolina has now lost three consecutive Conference Final series without winning a game – in fact, the franchise, despite all their recent success, has not won a game in the final two postseason rounds since winning the Stanley Cup in 2006.

Being ready for the start of the regular season was always a possibility but never a certainty. The standard recovery timeline for his procedure is six to nine months, meaning he could have returned as early as training camp but as late as the Christmas break. There’s been a tone of optimism around Svechnikov’s recovery all summer after he started skating in mid-July, but Waddell stopped short of saying he’d be ready to go for the season opener as soon as last month.

A healthy and confident Svechnikov will be a core piece in helping the Hurricanes get over the hump and again compete for a Stanley Cup. After reshaping their blueline to have the most depth in the league, thanks to adds like Dmitry Orlov, Anthony DeAngelo and Caleb Jones, the Hurricanes are in the conversation for President’s Trophy favorites ahead of puck drop on 2023-24.

Svechnikov is entering the third season of an eight-year, $62MM contract signed before the 2021-22 campaign. The 23-year-old is still looking to eclipse the point-per-game mark for the first time but was still on pace for back-to-back 30-goal seasons before the ACL tear ended his campaign prematurely. He totalled 23 goals, 32 points and 55 points in 64 games last year and has accumulated 112 goals in 347 games throughout his NHL career.

He’s currently projected to help anchor the team’s second forward line on the left wing, with Jesperi Kotkaniemi down the middle and Martin Necas on the right flank. That line controlled 56.9% of expected goals at even strength through 231 minutes together last season, per MoneyPuck. Youngster Seth Jarvis and free-agent acquisition Michael Bunting could get primary even-strength ice time with Sebastian Aho as their center to start the season.

Carolina Takes Brett Pesce Off Of Trade Block

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In his recent 32 Thoughts article, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman shared that Brett Pesce is no longer available to teams – at least, for the time being. The veteran defender, and soon-to-be free agent, was given permission to talk to other teams during the summer but Carolina is going all-in this season, and that includes Pesce’s help.

Above all else, this decision provides clarity to the Hurricanes’ back end. The team is full of defensive talent, with their depth including Caleb Jones, Jalen Chatfield, Domenick Fensore, Dylan Coghlan, and recent PTO-signee Nathan Beaulieu. That’s a lot of competition for six blue-line spots that already seem occupied. And the list doesn’t even include top prospect Alexander Nikishin, who’s started the KHL season with SKA St. Petersburg rather than attending training camp.

But despite the potential for a logjam, Carolina remains invested in Pesce. And that’s certainly not a surprise;  Pesce has played over 20 minutes per night since his sophomore season way back in 2016-17. He’s become an integral piece of the team’s top four, serving a responsible, defense-focused role. And though Pesce himself has never been much of a scorer, he did record a career-high 30 points last season, marked by 25 assists.

While Pesce’s contract negotiations haven’t resulted in an extension yet, Friedman didn’t rule it out given Carolina’s renewed investment. The team is projected to enter next summer with a staggering $31.65MM in cap space and 13 free agents to work with. This includes anchors of the Canes top-six in Teuvo Teravainen and Seth Jarvis. Carolina will also be faced with what to do with their defense, with only Dmitry Orlov, Burns, and Jaccob Slavin on contract beyond this year. It’ll be an interesting summer, and extending Pesce early would certainly make it an easier one to navigate. But for Carolina, all sights are set on this season – one they’re hoping ends with some hardware.

Hurricanes Notes: Pesce, Teravainen, DeAngelo

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Hurricanes blueliner Brett Pesce has switched agents, reports Chip Alexander of the Raleigh News & Observer.  After working with Edge Sports Management, the defenseman is now represented by Wasserman’s Judd Moldaver.  The timing of the change is notable since the 28-year-old is entering the final year of his contract.  Pesce has emerged as a quality top-three defender over the past few years and set a new career-high in points last season with 30.  He’s undoubtedly in line to land a sizable raise on his current $4.025MM AAV but with Brady Skjei also in need of a new deal, Carolina probably won’t be able to afford to keep both.  Pesce made it clear that his preference is to remain with the Hurricanes but earlier this summer, GM Don Waddell noted that the team wasn’t close to re-signing any of their pending UFAs.

Elsewhere in Carolina:

  • Luke DeCock of the Raleigh News & Observer wonders if Carolina would be better off just letting winger Teuvo Teravainen play out the final year of his deal and then move on next summer. The 29-year-old is coming off a down year that saw him score just 12 goals in 68 games but has a good enough track record that it would still cost more than his current $5.4MM AAV to extend him.  With Martin Necas and Seth Jarvis both restricted free agents next summer, they may need Teravainen’s money to get those two locked up to long-term agreements.
  • In his latest piece for The Athletic (subscription link), Cory Lavalette sat down with blueliner Anthony DeAngelo, a mid-summer signing after his contract was bought out by Philadelphia. Despite their strong defensive depth, he opted to go back to an organization that he was comfortable with over one where he would have had a better shot at a bigger role and more playing time.  After what he called a season full of inconsistent play with the Flyers, he’ll be looking to stabilize things somewhat before testing the market again next summer.

Carolina Hurricanes Sign Zach Aston-Reese To PTO

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The Carolina Hurricanes have signed a seventh, and according to team reporter Walt Ruff, final player to a PTO for this preseason and training camp: Zach Aston-Reese.

Aston-Reese, 29, arrives in Carolina after one season spent playing for the Toronto Maple Leafs. A former college hockey star, Aston-Reese has settled into a role as a fourth-line defensive and penalty-killing specialist in the NHL. While his gaudy offensive numbers from Northeastern University never translated to the pro game, Aston-Reese remains a well-regarded player thanks to his defensive contributions.

Last season, Aston-Reese scored 10 goals and 14 points in 77 games while playing 10:55 per night, including just under a minute per night on the penalty kill. Given Aston-Reese’s positive defensive contributions, it’s been somewhat surprising that he’s lingered on the open market for consecutive offseasons. It could be that NHL teams may prefer free agent fourth-liners with more of a physical dimension to their game than Aston-Reese is known for.

In any case, he’ll head to Carolina to compete with their other PTO additions along with incumbent players for a fourth-line role and NHL deal.

The club’s PTO haul includes five other forwards: Kieffer Bellows, Cory Conacher, Brendan Perlini, Nick Shore, and Jayden Halbgewachs, meaning Aston-Reese will have quite a few players to compete with for a job on head coach Rod Brind’Amour’s opening-night lineup.

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