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Carolina Hurricanes Re-Assign Maxime Lajoie

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Dec 14: A few days later, the Hurricanes have sent Lajoie back to the minor leagues. He played in two games, seeing a total of 13 shifts during his recall.

Dec 8: The Carolina Hurricanes announced this evening that they have recalled defenseman Maxime Lajoie from the Chicago Wolves, their AHL affiliate. No corresponding move was announced. This brings Carolina to a full 23-man roster.

The 25-year-old is in his third season in the Hurricanes organization, having played primarily for the Wolves during that period of times. In fact, the defenseman was recently named captain of the Wolves on November 8th. In 17 AHL games this season, Lajoie has six points, all assists. This won’t be his first time on Carolina’s roster this year either, having played one game for the team back on November 14th.

Originally an Ottawa Senators draft pick in 2016, the bulk of Lajoie’s NHL experience came during the 2018-19 season, where he suited up for 58 games for Ottawa. Since then, he’s played in just 12 NHL games spread over three seasons. Now an AHL veteran and leader, Lajoie has made the most of his time in the AHL recording 93 points in 211 career games.

Oliwer Kaski Signs In SHL

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When Oliwer Kaski left North America in 2020, after just one season in the AHL, the Carolina Hurricanes weren’t going to give up his rights completely. The team issued Kaski a qualifying offer, meaning he stayed on their reserve list and could only sign a contract with them if he wanted to return.

Those rights were only held through his age-27 season, though, which is this year for the undrafted defenseman. If Carolina wanted to bring him back, they would have to sign him by the end of June, or Kaski would become an unrestricted free agent.

It doesn’t appear like that will happen, as the Finnish puck-mover has signed a contract with HV71 in the SHL through 2024. That ends a short run in the Swiss league where he found little success, playing 20 games for Lugano this season.

He scored just four points in those games, but that’s not common for Kaski, who has filled the net wherever he plays. Over the last two seasons in the KHL, he scored 26 goals and 67 points in 105 games. When this contract with HV71 ends, he’ll be an unrestricted free agent in North America too, meaning there could potentially be a return.

He’ll also be closing in on 30, though, so he may just continue to be an excellent offensive defenseman overseas, and never realize that dream of playing in the NHL.

Ondrej Kase Resumes Skating

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After suffering a concussion in Carolina’s season opener, winger Ondrej Kase has resumed skating, relays team reporter Walt Ruff (Twitter link).  While there remains no firm timetable for his return, the fact he has resumed on-ice activities is certainly an important step.  That said, with his lengthy concussion history, expect the Hurricanes to proceed very carefully with the 27-year-old.  Kase signed a one-year, $1.5MM deal in the offseason to provide Carolina with some secondary scoring, an area in which they’ve had some issues in the early going this season.

Carolina Hurricanes Assign Dylan Coghlan To AHL On Conditioning Stint

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The Carolina Hurricanes announced in a team release today that the team has assigned defenseman Dylan Coghlan to the Chicago Wolves of the AHL on a conditioning stint.

Coghlan has been pushed down the Hurricanes’ defense depth chart this season, although the team hasn’t given him much of a chance. They’ve instead favored more defensively-inclined options like Jalen Chatfield, who’s played in all of Carolina’s 26 games in 2022-23.

Acquired alongside Max Pacioretty from the Vegas Golden Knights in July, Coghlan has played only six games with Carolina this season, averaging just 14:08 per game. In 88 previous NHL games, all with Vegas, the 6′ 3″, 207 lb Coghlan had six goals, 13 assists, and 19 points.

Interestingly enough, this won’t be a new AHL stop for Coghlan. His only AHL experience has come in Chicago, where he played full seasons in 2018-19 and 2019-20. At the time, the team was Vegas’ AHL affiliate before the team purchased the San Antonio Rampage, promptly relocating them to Henderson to become the Silver Knights. Chicago, who has one of the most successful track records of any AHL team (and is the defending Calder Cup champion), then entered an affiliation agreement with Carolina.

While he didn’t nab any awards during his time in the minors, Coghlan was an integral part of the Chicago blueline when he was there. His 2018-19 rookie season as an undrafted free agent saw him lead the team’s defense with 40 points in 66 games.

Carolina Hurricanes Activate Teuvo Teravainen

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As first reported by Walt Ruff of the Carolina Hurricanes’ team website, Hurricanes forward Teuvo Teravainen has been activated off of injured reserve. Per Ruff, Teravainen’s status regarding tomorrow’s game against the Los Angeles Kings is still to be determined.

Teravainen, 28, has missed the Hurricanes’ last ten games recovering from an upper-body injury. The veteran Finnish forward has no goals and just seven assists in 14 games so far this year, but as recently as last season Teravainen was scoring at a high level.

In 2021-22, Teravainen scored 65 points in 77 games, a total that ranked third on a strong Hurricanes team. With Andrei Svechnikov locking down the Hurricanes’ second-line left winger spot next to Jesperi Kotkaniemi, Teravainen’s return would slot him in as the team’s first-line left winger next to Sebastian Aho and Martin Necas.

Should head coach Rod Brind’Amour choose to deploy Teravainen there, it would likely shift Seth Jarvis out of that first-line left winger spot and into the second-line right winger spot, a role currently occupied by Stefan Noesen. While Noesen has impressed this year with 10 points in 23 games, it’s likely that Brind’Amour would rather find room for Jarvis, one of the team’s top up-and-coming talents, in their top-six over Noesen.

Another option would be for this activation to shift Jack Drury out of the team’s lineup, as Drury has been playing in a fourth-line left winger role. Drury doesn’t have a point in the NHL this season, and the Hurricanes could opt to give him some more time to marinate in the AHL.

Regardless of what Brind’Amour ultimately chooses to do with his lines, the return of Teravainen is undoubtedly a win for Carolina. They add a strong top-six playmaker back to their lineup who should be able to help them as they attempt to catch up with the New Jersey Devils in the race for the Metropolitan Division crown.

Carolina Hurricanes Acquire Zack Hayes

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According to a team release Wednesday, the Carolina Hurricanes have acquired defenseman Zack Hayes from the Vegas Golden Knights in exchange for future considerations.

Hayes, 23, goes to the Hurricanes organization after two-and-a-quarter years in the desert. An undrafted free agent, Hayes signed a two-year entry-level contract with Vegas for the 2021-22 season after spending 2020-21 on an AHL contract with Vegas’ affiliate, the Henderson Silver Knights. 

The 6’3″, 218 lb defenseman made his NHL debut last season, skating in three games while injuries decimated Vegas’ blueline. Things haven’t gone too well for him in the minors this year, though, registering a lone assist through 14 games after a ten-point year in 2021-22.

His game leans on the defensive side, though, and that’s what Carolina hopes Hayes provides to their organization. Hurricanes general manager Don Waddell called Hayes “an experienced leader who knows how to play physically on the back end.”

For the Golden Knights, the trade frees up a needed contract spot. The team was previously at the 50-contract limit, preventing them from making any additions. That can be especially tricky when injuries ravage an organization’s goalie depth, a situation Vegas knows well from their first year in the league.

It’s the second time this calendar year that the Hurricanes have exchanged future considerations for assets from the Golden Knights. Carolina more famously acquired Max Pacioretty and Dylan Coghlan from the Knights in a salary-motivated transaction before this season. While future considerations are rarely ever put into play anymore, the Hurricanes are working up quite a debt of gratitude toward Vegas.

Evening Notes: Stars, Letang, Samsonov

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The Dallas Stars are off to a strong start under new head coach Pete DeBoer, and they’re looking to get stronger. Per TSN’s Darren Dreger on tonight’s edition of Insider Trading, the Stars are still looking to add a top-six forward, preferably to play with Tyler Seguin and Mason Marchment.

They’ve had a rotating cast playing on the wing with those two, and although Seguin and Marchment have played well, they’d obviously like some added depth and to get a player that boasts chemistry with them. Jamie Benn is having a resurgence in limited minutes, scoring 26 points in 23 games, and they’d prefer to keep his ice time down below 15-16 minutes. If nothing comes to fruition, the strong performances of youngsters Ty Dellandrea and Wyatt Johnston should still safeguard their depth scoring.

  • Pittsburgh Penguins defenseman Kris Letang has been in and out of the lineup recently, and he’s missing another contest tonight. Letang is absent from their game against the Carolina Hurricanes with an undisclosed illness, the team announced before puck drop. It’s his second missed game of the season after missing a game earlier this month, also with an illness. He revealed weeks ago that he had been battling an illness for a stretch of games; whether or not this is a related illness is unclear.
  • Toronto Maple Leafs goalie Ilya Samsonov says he’s pain-free after his knee injury and is “ready to play,” according to TSN’s Mark Masters. Head coach Sheldon Keefe pumped the brakes on his status, however, saying the team would check on him tomorrow to determine his return to play. The young netminder, who had a strong start to the season, has missed nearly a month.

Teuvo Teravainen Close To Returning

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Carolina Hurricanes forward Teuvo Teravainen is getting closer to returning, according to NHL.com’s Kurt Dusterburg. Teravainen practiced with the team today and could return during the team’s upcoming six-game road trip.

Teravainen has yet to score this season, but he’s been limited to just 14 games with an upper-body injury. The Hurricanes haven’t been great without him, though, and they’ve won just one game out of their past six. They’re hoping Teravainen’s return can jumpstart the depth scoring that’s been a significant issue in 2022-23. Dusterburg also noted that goalie Frederik Andersen, who is on injured reserve and has missed the past ten games, will not travel.

  • Boston Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery says goalie Linus Ullmark is healthy enough for backup duty tomorrow night against the Tampa Bay Lightning. After leaving Friday’s come-from-behind win against the Hurricanes with an upper-body injury, Ullmark was back with the team today at practice. His 13 wins, .935 save percentage, and 2.00 goals-against average all lead the NHL. Forward Trent Frederic was also back at practice today after missing two games, while Craig Smith will miss tomorrow’s game with an upper-body injury suffered against the Hurricanes and is day-to-day.

Andersen Improving But Hasn't Started Skating Yet

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  • Hurricanes goaltender Frederik Andersen has yet to start skating as he continues to work his way back from an undisclosed injury that has kept him out for the last couple of weeks, relays Cory Lavalette of the North State Journal. However, head coach Rod Brind’Amour indicated that while Andersen has been out longer than expected, he’s at least improving a little bit.  It’s hardly the start to the season that the pending UFA was looking for as he has a save percentage of just .891 through his first eight games and for a goalie that has often been injured throughout his career, recovering from this issue slower than expected doesn’t help.

Carolina Hurricanes Extend Pyotr Kochetkov

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The Carolina Hurricanes may just have found their goaltender of the future. The team has announced a four-year extension for Pyotr Kochetkov that will keep him under contract through 2026-27. The deal carries an average annual value of $2MM, and will take him to unrestricted free agency. General manager Don Waddell released a statement:

Pyotr has been extremely solid for both Carolina and Chicago since coming to North America last season. We believe he has a bright future in our crease, and we’re excited to watch him as he continues to grow as a person and player.

Kochetkov, 23, was a second-round pick of the Hurricanes in 2019 (36th overall) and experienced great success as a young player in the KHL before coming to North America. In his first full year on this side of the pond, he posted a .921 save percentage in 15 games for the Chicago Wolves and then helped them to a Calder Cup championship, going 5-1 in the playoffs with a .950. He formed an almost unbeatable tandem with veteran netminder Alex Lyon, winning a title with the Wolves in just his first season here.

He also made his NHL debut last year, and ended up playing for the Hurricanes in the playoffs when Frederik Andersen and Antti Raanta went down. Injuries to those goaltenders are common occurrences, and Kochetkov has been forced into NHL duty again this year. More prepared this time around, he has a .914 save percentage in four appearances, allowing just eight goals on 93 shots.

With Raanta and Andersen both scheduled for unrestricted free agency in the summer, locking up Kochetkov now means the team will have at least one goaltender they trust in the mix. Whether they bring back one of the veterans to pair with him is unclear at this point, especially as Andersen deals with another rather mysterious injury.

If he can show the ability to perform at a high level in the NHL, a $2MM cap hit will look like an incredible bargain for a team that is poised to compete for the Stanley Cup. It likely leaves the team room to pair him with another capable netminder, though there are some big extensions coming down the pipe for Carolina. Sebastian Aho, Martin Necas, Brett Pesce, and Teuvo Teravainen all need new contracts by the 2024-25 season, meaning funds could be tight down the road. A $2MM deal essentially ensures that Kochetkov will be on the roster – what role he plays is still to be determined.

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