Salary Cap Deep Dive: Carolina Hurricanes
Navigating the salary cap is one of the more important tasks for any GM. Teams that can avoid total cap chaos by walking the tightrope of inking players to deals that match their value (or compensate for future value without breaking the bank) remain successful. Those that don’t see struggles and front office changes.
PHR will look at every NHL team and give a thorough look at their cap situation for the 2023-24 season. This will focus more on players who are regulars on the roster versus those who may find themselves shuttling between the AHL and NHL. All cap figures are courtesy of CapFriendly.
Carolina Hurricanes
Current Cap Hit: $81,694,391 (under the $83.5MM Upper Limit)
Entry-Level Contracts
F Jack Drury (one year, $925K)
F Seth Jarvis (one year, $894K)
Potential Bonuses
Jarvis: $500K
Jarvis had an impressive rookie season before stagnating a bit last year. However, he is off to a big start this season, flirting with the point-per-game mark early on. That has him well on his way toward hitting his bonuses at a minimum while he’s the type of player that it wouldn’t be surprising to see Carolina try to work out a long-term deal with. A bridge contract likely checks in around the $4MM mark while a longer-term pact could push closer to $6.5 to $7MM. Drury has carved out a regular role this season, albeit on the fourth line. If he holds onto that for the full season, he could push for a small raise on a short-term bridge contract.
Signed Through 2023-24, Non-Entry-Level
D Jalen Chatfield ($762.5K, UFA)
D Tony DeAngelo ($1.65MM, UFA)
F Brendan Lemieux ($800K, UFA)
F Jordan Martinook ($1.8MM, UFA)
F Martin Necas ($3MM, RFA)
F Stefan Noesen ($762.5K, UFA)
D Brett Pesce ($4.025MM, UFA)
G Antti Raanta ($1.5MM, UFA)
D Brady Skjei ($5.25MM, UFA)
F Teuvo Teravainen ($5.4MM, UFA)
Teravainen has reached 63 points or more in three of the last five seasons but is also coming off a down year that saw him score just 12 times in 68 games, making this a key platform year. He’s off to a nice start and is near that goal total from 2022-23 already. If he can get back to even the 50-point mark, he could have a shot at landing a small raise on another long-term agreement. Martinook had a career year offensively last season with 34 points but is still looking for his first goal this year despite logging nearly 15 minutes a night. His typical offensive profile is one that should see him signing for a bit less than this, especially if he’s able to secure another multi-year agreement.
Necas is going to be a particularly interesting case to follow. He had a breakout 71-point performance last season, providing impressive value on the first year of his bridge deal. He also spent some time at center, his natural position but one he hasn’t played a ton in the NHL. At this point, Necas has established himself as a full-time top-six forward and will have arbitration eligibility for the first time this summer. His qualifying offer is $3.5MM but that’s well below what he’ll get on his next deal. His camp would probably like to see Necas deployed more down the middle to bolster his value but that might be injury-dependent. If Carolina wants to lock him up long-term, they’ll need to at least double his current AAV.
Lemieux had to take a $550K pay cut in free agency this past summer and has found himself out of the lineup more often than not this year which doesn’t bode well for his next contract. He’s going to wind up close to the minimum salary once again and even a one-way deal might not be guaranteed. Noesen has been one of the top under-the-radar bargains after putting up 36 points on a minimum-salary contract; he’s on pace for more than that this year with the AAV now below the minimum. His journeyman track record will work against him here (is it a late breakout for the 30-year-old or is he just the right system fit?) but even so, he should push for closer to $2MM on the open market. If enough teams think it’s a late breakout, that number will go higher.
Skjei had never reached the 10-goal mark until last season when he broke out with an 18-goal campaign. He has consistently been a strong third option on the back end and should be in a position to land at least a small raise and, at 30, close to a max-term agreement if he wants to pursue that long of a contract. Pesce has been in trade speculation dating back to the summer as many suspect the Hurricanes won’t be able to keep him in the fold. Like Skjei, he’s a reliable second pairing player but has a better defensive game but a weaker offensive one. The fact he’s also a right-hand shot will also help his market. Both players should land somewhere in the $6MM range.
DeAngelo was a late entrant into free agency after being bought out by the Flyers after a planned trade to the Hurricanes didn’t go through quite as planned. Unfortunately, the reunion hasn’t been great so far as playing time has been hard to come by and he has struggled. Nonetheless, a contract similar to this one could still be doable from a team looking to add some offensive upside on the back end at a lower cost. Chatfield has worked his way up to being a reliable sixth defender with very strong possession numbers. He’s the type of player that a team or two might believe is capable of a bigger role which could drive his price tag past the $2MM mark.
Raanta acknowledged that he left money on the table to remain with Carolina over the summer. That might wind up biting him a bit in the end as he has struggled considerably this season which won’t help his marketability this summer. That said, if he can turn things around, something in this range should still be doable, perhaps with the Hurricanes if they want to keep the extra depth.
Signed Through 2024-25
G Frederik Andersen ($3.4MM, UFA)
D Brent Burns ($5.28MM, UFA)*
F Jesper Fast ($2.4MM, UFA)
D Dmitry Orlov ($7.75MM, UFA)
D Jaccob Slavin ($5.3MM, UFA)
*-San Jose is retaining an additional $2.72MM on Burns’ contract.
Fast has been a capable depth scorer for most of his career while also being an effective penalty killer. Assuming that holds up over these last two years – he’s off to a bit of a slow start this season – there’s little reason to think he could land another two or three seasons around this price point. It’s worth noting he’ll be 34 at that time, however, which may restrict his market a bit.
Orlov surprised many by signing the priciest deal in free agency in terms of AAV, electing to take a short-term inflated contract with the hopes of landing another one in a more favorable marketplace two years from now. It was also surprising that Carolina was the one to give it to him with the depth they had on the back end plus them needing to re-sign or replace Skjei and Pesce a year from now. The move hasn’t worked out the greatest so far although there’s lots of time to turn it around. He’ll also be 34 when it’s time to sign his next contract so it’d be difficult to expect he’d land this much, even with the projected raise in the cap. But if it came in starting with a six on a three-year deal (or even four) if he’s able to turn his play around, going this route could ultimately work out well for him.
Slavin hasn’t been asked to play true number one minutes recently but that doesn’t mean he can’t handle them; he’ll almost be certainly valued as someone who can in free agency. He’s not a top point producer but he has shown progress on that front as well while being a stalwart in his own end. Accordingly, he could be pushing for $8MM or more on a max-term agreement, even though he’ll be 31 at that time. Burns has fit in quite well with Carolina while still playing a big role. However, he’ll be entering free agency at age 40. Will he even want to sign another deal? If he does, it’ll almost certainly be a one-year agreement, setting up the ability for a team to make some of it bonus-based for additional cap flexibility.
Andersen also took a pay cut to remain with Carolina over the summer and he was also off to a rough start to his season. However, he’s now out indefinitely with blood clots and it wouldn’t be fair to speculate on his next deal until he’s able to return.
Signed Through 2025-26
F Michael Bunting ($4.5MM, UFA)
Bunting went from being a fringe piece with Arizona to an integral part of Toronto’s top six over the last two seasons, making him one of the more intriguing players to hit the market over the summer. He didn’t quite wind up with a long-term deal but this one should hold up pretty well if he can provide around 45 points a year on the second line. If he does, he’ll have a much more favorable market next time around having proven he can produce outside of Toronto.
Flames Recall Matt Coronato, Place Jacob Markstrom On IR
The Flames have made a pair of roster moves in advance of their game tonight New Jersey. The team announced that forward Matt Coronato has been recalled from AHL Calgary and in a corresponding move, goalie Jacob Markstrom was placed on injured reserve.
Coronato broke camp with the big club and spent nearly four weeks with them to start the season before being sent down a little more than a month ago. In his ten games with the Flames, the 21-year-old picked up his first two NHL points, a goal and an assist. However, he also struggled at the defensive end to the point where the team decided he’d be better off playing a top role with the Wranglers.
That move certainly worked well for Coronato as he has been quite productive with them so far, notching eight goals and ten assists in just 14 games in his first taste of AHL action. That’s good for the second-best point-per-game average among AHL rookies. Now he’ll get a chance to try to capitalize off that momentum with this promotion.
As for Markstrom, he suffered a fractured finger earlier this week, yielding a week-to-week injury designation. Accordingly, his IR placement is largely procedural at this point as Dustin Wolf had already been brought up on emergency recall to take his place in Calgary’s goalie tandem. The Flames are eligible to backdate the placement to Tuesday if they want but considering he’s expected to be out for weeks, it’ll make no difference whether they do so or not.
Canucks Assign Linus Karlsson To AHL
The Canucks have made a roster move prior to tonight’s game against Carolina as the team announced (Twitter link) that forward Linus Karlsson has been assigned to AHL Abbotsford.
The 24-year-old was recalled a week and a half ago, getting into two games with Vancouver to bring his season count to three. He has been held off the scoresheet in those three contests while logging 10:26 per game. Karlsson has been quite productive in the minors, however, picking up three goals and a dozen helpers in 17 appearances at that level.
Karlsson is in the final season of his two-year, entry-level deal that he signed in 2022 following a strong showing with SHL Skelleftea. He’ll be a restricted free agent with salary arbitration rights this summer.
Yesterday, it was reported that center Pius Suter is nearing a return to Vancouver’s lineup after missing the last three weeks with a lower-body injury. This roster move could be the precursor to activating Suter off injured reserve either later today or in the near future.
Capitals Activate T.J. Oshie, Assign Hendrix Lapierre To AHL
The Capitals will welcome back winger T.J. Oshie to their lineup tonight against the Rangers as they announced that he has been activated off injured reserve. To make room for him on the active roster, Washington has assigned center Hendrix Lapierre to AHL Hershey.
Oshie has missed the last six games with an upper-body injury. However, prior to the injury, things had not been going well for the 37-year-old. Oshie had just one goal and one assist in his first 17 games of the season despite averaging 16:40 per night, nearly the identical ice time compared to a year ago when he collected 35 points in 58 games.
He’s hardly the only veteran Capital to struggle to score this season. Washington enters tonight’s action dead last in the NHL in goals with 56 despite returning most of the same group from last season which finished 20th in the league in scoring.
As for Lapierre, he has spent the bulk of the season so far with Washington following a late-October recall, going in and out of the lineup when needed. Overall, he has played in 11 games with the Caps, collecting a goal and two assists while logging just over ten minutes a night. The 2020 first-rounder also has three assists in six contests with the Bears. As one of only a handful of waiver-exempt players on the roster, he winds up drawing the short straw to return to the minors this time around.
Metropolitan Notes: Blue Jackets, Pelech, Goodrow
With Daniil Tarasov’s conditioning stint set to end in a week and Elvis Merzlikins’ illness not expected to keep him out for long, the Blue Jackets will soon be facing a three-goalie situation. However, rather than try to trade or waive one of the three (which also includes waiver pickup Spencer Martin), Columbus intends to keep them all according to Aaron Portzline of The Athletic (Twitter link). There are only two other teams who are now regularly keeping up three netminders (Detroit and Montreal are the others) but at this point, it appears as if GM Jarmo Kekalainen doesn’t think he can get Martin through unclaimed.
More from the Metropolitan:
- Islanders defenseman Adam Pelech skated on his own for the first time on Friday as he works his way back from an upper-body injury that has him on LTIR, head coach Lane Lambert told reporters including Ethan Sears of the New York Post (Twitter link). The 29-year-old was off to a quiet start before the injury but was still logging nearly 20 minutes a night and his eventual return will be a welcome one with Ryan Pulock and Sebastian Aho also on IR at the moment. Pelech still has to miss at least 10 games and 24 days before he can be activated so his return is still a couple of weeks away (December 19th is the earliest possible date) but the fact he’s skating is an encouraging sign that he might not miss much more than the minimum.
- Rangers winger Barclay Goodrow is questionable for tonight’s game against Washington, relays Mollie Walker of the New York Post. The veteran took a puck to the face in Tuesday’s loss to Ottawa and has not practiced since. Goodrow has a goal and two assists in 23 games so far this season; if he can’t play tonight, veteran Riley Nash will likely take his place in the lineup.
Blackhawks Recall Isaak Phillips, Place Kevin Korchinski On Non-Roster List
The Blackhawks have made a pair of roster moves in advance of their game tonight against St. Louis. The team announced (Twitter link) that they’ve recalled blueliner Isaak Phillips from AHL Rockford. To make room for him on the roster, Chicago has moved defenseman Kevin Korchinski to the non-roster list.
Phillips has been up a couple of times with the Blackhawks already this season, getting into nine games where he had three assists while logging just under 16 minutes per contest. He has put up similar numbers with the IceHogs, collecting a goal and two helpers in ten appearances with them. Chicago had just sent the 22-year-old down last Saturday but it turned out to be a short-lived stint.
As for Korchinski, the 19-year-old has done a nice job locking down a regular spot in Chicago’s lineup so far. He has played in all 25 games, picking up two goals and five assists along with 30 blocked shots while averaging 19:31 per night. That puts him fifth among all NHL rookies; his teammate Connor Bedard is sixth in NHL rookie ATOI.
After Saturday’s morning skate, head coach Luke Richardson clarified to reporters including Mark Lazerus of The Athletic (Twitter link) that Korchinski’s designation is for a family reason, not a loan for the upcoming World Juniors of which he’s eligible to play in. Accordingly, Phillips’ recall is likely to only be a short-term on.
Boone Jenner To Miss Six Weeks With Fractured Jaw
The injured list in Columbus has grown considerably this week already and today, another player has been added to it as the team announced (Twitter link) that center Boone Jenner has been placed on IR. He’s set to miss the next six weeks due to a fractured jaw suffered on Friday against St. Louis after being hit by a shot from teammate Ivan Provorov in the second period.
While the Blue Jackets have underachieved this season, Jenner is one of the few individual exceptions. He leads the team in goals with 13 while leading all forwards in points with 18 in 28 games. The captain had also gotten off to a nice start at the faceoff dot as his 55.6% success rate is the best of his career. Jenner also leads all Columbus forwards in ice time per game, logging 19:33 per night while playing in all situations.
Jenner joins defenseman Adam Boqvist (shoulder), goaltender Elvis Merzlikins (illness), and forward Cole Sillinger (upper body) as those who have been placed on injured reserve this week alone. Veteran blueliner Damon Severson and center Jack Roslovic are also on there as well. All told, they have nearly $23MM on IR now.
All of a sudden, Columbus’ center depth has taken another big hit. That should open up an even bigger role for Adam Fantilli who has done well since moving back to his natural spot down the middle. Head coach Pascal Vincent will need to decide if he wants to put Patrik Laine back at center (once he returns from an illness) to cover for Jenner to allow their younger centers to ease in on the wing. Alternatively, Kent Johnson and Dmitri Voronkov are both natural centers while Justin Danforth (who has briefly played there this season) could also shift over.
The Blue Jackets are back in action on Sunday against Florida. With Jenner’s placement, they have an open roster spot and it wouldn’t be surprising to see that spot filled in time for that game, either by a recall or someone activation from IR.
Blues Recall Hugh McGing
On Friday, the Blues opened up a roster spot when they traded defenseman Robert Bortuzzo to the Islanders. Today, they’ve filled that vacancy as they recalled forward Hugh McGing, per the AHL’s transactions log.
The 25-year-old is in his fourth season in St. Louis’ system after being a fifth-round pick back in 2018 (138th overall). McGing made his NHL debut last year, getting into a single game with the big club but spent most of the year with AHL Springfield where he had 17 goals and 22 assists in 71 games.
He’s off to a better start offensively this season, notching four goals and 11 helpers in 21 appearances, a 51-point pace over a 72-game campaign, putting him fourth on the Thunderbirds in scoring and helping him earn this recall. McGing is playing on a one-year, two-way deal this season worth the league minimum at the NHL level and will almost certainly be eligible for Group Six unrestricted free agency next summer.
With McGing’s recall, St. Louis is now once again carrying a full 23-player roster.
Joseph Woll Out Week-To-Week With High Ankle Sprain
Maple Leafs goaltender Joseph Woll is sidelined week-to-week with a high ankle sprain, per a team announcement Saturday morning. Woll sustained the injury in the third period of Thursday’s 4-3 win over the Senators after stopping 29 of 31 shots faced.
While this will be a longer-term absence, the Maple Leafs appear to have avoided the worst with Woll. The 25-year-old netminder could not put any weight on his left leg while leaving the ice and needed help getting to the locker room. The injury, which appeared to be initially sustained early in the third period, was aggravated on a rather innocuous-looking play with ten minutes left in regulation. Woll moved slightly across his crease to stop a sharp-angle backhand shot from Senators center Rourke Chartier and collapsed in pain after his left leg hit the post.
Unfortunately for Woll, this is not his first ankle injury – he missed significant AHL time in 2020-21 with a similar issue. He and the Leafs hope this won’t become a long-term issue as he slides into the role of Toronto’s starting netminder.
Woll, who’s signed to a bargain-bin contract carrying a $767K cap hit through 2025, has been excellent for the Leafs this season. Starting 13 of their 23 contests, he’s posted an 8-5-1 record, .916 SV% and 2.80 GAA. He’s had a handful of spectacular performances over the past few days, including making 38 saves on 39 shots in a shootout victory against the Panthers and 37 saves on 40 shots in a shootout victory against the Kraken late last month. Per MoneyPuck, Woll has stopped 7.4 goals above expected, which is good enough for 12th in the league.
While the Leafs didn’t issue a specific timeline for recovery, this should not be a months-long absence. A standard high-ankle sprain recovery timeline for athletes is in the four-to-six-week range.
That means it’s Ilya Samsonov‘s crease again in Toronto for the next month or so. After guiding the Leafs to their first playoff series win in nearly two decades, he’s struggled mightily in 2023-24. Through ten starts, Samsonov has a .878 SV% and 3.58 GAA – despite a decent record of 4-1-3, he hasn’t been nearly good enough after posting a career-high .919 SV% in 40 starts last season. He has not played since their 4-3 overtime loss to the Blackhawks on November 24 and was not dressed for Thursday’s game against the Senators, as he’s been sidelined with an illness since the beginning of the month.
The Leafs did not announce a corresponding roster move along with Woll’s injury, suggesting that Samsonov is healthy enough to at least dress for tonight’s game against the Predators. If he’s not fit enough to start, 33-year-old Martin Jones will make his first Maple Leafs start after clearing waivers during preseason. He stopped nine of ten shots faced in relief against Ottawa.
Jones, 33, signed a one-year pact with the Maple Leafs in August to provide competition for the backup role with Woll heading into camp. He’s struggled in brief AHL action this season, his first in a decade, posting a .870 SV% in five games. He’s posted a save percentage below the NHL average in five straight seasons, although he did start 42 games for the Kraken last season, his highest figure since the 2018-19 campaign.
While Toronto would prefer to keep him in the minors for development purposes, 22-year-old Dennis Hildeby has been excellent for the AHL’s Toronto Marlies and is available for recall. The 2022 fourth-round pick has a 1.89 GAA, .925 SV% and two shutouts in his first full season in North America.
Central Notes: Barrie, Lehkonen, Fleury
Over the weekend, news got out that Predators defenseman Tyson Barrie and his camp had been given permission to seek a trade. Speaking recently with 102.5 The Game (video link), GM Barry Trotz expressed his frustration over the news being leaked and how Barrie himself handled being made a healthy scratch for the first time in his career last weekend. The 32-year-old has typically been one of the better offensive producers from the blueline in his career with ten straight seasons of at least 38 points. However, he has been held without a goal and has just ten assists in his first 23 games this season. Barrie is in the final year of his contract which carries a $4.5MM AAV and with his offensive struggles so far, it might not be a deal that’s easy to move. Meanwhile, in his latest piece for The Athletic (subscription link), Pierre LeBrun noted that the Preds aren’t particularly inclined to use their last salary retention slot to help facilitate a swap which will only complicate those attempts further.
More from the Central:
- Avalanche winger Artturi Lehkonen skated ahead of Colorado’s practice today, relays Corey Masisak of The Denver Post (Twitter link). The 28-year-old has been out for the last month due to a neck injury but was able to shed his neck brace late last month. There remains no timetable for his return but returning to the ice is at least a step in the right direction. Lehkonen had three goals and five assists in a dozen games before the injury.
- Wild goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury remains undecided about his playing future beyond this season, notes John Shipley of the Pioneer Press. The 39-year-old is in his 20th NHL season and second with Minnesota but this one hasn’t gone as well as his first with the team. Fleury has played in ten games so far heading into tonight’s action, posting a 3.21 GAA with a .884 SV%. If those hold, it would be the lowest save percentage of his career and his highest GAA since the 2005-06 campaign. Fleury is in the final year of his contract, one that carries a $3.5MM cap charge.