The Carolina Hurricanes are now two-thirds of the way through their preseason games, but unlike other teams, the Hurricanes don't have many spots to be won within their lineup for opening night.
Their roster is almost entirely set to start the season, but with only 10 days to go until their home opener, we take a look at three of the more interesting lineup questions, heading into the year.
HOW WILL THE HURRICANES SOLVE THEIR LOGJAM ON DEFENSE?
After bringing in both Dmitry Orlov and Tony DeAngelo this offseason, moving out a defenseman for assets seemed to be a likely move for the team.
However, the Hurricanes seem to have no issues heading into the year with both Brady Skjei and Brett Pesce unsigned, and carrying eight NHL regulars at training camp right now.
We know Skjei and Pesce, along with Jaccob Slavin, Brent Burns, and Dmitry Orlov are locks in the lineup. But the Hurricanes also have both Jalen Chatfield, and now Tony DeAngelo at their disposal, not to mention Caleb Jones, who was an NHL regular with the Chicago Blackhawks last season. There’s a decent chance the Hurricanes carry 13 forwards and eight defenders as a result.
But while the last playing spot will come down to one of DeAngelo or Chatfield, it seems like a bit of a waste of an asset to have the other sit out. Of course, Chatfield’s minimal cap hit means that there aren’t any salary implications, but he proved last year that he’s capable of being a great bottom-pairing, shutdown defender.
Having both DeAngelo and Chatfield on the roster (not to mention Jones and even Dylan Coghlan in the system as well) opens the door for the Hurricanes to move out a defender, and use both DeAngelo and Chatfield on the right side consistently.
It’s an opportunity for the Hurricanes to get some assets back for a defender, while maintaining an elite blue line, but we’ll see if they take it.
WHERE DOES PYOTR KOCHETKOV FIT?
After Pyotr Kochetkov was called upon midway through last season, then subsequently signed to a four-year contract extension, it seemed like a certainty that he’d take a role with the team for the coming season. Both Frederik Andersen and Antti Raanta were pending unrestricted free agents, so the assumption was one of them would not be re-signed, giving an NHL role to Kochetkov instead.
However, both Andersen and Raanta were brought back, leaving Kochetkov in a curious spot. While he’s still exempt from waivers, he’s likely to end up back in the AHL to start the year, despite the fact he’l be making $2 million this season.
Andersen and Raanta certainly have their share of injury trouble, so having a capable third goalie is always a good idea. It also gives Kochetkov one more year to really adjust to the NHL, before likely taking the backup role from Raanta for the 2024-25 season.
The other factor to consider is that Carolina doesn't presently have an AHL affiliate. So if Kochetkov wasn't used on the roster, they'd need to find him a home in the minors.
But after a strong performance with the Hurricanes last year, it’ll be interesting to see if Kochetkov can try to play his way into an NHL job this year. While a third year of an Andersen/Raanta tandem seems likely, expect Kochetkov to push for NHL games, or even force his way onto the roster as a third goalie.
HAS TEUVO TERAVAINEN BECOME EXPENDABLE?
This one may be a bit more out of left field, but it’s a storyline to track.
Teuvo Teravainen is entering the final year of his current contract, coming off his least productive season in six years. By the start of the 2024-25 season, where his next contract would begin, Teravainen would be 30 years old.
While the winger had consistently been able to score at a rate of about 60-70 points per 82 games over most prior seasons, and does play a fairly well-rounded game, he’s not necessarily a scorer. His biggest asset is his playmaking ability, and the winger has only reached the 20-goal mark three times. Considering one of the Hurricanes’ biggest hurdles over the last couple years has been being able to bury their chances (despite there being no shortage of opportunities created), I wonder how much the team would miss Teravainen if he walked in free agency next summer.
Now with the addition of Michael Bunting up front as well, there’s a relatively strong chance Teravainen will be pushed out of the top-six to start the year. So if the winger is playing a smaller role already, and the team doesn’t plan to re-sign him next summer, there’s at least a chance the team would consider moving him beforehand.
Now, it could be considered counterintuitive to trade off a winger in a year where the team looks to be a top contender. But Teravainen could still bring back a good return – my likely comparable would be something similar to what Viktor Arvidsson brought back in the trade to the Los Angeles Kings, with Nashville recouping a second and third-round pick.
The Hurricanes have shown they’re typically fairly stingy with what they’re willing to give up for rental players in recent years, in the trades for Max Domi and Shayne Gostisbehere. So the concept of recouping better assets for their own rental player than what they’ve been willing to pay for others has to be considered.
We saw the Martinook-Staal-Fast line have huge success as a third line throughout much of last season, and if they were kept together, moving Teravainen would really only mean piecing together an altered fourth line as a result.
I think a broader question for the team would be whether the Hurricanes did enough to address their finishing issues, and again, I think moving Teravainen is probably pretty unlikely at this point. If a deal were going to happen, the time for that was probably over the summer. But there’s at least solid reasoning for the Hurricanes to consider moving the winger.
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