With free agency around the corner, the Carolina Hurricanes are set for significant turnover.
But while we’ve already gone over the potential losses of Jake Guentzel, Brady Skjei, and restricted free agent Martin Necas though, the team is also likely set to part ways two of their longest tenured players, in Brett Pesce and Teuvo Teravainen.
As of now, Pesce and Teravainen rank third and fifth amongst active Hurricanes players in terms of games played with the team. However, with the Hurricanes not only in a cap crunch, but also typically hesitant about giving term to pending unrestricted free agents, two pieces that have played fairly key roles in the Hurricanes’ core group over much of the last decade will likely be gone.
With Teravainen, the forward is about to be 30 years old, so any deal with term carries some risk. His production has taken a bit of a hit in recent years, but he can still be good for about 50-55 points per year.
But per The Fourth Period's David Pagnotta, Teravainen is expected to hit free agency on July 1.
I’ve done a projection for Teravainen’s contract at HockeyComparables.com that can be viewed below, but his price tag is likely to prevent the Hurricanes from re-signing him.
Still, losing Teravainen means the Hurricanes have to replace that production somehow. Especially with Jake Guentzel possibly departing, and Martin Necas almost certain to be traded, the Hurricanes could be losing three top-six forwards with Teravainen’s departure.
Then with Pesce, he’s been a pillar of the blue line for the entirety of the Rod Brind’Amour era. Like Teravainen, while Pesce’s play may have taken a bit of a dip, he’s still been hugely important to the team. Alongside Brady Skjei, the duo made up one of the best second pairings in the NHL, and his loss will almost certainly be felt.
Once again though, similar to Teravainen, it’s a circumstance where letting him go is likely the right call. I’ve projected Brett Pesce’s next contract as well, linked below.
Pesce is due for a more expensive contract with term, and with the defenseman also entering his 30s, re-signing the defender arguably just isn’t the ideal call. With Jalen Chatfield re-signed as well, and Scott Morrow likely not far off, it’s a situation where the Hurricanes likely have a plan in place to compensate for Pesce’s departure. Still though, it’s not likely to come without growing pains.
The Hurricanes have a clear philosophy behind their moves, and generally, the only UFAs who do get re-signed are either those who are crucial to the team’s core (such as Sebastian Aho, and likely Jaccob Slavin as well), or those who take a team-friendly deal with limited term. Overall, it’s worked out really well in recent years, and maintaining cap flexibility has allowed the organization to pull off moves that other teams wouldn’t have been able to.
But as the turnover begins, the cost of maintaining that cap flexibility comes with parting ways with long-term pillars of the team like Pesce and Teravainen.
Carolina Hurricanes Blogger • 
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