The Carolina Hurricanes were once again active in free agency, with the team adding Michael Bunting as their notable addition up front. Bunting signed a three-year contract with the Hurricanes, which carries a $4.5 million cap hit.
The winger is turning 28 years old in September and this past season, Bunting scored 23 goals and 49 points in 82 games with the Toronto Maple Leafs. That said, he’s also just a year removed from posting 63 points, which led him to third place in Calder Trophy voting.
Heading into the offseason it was clear the Hurricanes needed to add offense and Bunting will be a great add for the top-nine. While his offensive production is one thing, he also plays with an intensity that should match the Hurricanes’ hard-on-the-forecheck style really well, and has some bite to his game. While Carolina does have grit down the lineup, their top-six itself is a fairly small, skill-based group, so Bunting will provide an element to the top of the forward group that's been missing.
The contract itself is also great. Bunting is still only just entering his late 20s, so a three-year deal carries minimal risk and the $4.5M cap hit is very reasonable. Both the term and money came in lower than I had projected for his contract at HockeyComparables.com, which can be viewed below:
That said, I think there’s still some reason to be cautious of the team’s approach to improving their forward group thus far. As of now, Bunting is the only forward added (with Jesper Fast being re-signed), and Max Pacioretty departing for the Washington Capitals.
Finishing on opportunities was a key issue for the Hurricanes this season, and you could argue the team really hasn’t improved in that regard. While Bunting should be a solid addition and provide good value for the price, he’s also scored just 23 goals in each of the last two seasons, while playing with some of the world’s top-producing players. As a result, we can probably only expect about 20 goals and 45-50 points from Bunting, so it’s not necessarily like he’s going to make a real difference to the team’s scoring issues.
Now, this all changes if the Hurricanes do add another top forward. It’s been heavily reported that they’re a frontrunner for Vladimir Tarasenko, but that still doesn’t seem to be a lock at this point. We also know Erik Karlsson isn’t off the board in terms of a blue line addition. But as of now, the team hasn’t quite addressed the scoring issue.
With Bunting in the lineup (as currently constructed), it’ll be interesting to see where he slots in. If no changes are made, we can be reasonably sure as to who the 12 regular forwards would be. If the Hurricanes opted to use some of the lines we frequently saw this season, one of their top-nine forwards would be likely to end up on the fourth line, looking something like this:
That said, this almost seems like a bit of a waste of a top-six winger, whether it’s Teravainen or someone else moving down. Assuming Bunting does slot into the top-six, there aren’t a ton of options as to who would drop to the fourth line that would really work.
I wonder if the Hurricanes would try moving either Jordan Martinook or Jesper Fast down to the bottom line instead, then using Bunting on the third line to allow a skill-based player like Teravainen to play higher in the lineup, potentially like below:
It’s not necessarily the perfect solution, given how well the Martinook - Staal - Fast line performed together through much of the season. But if Bunting does take on top-six minutes, the other likely option would be an expected top-six forward seeing reduced minutes on the bottom line.
There’s still an excellent chance the Hurricanes do add someone else to their forward group in the coming days or weeks, and we have to completely re-evalaute what the team’s lines could look like. But while it remains to be seen where exactly Bunting could play, he’ll be a welcome addition. The winger is the kind of player who could be used up or down the lineup, and while he won’t be the answer to the team’s scoring issues, Bunting should still be a great fit in Carolina.
Carolina Hurricanes Blogger • 
Join the Discussion:
»