The Carolina Hurricanes acquired defenseman Jani Hakanpaa and a sixth-round pick in the 2022 NHL Draft from the Anaheim Ducks today, in exchange for defenseman Haydn Fleury.
Hakanpaa has one point in 42 games with the Ducks this year, averaging 18:37 of ice time per game. His contract carries an AAV of $750,000 and Hakanpaa will be an unrestricted free agent in the offseason.
Fleury has spent parts of the last four seasons with the Hurricanes, playing 167 career NHL games in total. He has another year remaining on his contract at a $1.3 million AAV.
ANALYSIS
Personally, I really like this trade for the Hurricanes. I’ve had a chance to watch Hakanpaa quite a bit this year while covering the Ducks and in my opinion, he’ll be a great fit on Carolina’s third pairing. If you haven't seen him play much, I'd certainly give him a few games with the Hurricanes before passing judgement on the deal. Here are some quick notes:
While Hakanpaa won’t add any offense, he’s very solid in his own end and was arguably Anaheim’s most reliable defender for a stretch of the year. Even in his first NHL season, Hakanpaa was able to take on a larger role than anticipated due to injuries on the Ducks’ blue line and he handled it well. He does a good job taking the puck off forwards on zone entries and plays a physical, defense-first game.
I like Fleury as well and do think he’ll continue to round out his game with the Ducks but there was a chance he could get selected in the expansion draft anyways. Additionally, Hakanpaa will provide more defensive stability for the Hurricanes, as they look to make a deep playoff run. Carolina has outscored their defensive issues at times this year and I think Hakanpaa is going to be a very good addition for Carolina.
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Carolina Hurricanes Blogger • 
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