The Carolina Hurricanes pulled off a blockbuster trade last night, acquiring both Mikko Rantanen from the Colorado Avalanche and Taylor Hall from the Chicago Blackhawks in a three-team deal.
As part of the deal, the Hurricanes sent Martin Necas and Jack Drury to the Avalanche, along with a second-round pick in 2025 and a fourth-round pick in 2026. In exchange for the Blackhawks also retaining half of Rantanen’s salary, the Hurricanes sent Chicago a 2025 third-round pick.
Carolina also acquired prospect Nils Juntorp as part of the deal.
Obviously, Rantanen is undoubtedly the biggest piece of the deal. The winger is 28 years old and had spent his entire career in Colorado to this point, winning a Stanley Cup with the team in 2022. This season, he scored 25 goals and 64 points in just 49 games: an 82-game pace of 42 goals and 107 points.
But while Rantanen is one of the NHL’s best wingers, he’s also set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer. A gap in contract negotiations seems to be the main reason the Avalanche parted ways with the forward, and the Hurricanes will likely have to shell out the largest contract in franchise history to keep him.
I’ve posted a list of the NHL’s Top 50 Free Agents of 2025 at HockeyComparables.com, and at minimum, Rantanen is one of the top two players who could hit the market:
- HockeyComparables.com: Top-50 Free Agents of 2025
So given teams will surely line up with some huge offers if Rantanen does get to July 1 unsigned, Carolina would need to break from tradition and shell out huge money to extend the winger.
Also coming to Carolina, Hall is a former first-overall pick and won the Hart Trophy in 2018. Now 33 years old, his play has dipped over the last few seasons, but he can still provide middle-six offense. This season, Hall scored nine goals and 24 points over 46 games with the Blackhawks, and will also become an unrestricted free agent this summer.
Going back the other way, Martin Necas is clearly the biggest subtraction from the Hurricanes’ roster. The 25-year-old winger was arguably the hottest player in the NHL early in the year, and even after cooling off, he’s still on pace for about a 90-point season. But after all the trade speculation that surrounded Necas this summer, it seemed like the two-year deal he signed was only prolonging an eventual departure from Carolina.
Jack Drury joins Necas in Colorado, in the midst of a bit of a mixed year. He’s posted three goals and nine points, and with three other centers ahead of him on the depth chart who are all under contract for quite a few more years, parting with Drury made sense. He remains a defensively-reliable bottom-six center, but didn’t necessarily show signs he could take a major offensive step.
The Hurricanes get the best player in the trade with Rantanen, and a deep playoff run this season now looks a lot more realistic. Hall was a nice plus as well, and short-term, Carolina should be better equipped offensively.
At the same time, the biggest question that hangs over the deal is whether the Hurricanes can get an extension done for Rantanen. We saw an eerily similar situation last season with Jake Guentzel, who looked to be a perfect fit in Carolina – but a deal never got done, even despite Guentzel eventually signing at a pretty fair price with the Tampa Bay Lightning.
It’s even higher stakes for the Hurricanes this time around, not only given the caliber of player acquired, but also the caliber of player they gave up. Necas is a star in his own right, and even if he may not have been a long-term piece with the team, he still had another year left on his contract. So if Rantanen isn’t extended, the Hurricanes are a lot worse off for next year compared to if Necas hadn’t been dealt to begin with.
It’s another gamble for the Hurricanes, but hopefully this time, the star they’ve acquired will be more than just a rental.
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On another note, I also wanted to provide an update on my writing status at HockeyBuzz. As has been the case with the other teams I cover, I’ve had to step back from any kind of regular posting on the website (as has likely been clear from the lack of posts in recent months).
I will still be popping in for occasional articles, but I wanted to note that I won’t be returning to any kind of regular writing schedule at HockeyBuzz. I previously let site ownership know of this plan, in the case they wanted to add a second team writer.
I’d like to thank all readers who have been following my Hurricanes coverage here since 2019. For anyone interested, I’ll be putting out more contract-specific articles at HockeyComparables.com over the coming months, and any followers on Twitter are always appreciated:
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