The Carolina Hurricanes have been Stanley Cup contenders for the better part of the last half-decade, but the franchise has been unable to get over the hump when it matters most. After getting swept by the Florida Panthers in the 2023 Eastern Conference Final, the Canes' roster was even better in 2024, especially with the additions of Jake Guentzel and Evgeny Kuznetsov at the NHL trade deadline.
But again, it wasn't to be in Raleigh, as the Hurricanes were defeated in Round 2 by the New York Rangers back in May. Despite turning a 3-0 series hole into a 3-2 deficit, and leading by multiple goals in Game 6, Carolina was unable to finish the job, allowing a late Blueshirts comeback at PNC Arena. It was a disappointing ending to another great season; the Hurricanes did finish 52-23-7 and third place in league standings, after all.
It's been a tricky offseason for new general manager Eric Tulsky and the front office in 2024, though. With nearly 10 players becoming unrestricted free agents on July 1, it was expected that there would be a bit of a mass exodus ahead of the 2024-25 campaign. And that's exactly what's happened.
Although the Hurricanes remain a strong team — and a definite contender for the Metropolitan Division crown next season — there's no doubt this roster took a bit of a step back this summer. A few solid additions were made, but they won't be able to fully rectify the amount of talent that walked out the door. Let's break it down, starting with the most important: Guentzel's departure.
Jake Guentzel is a huge loss for Hurricanes
Losing star players is never easy, and that's especially true after all of the great things Guentzel said about playing in Raleigh at the end of the season.
“I loved my experience here,” Guentzel said back in May. “It’s a great place to play. I don’t think you realize the behind the scenes, how good it is. The guys make it good too. We’re going to see what happens over the next little bit here. This team for sure can win the Stanley Cup. I think it’s right there. This puts you in a good spot to do that. I want to do that more than anything, and that’s all I care about. That definitely plays a factor into it. Hopefully you can kind of get some stability and be able to sign here long term.”
When the superstar forward made those comments, it seemed a sure thing that player and club would come to an agreement. But instead, his rights were traded to Tampa Bay and he signed a massive long-term extension with the Lightning shortly after. Guentzel didn't miss a beat after being traded from the Pittsburgh Penguins to the Hurricanes, returning from injury for the squad's last 17 regular-season contests and amassing eight goals and 25 points in that span.
He added another four goals and nine points over 11 postseason tilts, and often looked like the squad's best forward along with Sebastian Aho in the playoffs. But alas, the Guentzel experiment in Raleigh is over, and the front office was unable to replace him in free agency. Along with Teuvo Teravainen, who has spent almost a decade in Carolina, a ton of offensive talent left the city this summer. That will get even worse if the rumors that Kuznetsov is terminating his contract to return to the KHL are true.
Guentzel, Teravainen and Kuznetsov all moving on signal a huge loss for a Hurricanes team that is already reeling from the departures of two key defensemen in free agency.
Brett Pesce, Brady Skjei departures won't help
Losing Guentzel, who fit like a glove in Raleigh, hurts. But he was only on the team for a matter of months. The Hurricanes lost two other players who have been part of this roster for a lot longer in Brett Pesce and Brady Skjei. The two helped make up one of the best second pairings in hockey over the last half-decade.
Skjei was drafted by the New York Rangers but made a name for himself in Raleigh over the last five seasons, including posting a career-best 13 goals and 47 points over 80 games in 2023-24. That's probably why he secured the bag, signing a massive seven-year, $49 million contract with the Nashville Predators on July 1.
Pesce has been part of the equation even longer, being selected No. 66 overall by the Canes in the 2013 NHL Draft and making his Hurricanes debut back in 2015. He's been as stalwart as they come for this organization over the last decade, and he also may have priced himself out of town after inking a six-year, $33 million pact with the New Jersey Devils right around the same time Skjei left for Smashville.
And with that, the longtime second pairing of Skjei-Pesce is no more. And that will certainly hinder this team in its championship aspirations in 2024-25 and beyond. Still, Tulsky and the front office did make a couple of shrewd moves to ensure free agency wasn't a total disaster.
Enter Jack Roslovic, Sean Walker and Shayne Gostisbehere
Instead of Skjei and Pesce, the Hurricanes will start next season with Sean Walker and Shayne Gostisbehere. The former spent the end of last year with the Colorado Avalanche after being traded from the Philadelphia Flyers, while the latter comes over from the Detroit Red Wings on a two-year deal.
Both are solid defensemen in their own right; Walker is a defensive specialist who will continue to play a defensive-minded game in Raleigh, while Gostisbehere is much more offensive after enjoying one of the best seasons of his career in 2023-24. He amassed an excellent 56 points in 81 games from the back end, although it's unlikely he'll see those kind of numbers in a diminished role — and without significant powerplay time.
Still, the Hurricanes boast a phenomenal D-core led by Brent Burns, Jaccob Slavin (who got paid himself this offseason) and Dmitry Orlov, and it should be one of the league's best again next year. Jack Roslovic is also a nice add; the speedy forward was solid in a short sample size with the Rangers, helping to beat the same Hurricanes team he signed a one-year, $2.8 million contract with on July 4. He's a right-handed shot who can help with faceoffs and play a versatile game on his new team.
Along with those additions, the Canes still have the Martin Necas card to play, as the pending RFA is unlikely to re-up in Raleigh. It's very likely he will get traded, and that return should be very rich. At the same time, losing Guentzel, Teravainen, Kuznetsov and presumably Necas on the front end will be difficult to reckon with for a core that desperately wants a Stanley Cup.
Scoring depth could be an issue for this team moving forward, but the defense is still excellent and Frederik Andersen proved he can still play at an elite level after battling blood clots. But that doesn't change the fact that this roster looks much different from last year, and not really in a good way. It's hard to think this team will be competing for the President's Trophy next season.
FINAL GRADE: C+
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