The Carolina Hurricanes have already made some major moves in NHL free agency. Carolina added the top free agent available in defenseman Dmitry Orlov. And they brought in former Toronto Maple Leafs forward Michael Bunting. Now, the Hurricanes are making yet another splash to improve their team's goal-scoring: forward Vladimir Tarasenko.

The Hurricanes are reportedly closing in on signing Tarasenko, according to The Athletic's Shayna Goldman. At this time, it is unclear what a contract between Carolina and Tarasenko could look like.

Tarasenko is coming off a down season in 2022-23. This past season marked the first time the veteran winger played at least 60 games in a campaign while scoring less than 20 goals. He finished with 18 goals and 50 points in 69 games.

However, the track record Tarasenko brings to the Hurricanes is incredibly solid. The 31-year-old scored 40 goals in 2015-16 and has scored 30+ goals on five other occasions in his career.

Furthermore, Vladimir Tarasenko brings playoff experience to Carolina. In fact, the veteran forward won a Stanley Cup with the St. Louis Blues in 2019. Tarasenko spent his entire career with the Blues until this past season when he was traded to the New York Rangers.

The Hurricanes have had trouble with scoring goals in their playoff runs as of late. A prime example can be seen in their loss to the Florida Panthers in the Eastern Conference Final this past season.

Panthers goalie Sergei Bobrovsky played out of his mind in that series. However, the Hurricanes also just had no luck finishing the chances they did have, for the most part. The hope is that Tarasenko is still able to be the guy who scores the big goals in the big moments. Let's see if the Hurricanes are right to place that belief in the 31-year-old goal-scorer.