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For the second time in three seasons, the Carolina Hurricanes were one of the final four teams standing in the National Hockey League in 2024-25. But as has been the case far too often, the Canes were defeated easily in the Eastern Conference Final, losing in five games to the eventual champion Florida Panthers.
Carolina has now played in 17 East Final games since 2009 — and lost 16 of them. They were swept by the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2009, the Boston Bruins in 2019 and the Panthers in 2023. And although they were able to win once against Florida in 2025, they bowed out in just five games this spring.
The Hurricanes have just not been able to get over the hump despite being one of the better regular-season teams of the last half-decade. The Canes won it all back in 2006, defeating the Edmonton Oilers in a thrilling seven-game series. It'll be exactly two decades since that incredible run next year, and in 2025-26, this franchise will again be looking to return to hockey's peak.
Although it's been disappointment after disappointment for Rod Brind'Amour's club, Carolina has been one of the most productive NHL teams this offseason, and on paper, they look like they will be at the top of the Eastern Conference again next year.
Hurricanes have made a couple of excellent moves this summer
Despite losing a couple of key veteran defensemen — Brent Burns to the Colorado Avalanche and Dmitry Orlov to the San Jose Sharks — it's hard to argue that the Hurricanes didn't get exponentially better this summer. That started with the acquisition of K'Andre Miller from the New York Rangers on July 1. The 25-year-old was brought to Raleigh and subsequently signed to a massive eight-year contract extension that should keep him in town long into the future.
Miller should be an excellent addition to the blue line, and assuming Russian Alexander Nikishin takes another step forward in 2025-26, the Hurricanes will boast one of the league's best defensive units. Jaccob Slavin remains the league's premier defensive defenseman, while Jalen Chatfield, Shayne Gostisbehere and Sean Walker round out a terrific group of D-men.
General manager Eric Tulsky didn't stop there, getting a couple of crucial forwards locked up long-term, including Jackson Blake, Logan Stankoven and Eric Robinson. Blake and Stankoven each got eight-year deals, similar to Miller, while Robinson signed a four-year contract extension.
The addition of Miller, along with healthy extensions for Blake and Stankoven, make this a memorable offseason for the Hurricanes. But there was one move that stood out above the rest, which was, obviously, snagging one of the best free agents on the market in longtime Winnipeg Jet Nikolaj Ehlers.
Winning Nikolaj Ehlers sweepstakes was perfect move for Hurricanes
Not counting Mitch Marner, who never made it to market after being involved in a sign-and-trade with the Vegas Golden Knights, Ehlers was undoubtedly the best player available in NHL free agency this summer. And although multiple teams reportedly made great offers, it was Tulsky and the Canes who won the sweepstakes for the star Danish forward.
Ehlers, who has scored 20 or more goals in eight of the last nine seasons, signed a huge six-year, $51 million contract to move from Manitoba to North Carolina for the foreseeable future. He adds yet another element to Carolina's formidable attack, and he should slot in on the top line alongside stars Sebastian Aho and Andrei Svechnikov.
“Nikolaj was the top free agent available on July 1, and we are proud that he's chosen to make Carolina his home,” Tulsky said in the official release. “He’s a highly skilled winger who can really skate and will fit very well with our forward group. He had a lot of teams interested in him.
“He's a great player. I think in the end for him, if he just wanted the most money he could have gotten, he could have gotten more for sure. My understanding is he was looking for the place that felt like the right fit, where he'd be happy, where he had a chance to win, and it turns into a recruiting pitch then. And it's a personal decision, what feels right to him.”
Besides having one of the best defensive units in the game, the Hurricanes now have a terrific group of impactful forwards. Ehlers, Aho, Svechnikov, Blake and Stankoven are the headliners, but Taylor Hall remains an effective player, and Seth Jarvis has reached star territory after enjoying back-to-back 67-point campaigns.
On paper, the Hurricanes look like the best team in the Metropolitan Division, and they should be competing with the Panthers, Washington Capitals and Toronto Maple Leafs at the top of the Eastern Conference. Ehlers should hit the ground running as he looks to help his new team get over the hump in 2025-26.
“I'm very excited about the team in Carolina,” the 29-year-old said shortly after signing. “They've been a tough team to play against in the past and I like all the young players that are there, and the interest that Carolina has shown was something that obviously helped a lot in the decision-making and made me very excited.”
Can Carolina return to hockey's peak in 2025-26?
Not only was the Ehlers signing the perfect move for the Hurricanes this free agency period, it was one of the top pieces of business completed league-wide, period. The Golden Knights improved exponentially by adding Marner, while a couple of other teams got significantly better this summer.
But keeping Blake and Stankoven around, along with adding Ehlers and Miller on long-term contracts, made Carolina one of the big winners of free agency frenzy in 2025 — and maybe even the big winners. With Frederik Andersen and Pyotr Kochetkov back between the pipes for one more year, and Brind'Amour continuing behind the bench, all of the puzzle pieces are in order for this franchise.
Now it's up to the players to find a way to not only get back to the Eastern Conference Final, but improve even further in the quest to play for another Stanley Cup two decades after winning their maiden championship.
