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Coming off another Eastern Conference Final loss to the Florida Panthers, the Carolina Hurricanes were active this offseason.
The team signed free agent winger Nikolaj Ehlers to a six-year contract worth $8.5 million per year. They also paid a big price in a trade with the New York Rangers in order to acquire defenseman K'Andre Miller.
The Hurricanes have been a consistent threat in the Eastern Conference, capable of making deep playoff runs. They've also now improved on paper heading into the 2025-26 season. However, with the Panthers managing to retain almost all core pieces and other teams in the East to contend with, it's debatable as to whether Carolina has done enough to reach another level next year.
Notably, there's still one position on the roster the Hurricanes didn't address this summer.
Hurricanes still lack a true second-line center
It has been a few years since Carolina has had a legitimate second-line center. Vincent Trocheck filled the role for a few years, but the Hurricanes never found a real replacement after he departed to sign with the New York Rangers in 2022.
The hope was that Jesperi Kotkaniemi would grow into the role. The Hurricanes successfully brought in Kotkaniemi via an offer sheet, and they subsequently signed him to a massive eight-year extension. However, Kotkaniemi's production really hasn't warranted him being a long-term second-line center. Over 305 games in Carolina, Kotkaniemi has produced at an 82-game rate of just 15 goals and 35 points.
As of now, the Hurricanes don't have an established top-six center behind Sebastian Aho. While Kotkaniemi, and to a greater extent, Jordan Staal, can both be effective down the middle, both are better served in the bottom-six.
We could see the Hurricanes resort to trying some of their younger talent in the position. Two of the more likely options would be Seth Jarvis and Logan Stankoven, but both have played primarily on the wing in their respective short NHL careers. Both Jarvis and Stankoven are under long-term contract, so if either can work out in the role, Carolina could be set for a long time.
But at least entering the season, there's a big question as to whether the Hurricanes have a viable internal option for the role.
Carolina didn't have many external options this summer
To be fair, the Hurricanes didn't necessarily have a ton of options to add a top-six center this summer. The free agent market was quite thin, and the likes of Brock Nelson, John Tavares, and Matt Duchene all extended with their respective teams.
Meanwhile, there didn't seem to be a ton of realistic trade options. The one that does stand out is Marco Rossi, who remains without an extension from the Minnesota Wild. Rossi was selected ninth overall by the Wild in 2020 and is still just 23 years old. This season, he also saw a big jump in production, posting 60 points in 82 games.
The Wild would likely be seeking a pretty large return for Rossi, but the Hurricanes do have the capital to possibly make a deal work. At the same time, given the size of the team's forward group already, it would likely result in moving pieces off their roster.
The Hurricanes have reportedly been in on top-six centers over the last couple of years. Two of the names the Hurricanes were linked to were J.T. Miller and Elias Pettersson, but neither deal came to fruition.
Of course, with an external addition via trade, the Hurricanes would need to be cautious in giving up assets. They're building primarily around a young core, so any addition would need to be a long-term fit rather than a short-term solution. But at least as of now, it looks like the team will enter the season without an external upgrade at second-line center.
Adding a top-six center could be a difference-maker for Hurricanes
Across 164 games over the last two seasons, the Hurricanes rank sixth in the NHL in goals per game. Despite that, it seems like they don't necessarily have enough stars in their top-six. While they can dominate and outshoot opponents, they can fail to capitalize on chances at times. They also scored just 10 goals in their five-game Eastern Conference Final series against the Florida Panthers.
Looking at the team's roster, the biggest missing piece right now in Carolina is a true second-line center. It has been the case for a few years, and with the Hurricanes in a window to contend, the ideal scenario would be finding a long-term solution in the near future.
The team didn't add externally, so it seems like the Hurricanes may opt to address the position internally. The two candidates the team could try out in the role would be Seth Jarvis and Logan Stankoven. If either can be a long-term fit at 2C, the team could avoid giving up assets for an external addition.
But it still seems like at least entering the year, Carolina still doesn't have a clear-cut solution in place.
