The Dallas Stars managed to win the Mikko Rantanen sweepstakes at the trade deadline, swinging a deal for the star after a very short stint with the Carolina Hurricanes.
The Canes of course traded for Rantanen not long ago, acquiring him from the Colorado Avalanche. But, Rantanen didn't like his fit with the new organization and made it clear he wanted to find a new team shortly after joining the franchise.
Head coach Rod Brind'Amour recently made an appearance on 99.9 The Fan on Sunday and said Rantanen was only willing to sign with four clubs and the Hurricanes weren't one of them.
Via The Fourth Period:
Article Continues Below“There’s not been one guy that has left here because they didn’t like it here – except for Mikko. He didn’t not like it. When he showed up, he said ‘there’s four teams I’ll go play for, well, you’re not one of them.’ So, there’s 28 other teams he wasn’t going to,” Brind’Amour said. “The better question is should we have known that before we signed him or attempted to sign him.
“Mikko is the only one that I’ve been associated with that said ‘this is not for me’ and I think there are other circumstances on that. It’s not because of the hockey. It was because, I think, his family, it wasn’t for him. . . Good. I appreciate that he let us know that. We probably should have known that before we made the deal. Maybe that changes how we go about things.”
Mikko Rantanen ended up signing a huge eight-year, $96 million deal with the Stars after the trade and it appears he'll be there for the long haul. The Hurricanes meanwhile are surely scratching their heads considering they did part ways with Max Necas in the Rantanen trade with the Avs, who was a key piece for them.
The Toronto Maple Leafs were reportedly interested in Rantanen, while the LA Kings and Edmonton Oilers also checked in. But, the Stars were the ones to pull the trigger and now they've strengthened the roster in their pursuit of a Stanley Cup.