Carolina Hurricanes Likely to Trade Defenseman This Summer

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James Connelly
August 17, 2023 (2:08 PM)

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Many sources believe all signs point to Carolina moving a top defenseman by the start of the season.

Carolina's Defensive Depth

Currently, the Carolina Hurricanes have nine NHL-caliber defensemen on their roster. Last season their top four consisted of Jaccob Slavin, Brent Burns, Brady Skjei, and Brett Pesce who are all top-of-the-line defensemen in their own regard. They also had Jalen Chatfield and Dylan Coghlan in their system last year, both of which got into a healthy amount of games.

With a defensive core as loaded as this, one would think Carolina would sit tight with what they have got but they acted on the contrary. In free agency, they went out and signed Dmitry Orlov, Tony DeAngelo, and Caleb Jones who all were full-time NHLers last year.

With this many defensemen and only six roster spots, many have begun speculating on if they will be moving anybody out to spread their assets out more evenly.

Canes Likely To Move Skjei Or Pesce

In a recent article for The Hockey News, Lyle Richardson speculated on who the Hurricanes could move. Richardson cited Bryan Baucom of Carolina Hockey Now in why he thinks Skjei or Pesce will be moved.

Baucom pointed out the Hurricanes' ongoing need for more scoring. He believes Skjei or Pesce could be used as trade bait to address that issue.

Richardson also added how Carolina's depth could be a blessing for them as it could allow them to address their need for scoring.

Given the Hurricanes' blueline depth, they can afford to part with Skjei or Pesce in a deal to add a scoring forward. Skjei carries an average annual value of $5.25 million, while Pesce carries a cap hit of $4.025 million.

While Carolina has yet to make it past the Eastern Conference Finals in their recent period of strong play, they could manage to get over that hump by making a pivotal move.

As seen on The Hockey News -WILL THE CAROLINA HURRICANES TRADE A DEFENSEMAN THIS SUMMER?