The Carolina Hurricanes don’t appear to have anything active in the works with Jalen Chatfield, and the latest word is that a split could be coming at season’s end.
According to The Fourth Period, Chatfield’s agent, Darren Ferris, spoke with GM Eric Tulsky in September, when both sides tried to see if a deal could be reached. It didn’t happen.
Since then, there hasn’t been any follow-up, and there aren’t talks scheduled now. As Pagnotta put it: “Darren and Tulsky spoke at the start of the season, they tried to get something done at that point,” Pagnotta said.
“They weren’t able to come to terms on an agreement. And as of now that’s where things are.
There have been no talks since; there are no talks planned, and we will see how that develops as the season goes. The inkling right now is that he is headed to free agency.”
Chatfield, 30, is playing out the final year of a deal that carries a $3.025 million cap hit. He also has a 15-team no-trade clause. He’s one of four Hurricanes defensemen pending unrestricted free agents, alongside Shayne Gostisbehere, Juuso Valimaki and Mike Reilly.
In Columbus, the Blue Jackets are drawing interest on Dmitri Voronkov. Pierre LeBrun reports that other teams have been checking in on the forward, and while a deal is far from certain, Columbus is at least taking calls and listening to what’s out there.
The Rangers, meanwhile, are still working the goaltending market. Peter Baugh and Vincent Z.
Mercogliano of The Athletic report that New York is talking to teams about both goalies with term and those without it, and the club is open to a goalie with term if that player is the best fit. The Rangers had been linked in speculation to Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen and Karel Vejmelka in connection with Connor Hellebuyck.
New York brought in 32-year-old Joonas Korpisalo this offseason, but he’s missed the entire year with a foot infection. He was initially expected to be out four weeks, and he still hasn’t resumed skating.
Dylan Garand’s play has bought the Rangers some breathing room, giving them the chance to wait and see how the situation develops. Later in the season, pending UFAs such as Jordan Binnington, Philipp Grubauer and Darcy Kuemper could become available.
That leaves New York with another choice to make: if Garand keeps performing and Korpisalo returns, the Rangers could simply stay with that tandem and use their resources elsewhere. The bigger question then becomes whether they’d rather commit assets to pending UFA forwards Ryan O’Reilly, Morgan Frost or Pavel Zacha, or target players with term such as Jake DeBrusk and Rickard Rakell.
In Other News...
Jets Trade Looks Even More Telling After Hellebuycks Latest Hint
Alexander Nikishins situation with Carolina has already been one of the more unusual stories around the team this year, and it only looks more layered in hindsight. The defenseman had been at the center of a contract standoff before ultimately staying put, giving the Hurricanes a talented blue-line piece to keep building around while also closing off one of the more intriguing offseason paths on the board.
What makes the whole episode linger is how close the team may have come to a very different outcome. For all the talk about keeping Nikishin in Raleigh, there was a window when a move elsewhere was very much in play, and that possibility now hangs over what the Hurricanes chose to do. Even with the deal done, the broader question of how aggressively Carolina explored the market around him still gives the story a little more bite. [Read more 🡒]
Hurricanes Came Closer Than Fans Realized On Connor Hellebuyck
Long before Connor Hellebuycks name became the kind of rumor that can light up the market, Carolina was among the teams kicking tires on a goalie pursuit that apparently got a lot closer than many around the league realized. Elliotte Friedman reported that the Hurricanes were one of several legitimate suitors in trade discussions, alongside Florida, Buffalo and Utah, as the conversation around Winnipegs star netminder moved through different stages and started running into the usual obstacles that can sink a blockbuster.
The details, though, never lined up cleanly enough to push things over the top, and Friedman said the talks stalled for a mix of reasons that varied from team to team. For Carolina, it was part of a broader chase that suggested the Hurricanes were at least seriously exploring ways to shake up the position, even if the final hurdle remained out of reach. For a team that keeps looking for the edge in net, that makes the latest Hellebuyck chatter worth a second look. [Read more 🡒]
Nikishins New Deal Puts Carolinas Long-Term Plan Back Under Pressure
Alexander Nikishins new contract with Carolina quieted one immediate layer of uncertainty, but it did not exactly settle the larger question around where his future fits. After a summer in which a move away from the Hurricanes came close, the defenseman is back in the fold on a one-year, $3 million deal, giving the team a short-term answer while keeping the longer-term picture very much open.
For Carolina, that means another season of trying to balance a talented blue line with the realities of keeping key pieces aligned on term and money. Nikishin had already pushed hard for a change and skipped camp before signing, and with future trade talks still possible, his situation remains one of the more delicate ones on the roster as the Hurricanes try to keep their long-term plan from drifting off course. [Read more 🡒]