NHL Rumors: Carolina Hurricanes, Chicago Blackhawks, Seattle Kraken

Welcome to another edition of Full Press Hockey’s NHL Rumors! The 2022-23 regular season is nearly halfway done and players will be evaluated. Now, with the trade deadline 36 days away, rumors are sizzling. The NHL holiday trade freeze ended at 12:01 am on December 28th. That could mean trade activity or NHL rumors could be picking up.

Clubs are always working to improve their rosters for next season. Some teams are having difficulty creating enough cap space to make moves. Others are experiencing severe injuries to star players. Trade rumors/signings are still possible. In this Wednesday’s edition of NHL Rumors, we will take a look at the Carolina Hurricanes, Chicago Blackhawks, and the Seattle Kraken.

Carolina Hurricanes – Vladimir Tarasenko

Rumor: Per – Jeremy Rutherford – theathletic.com. The Canes could use a top forward like Tarasenko with Max Pacioretty down with another Achilles tendon injury.

Tarasenko is recovering from a hand injury and once he returns, he must show playoff-contending teams like Carolina that he is ready to go. He carries a $7.5 million contract with a full no-trade clause and will be an unrestricted free agent in July. No doubt if the Canes show interest in him, he will accept a trade from the Blues. The salary cap won’t be an issue since Pacioretty has a $7 million contract and will be on LTIR.

The outlook for Pacioretty’s future in Carolina is unknown. He will also be a UFA at season’s end and is 34 years old. Could the Hurricanes re-sign Tarasenko if they were able to acquire him? With close to $30 million in cap space for next season, it would seem feasible. Tarasenko has 10 goals and 19 assists in 34 games this season. His career NHL totals are impressive. He has 640 games, with 262 goals, and 291 assists. That kind of offensive firepower will certainly keep the Hurricanes’ Cup aspirations alive and well.

At this point, it is not certain what kind of return the St. Louis Blues would expect for Tarasenko, but it would seem on paper at least that Carolina would be a good landing place for Tarasenko.

Chicago Blackhawks – Max Domi, Jake McCabe, Connor Murphy

Rumor: Per – Michael DeRosa – nhltraderumors.me/Mark Lazerus theathletic.com. While Domi loves it in Chicago, he could give the rebuilding Hawks some assets going forward. Both McCabe and Murphy don’t really want to leave either, but realize that the dream of making their playoff debut in a Blackhawks uniform may not be realistic.

The New York Islanders could use a scoring winger like Domi. He has really performed very well on a team with no playoff hopes. He has tallied 14 goals and 18 assists in 45 games this season. He is on a one-year expiring contract for $3 million. If Domi was to be acquired by the Isles, can you imagine him being on a line with star Mathew Barzal? It’s certainly worth considering. The New York club has about $3.6 million in cap space and the Hawks could always use more draft picks to supplement their rebuilding efforts.

When one discusses the future for both McCabe and Murphy, they are both 29 years old and have similar contract values. Murphy just signed his in August of 2021 and it is good through 2025-26. McCabe signed his in July of 2021 and has a term good through 2024-25. Neither player necessarily wants to leave Chicago, but they also know that in a rebuild anything can happen. If the Hawks are tearing it down to tank for Bedard, these two guys can certainly assist with the endeavor.

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Seattle Kraken – John Klingberg

Rumor: Per – Geoff Baker – Seattle Times. The Kraken lack defensive depth behind third pairing Carson Soucy and William Borgen. Could Klingberg be the answer?

Klingberg could certainly help the Kraken’s power play. They currently rank 21st in the NHL with a 20.3 percent success rate. While Klingberg has struggled this season with just six goals and nine assists, he would fare much better on a team besides the lowly Anaheim  Ducks.

Klingberg’s 0.38 points per game this season is a far cry from the 0.64 total he enjoyed last season with the Dallas Stars. He had 129 power play assists in 552 games and the Kraken could sure use that output.

The surprising Kraken are just one point behind the sinking Vegas Golden Knights with two games in hand. With that said, they find themselves buyers at the trade deadline. They also possess three second-round draft picks which will help them in making deals going forward.

The big question is can the Kraken afford Klingberg’s $7 million contract? We’ll soon find out.

That concludes this edition of NHL rumors. Be sure to catch our next article, and thanks for reading!