The Hurricanes had an interesting season. They always seemed to lack a bona fide superstar scorer, so they went out and acquired Mikko Rantanen, only to be told he would not resign in Raleigh. They then flipped him to Dallas for Logan Stankoven and multiple first-round picks on trade deadline day.
It is no secret that the Hurricanes are not a free agent destination, Raleigh is not a Dallas, one of the Florida teams, or Vegas, where guys are itching to play because of the tax situation, or a New York Rangers, where the pull of MSG and the history of the Rangers.
Despite these shortcomings, the Canes are a power due largely to coaching and their unique system of play. They also have great players, but their offensive and defensive systems suffocate teams and place tremendous strain on the opponent. It also means some players, like Rantanen, do not fit in well there, and the Hurricanes have to rely on homegrown talent.
The Hurricanes will have around $29 million in cap this offseason after inking Taylor Hall to a $6 million AAV extension. They will also likely resign Jack Roslovic and Dmitry Orlov this offseason. The Hurricanes would likely avoid trading for players who are rentals because they have not had success signing players on expiring deals.
Luckily, the Penguins have a player with term in Rickard Rakell. Raks is a great all-around player who checks and can score as well as distribute; he would fit in well with Carolina. The Penguins, now that they relieved Mike Sullivan, will likely rebuild, and Rakell, other than Crosby, is their most valuable asset.
Kyle Dubas was shopping Rakell somewhat at the deadline; the price was two 1st and a top prospect. That likely is not an obtainable package. This trade would give the Penguins 3 1sts in either this draft or 2026 (depending on what the Rangers decide). The Penguins would hopefully use one of those picks to acquire a younger asset. The Canes in this trade gets Raks and an additional selection, this is a balanced trade for both sides.
*If the Rangers opt to keep this years pick, this selection will be in 2026.
This is my dream trade. Blake has looked great for the Canes this year, and is only 21 years old and can be a Penguin for a decade or more. For the Canes, they get a great player in Rakell but would also in this hypothetical trade would have 2 2025 1sts or 3 2026 firsts which they could flip for a star player.
It was rumored that the Hurricanes were trying to trade their newly acquired firsts from the Rantenen deal for another star player, but they were unsuccessful. If they had 3 firsts or at least two in either 22025 or 2026, that is valuable capital they could use for a massive trade.