Carolina Hurricanes Roundtable: Aho, Goalies, Free Agency
By Tyler Young
Our Hurricanes experts take a look at the upcoming free agency period
When free agency officially opens, the Carolina Hurricanes will have several questions throughout their roster. From dealing with their internal free agents, to determining which outside options to bring in, the Hurricanes will have to balance the cap with improving their roster to make a cup push.
In our first Hurricanes Roundtable, we take a look at all these questions and make our best suggestions on how it should all go down.
Which outside free agent should be the Hurricanes biggest priority?
Tyler Young: For my money, the easiest problem to fix would be at goalie, especially with a guy like Sergei Bobrovsky on the market. As great as the tandem we had last season was, neither one of them really proved themselves as a No. 1. Bobrovsky is a proven No. 1 goaltender and has been consistent for years. Bobrovsky has not posted a GAA above three since the 2011-12 season, while starting far more games than either Curtis McElhinney or Petr Mrazek over that time.
Now that the Canes have signed Alex Nedeljkovic to a deal that will see become a one way NHL contract in 2020-21, Who better than Bobrovsky to both be the No. 1 and mentor the young prospect as he transitions to NHL net-minding?
Christian Candeloro: This is easy for me, absolutely Semyon Varlomov. Bobrovsky is the best goaltender on the market but I think he’s locked into Florida and spending any time recruiting him is just wasting breath. The addition of Reimer muddies the goaltender situation a little, but I think the Hurricanes need to absolutely still bring in a No. 1 netminder.
Varlamov has been consistent for the Avalanche for years. Nothing spectacular, but steady enough to win a Stanley Cup, which is what the Canes desperately need.
Should the Hurricanes overpay to Keep Aho if forced to match an offer sheet?
Tyler Young: My answer to this question is a question, and that is what would you consider “overpaying” for Aho to be? Aho is an incredibly talented young all-star. He should be the centerpiece for the foreseeable future here in Carolina. So how much is “overpaying” to keep the future of your team? The Canes currently have $21.9M in cap space, Aho is expected to take up 9.5M to 10M of that. what’s 1M more? if we’ve got the space, I can’t think of a better way to use it.
Christian Candeloro: This is tough. I think Aho is more valuable than a guy like Jeff Skinner and he got $9 million AAV. So this means an overpay for Aho is somewhere in the range of $10-11 million AAV.
Do I think he’s worth it? No. Do I think the Canes should pay it? Absolutely. This team needs Aho to be a contender in the Eastern Conference and there’s just no one else walking through that door that could replace him. The Hurricanes won’t be in on top free agents like Matt Duchene and I don’t want to pay a premium to trade for someone that you could just sign right here and now.
So yes, if Aho is offered a massive offer sheet, the Hurricanes should absolutely match.
Which unsigned Hurricanes player would leave the biggest void if they didn’t come back?
Tyler Young: I know after my take on Aho, y’all probably expect him to be my answer here. But I’m gonna go a different direction with this question and say Justin Williams. While losing Aho would certainly be tough to overcome, the Canes have a talented young prospect pool lead by Andrei Svechnikov.
It is near impossible to find guys that bring the intangibles that the Captain brings to the team. His work ethic and commitment to the culture are invaluable to this team. His ability to mentor the young guys would be a huge loss in a locker room filled with young guys. That’s not even mentioning his connection to the community. Its hard to overstate William’s importance for this Franchise and that is why He is the player that would leave the biggest void.
Christian Candeloro: This answer could go in two directions and it’s completely dependent on who the Hurricanes bring in during free agency. If the Hurricanes are unable to find a competent goaltender, then they will undoubtedly miss Mrazek the most. Mrazek willed this team to the Eastern Conference Finals and put up fantastic numbers as the No. 1 goalie. The Hurricanes are just a year removed from the Scott Darling experiment and we all know how that sank the Hurricanes season.
I also think Mrazek is much easier to be replaced than Aho. So therefore my answer is Aho. The Finn had 83 points and played every game, posting a +25 while on the ice. That production just isn’t walking through the door if he leaves.
Should the Hurricanes Resign Mrazek or look at outside options?
Tyler Young: I think this question is very contingent on what the market for Mrazek looks like. If it’s looking like his price is going into the $5 million AAV range, they should look for other options. He has not proven to be worth that kind of money. With Alex Nedeljkovic signed to a deal that indicates a transition to NHL duties over the next two years, a strong veteran No. 1 would be the ideal get for the Canes. Luckily with names like Varlamov and Bobrovsky on the market there are options to meet those needs, and they’ve both proven themselves to be worthy of the money.
Christian Candeloro: We’ve already established that I love Varlamov as an option for the Hurricanes but it also stems from the fact that I don’t trust Mrazek to be consistent enough to be a No. 1 NHL goaltender. Including this season he’s put up three seasons where he’s looked like a No. 1 goaltender and the last was in 2015-16. There’s a reason he was available in the bargain bin last offseason because he just can’t be trusted. There are a lot of teams out there with terrible goalie situations that will be willing to pay up for Mrazek, so I say let them. Sign Varlamov, Robin Lehner or even someone like Cam Talbot and call it a day.