The Carolina Hurricanes announced three notable additions as free agency opened yesterday, signing Shayne Gostisbehere, Sean Walker and William Carrier. Gostisbehere’s deal is for three years at a $3.2 million cap hit, while Walker’s deal is for five years at $3.6 million, and Carrier signed a six-year deal, at $2 million per year.
The team also re-signed Jordan Martinook, and in possibly the largest news of the day, the team extended Jaccob Slavin.
Gostisbehere is 31 years old, and the signing marks a return to Carolina for the defenseman, after a post-deadline stint with the team in 2023. Gostisbehere was a good fit within the defense group at the time, and could get a larger role this time around. Last year, he posted great numbers with the Detroit Red Wings, managing 56 points in 81 games.
Walker will be 30 years old in November, and this past season, he scored 10 goals and 29 points in 81 games, split between the Philadelphia Flyers and Colorado Avalanche. The season marked a bounce-back year for the defender, after a disappointing end to his tenure in Los Angeles.
Carrier will also be 30 years old later this year, and comes to Carolina a year removed from winning a Stanley Cup with the Vegas Golden Knights. Carrier is a good skater, who can cause issues for opposing defenders with a relentless forecheck. He only played 39 games this past season, but in recent years, he’s shown he can chip in for some solid depth offense.
In other additions, the team also signed forwards Eric Robinson and Tyson Jost. Both deals are for one-year, with Robinson’s deal carrying a $950,000 cao hit, and Jost’s deal for $775,000.
As for re-signing Martinook and Slavin: Martinook is obviously a key part of the team, and he’ll continue to be a versatile forward within the forward group. His deal is for three years and carries a $3.05 million cap hit.
Meanwhile, Slavin is still a year out from his current deal expiring, but his extension should likely keep him as a member of the Hurricanes until the end of his career. The contract is for eight years carrying a $6.46 million cap hit, and comes as no surprise, with reports over the last couple weeks that the defenseman would be signing an extension. While Slavin will be 31 years old by the first year of the contract, he remains the team’s most important defenseman, and locking him up was a crucial step for the Hurricanes.
Overall though, I still think you could argue it was an underwhelming day for the Hurricanes. We saw a mass exodus of the team’s unrestricted free agents, with all of Jake Guentzel, Teuvo Teravainen, Brady Skjei, Brett Pesce and Stefan Noesen signing elsewhere. While the additions help, and we have a clear view of what the defense group will look like next year, there’s still no argument to suggest the team is better off right now.
Even with the additions, Walker is just a year removed from being traded as part of a camp dump, while Gostisbehere isn’t without some defensive flaws at times as well. Then even though Carrier has shown to be a really effective depth forward, the Hurricanes also have a very similar player in Jordan Martinook. That’s not to say these aren’t good additions, but more so that the players the team brought in don’t offset the losses of a lot of the key free agents.
You have to hope the Hurricanes have more to come, given that while the team took steps to fill vacancies on their roster, Carolina still really isn’t anywhere near as strong on paper.
Carolina Hurricanes Blogger • 
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