The Carolina Hurricanes have reportedly re-signed defenseman Jalen Chatfield to a three-year contract, carrying a $3M cap hit. The deal has yet to be announced by the team, but was reported by Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman, among others.
Chatfield is 28 years old and has been a third-pairing defenseman with the team for the last two years. This past season, he managed eight goals and 22 points in 72 games, averaging a little over 15 minutes per game in ice time.
It’s a solid deal for the Hurricanes, coming in at an expected cap hit and length – I had projected Chatfield’s deal would come in at three years with a $3.17M cap hit, at HockeyComparables.com.
Chatfield is a very reliable defender, usually in the right spot positionally to break up plays or take the puck off an opponent. He also has a great work ethic, is effective in battles around his own net, and was a little more engaged offensively this season. Chatfield also showed this year that he’s able to take on a larger role when called upon.
With both Brady Skjei and Brett Pesce on expiring deals, locking up Chatfield is a big step for Carolina. As of now, they have four established defensemen signed heading into next season: Chatfield, Jaccob Slavin, Brent Burns, and Dmitry Orlov.
It’s going to be interesting to see how the Hurricanes structure their pairings, though. They could, in theory, just shift up Orlov/Chatfield to use the duo as a second pairing. At the same time, even though Orlov was much better as the year went on and Chatfield was good in sporadic top-four appearances, we don't know if they'll be as effective in a larger role, especially compared to the Brady Skjei/Brett Pesce second pairing. There’s still a decent chance that if neither of Skjei or Pesce are re-signed, the Hurricanes could look to add a cheaper, external addition to the group as well.
Regardless, Chatfield has proven to be an important part of the defense group, and it’s great to see him extended in Carolina.
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