Carolina Hurricanes

When Noah Hanifin inked his name to a stack of papers in front of several thousand Carolina Hurricanes fans on Saturday, he not only signed his first NHL contract but also signed a goodbye to his NCAA career at Boston College.

Hanifin, the Hurricanes' No. 5 overall selection in this summer's draft, ascended to such a high position in the draft order because of a splendid freshman season with the Eagles.

Yet on Saturday, he prevented himself from ever returning for a sophomore campaign by signing a three-year entry-level contract, per the team reporter Terrell Williams.

Since being drafted just over two weeks ago, Hanifin's verdict on his path forward entering 2015-16 has been uncertain to everyone but the Massachusetts native.

Players under contract to play hockey professionally are ineligible to play in the NCAA, but they can play in Canadian junior leagues if not in the NHL or affiliated minor leagues. Meanwhile, players under contract in the juniors can be called up to the NHL but not to the AHL or ECHL.

Hanifin could have returned to B.C. for another season of development while Carolina retained his rights. Or Hanifin could have signed his entry-level contract now to shoot for an NHL job in training camp but faced the risk of playing for the QMJHL's Quebec Remparts (the team that owns the junior league rights to him) should he fall short. 

He chose the latter, evidently valuing the opportunity to immediately pursue his NHL dream and the stacks of cash that come with it—roughly $2.5 million over three years, including a $277,500 signing bonus—over the familiarity of Boston College and the risk of short-term failure.

Said Hanifin in his Saturday press conference:

It's a tough decision. My time at BC was terrific and it was really tough calling my coach this morning telling him what I'm doing, but at the same time I'm really excited to be a part of this organization. I feel that I'm ready to make the step (to the NHL).

He'll get his shot in September in training camp. But it won't be an easy shot.

With NHL veterans Justin Faulk, James Wisniewski and Ron Hainsey all absolutely guaranteed roster spots, the other three slots on the Hurricanes' opening-day defensive depth chart will dangle above a pit of nearly a dozen starving dogs.

Aging John-Michael Liles is a very good bet to earn the fourth. Michal Jordan was just awarded a one-way contract last month, giving him the inside track on the fifth.

That leaves three recent top-12 picks, including Hanifin as well as Haydn Fleury (who has done nothing to lower his stock since going No. 7 in 2014) and Ryan Murphy (whose stock, conversely, has declined), to vie for the sixth.

Maybe. Trevor Carrick, Roland McKeown, Brett Pesce, Jaccob Slavin, Danny Biega and Rasmus Rissanen would all love to insert themselves into the puzzle too.

"There's going to be an unbelievable competition on the back end," said head coach Bill Peters on Saturday. "Guys are going to report in great shape and the exhibition games are going to matter for these guys. For the young guys, I expect to see rapid growth."

It's hard to forecast Hanifin's odds of beating out all of that competition as very promising.

The man himself, however, seems confident nevertheless—confident enough to forgo a chance to play for his second-most preferred team to chase an outside chance to play for his most preferred.

After a draft weekend of feverish activity surrounding the Carolina Hurricanes, the first two days of the NHL's free-agency period have passed without a single out-of-town addition.

General manager Ron Francis has stayed out of an unrestricted free-agent market laden with green, instead merely re-signing third-line center Riley Nash and inking a handful of AHL players since the floodgates opened at noon Wednesday.

Francis, per standard for NHL general managers in the midst of negotiation-heavy periods, has stayed decidedly vague about his plans and desires for the remainder of the summer.

In his Wednesday afternoon press conference, Francis said that the 'Canes are "constantly talking and looking at things. It's tough to find a deal that's the right term and the right money...on this day."

He later added that "the biggest challenge for myself and my management team is being patient and sticking with the plan."

Patient consideration, clearly, is the No. 1 modus operandi in the Hurricanes organization at the moment.

While the team cleared out an additional $4.67 million in cap space annually with the Alexander Semin buyout (per General Fanager) and irreverent owner Peter Karmanos recently refuted the concept that the 'Canes are a "budget team"—that is, a franchise operating on a budget less than the NHL-established salary cap—there is more to consider when navigating the free-agent market than pure, immediate cash.

New veteran additions can eat roster spots that would otherwise give opportunities for prospects to gain NHL experience or find their NHL foothold. And big-ticket signings can become unwanted, obstructive financial albatrosses later on in their multi-year contracts, even if plenty of cap space is initially available at the time of the signing. 

Patience may have cost the 'Canes a chance to bring fan favorite Justin Williams back to Raleigh, although they still may have offered him more money than Washington eventually did.

But patience also saved the 'Canes from falling prey to absurd five-year contract demands from Michael Frolik and Matt Beleskey and the surprising price tags of Blake Comeau and Brad Richards. None of those four forwards signed for bank-breaking salaries, but compared to the prices of comparable players later this month, they'll likely still seem excessively expensive.

Francis surely knows he needs to find more forward depth, particularly at right wing. The plugs to those holes will be announced in time, when the price is right and the options have been analyzed thoroughly.

Former Capitals veterans Joel Ward, Eric Fehr and Curtis Glencross are still available.

Former Panthers forwards Brad Boyes, Scottie Upshall and Sean Bergenheim are still available.

Former Blues big body Chris Stewart is still available.

Former Predators first-liner Martin Erat is still available.

Former 'Canes first-liner Jiri Tlusty, even, sits available on the UFA list.

All of those players are still fully capable of producing 2015-16 campaigns in the 30- to 50-point range. All are potentially viable second- or third-line wingers. And all remain options for the Hurricanes this summer, and at slowly declining prices at that.

Unlike last week's draft, when picks happened in a flash and urgency was a requirement, the NHL's free-agency period is more of a test of caution. In July, there is indeed reward for being the last pig to eat from the trough.

Francis and the Hurricanes' relative inactivity of the market's opening two days should produce far more confidence about the rationality of those in charge than anxiety about the team's current shortcomings.

Current free-agent list courtesy of General Fanager. Free-agent signings list courtesy of CBS Sports' tracker.

Ron Francis and the Carolina Hurricanes converted two mediocre draft picks into a goaltender upgrade and a top-pairing defenseman during Saturday's NHL draft.

The larceny was committed by identifying talented, valuable players stuck on teams with no need for them—and jumping on the opportunities.

At 10 a.m., the Hurricanes acquired goaltender Eddie Lack from the Vancouver Canucks for a 2015 third-round pick (No. 66 overall) and a 2016 seventh-round pick, per the team's official statement.

At noon, the Hurricanes acquired defenseman James Wisniewski from the Anaheim Ducks for now-displaced goaltender Anton Khudobin, also per the team's official statement.

Lack, 27, replaces Khudobin, 29, as the partner to Cam Ward (who, like Lack, has just one year left on his contract) in the Hurricanes' goaltender rotation.

He recorded a solid 18-13-4 record along with a .921 save percentage for the Canucks last season, becoming a massive fan favorite—for proof, one must simply read the replies on the Canucks' tweet announcing his departure—in the process.

But stuck behind resurgent star Ryan Miller on the Vancouver depth chart, Lack stood little chance of claiming the starting job anytime soon.

So while the rest of the league drooled over up-and-coming goalies like Ottawa's Robin Lehner, New York's Cam Talbot and Minnesota's Devan Dubnyk, Francis and the 'Canes leapt on a goaltender of arguably greater caliber for a cheaper price. 

The Sabres sacrificed the No. 21 selection for Lehner, per ESPN. The Oilers dealt three picks, including No. 57 and 79, for Talbot, per CBS. The Wild re-signed Dubnyk for six years at a $4.16 million cap hit, per the Star-Tribune's Michael Russo (h/t Sportsnet), or more than three times that of Lack.

Lack will enter Raleigh with a realistic chance of winning the starting role over Ward in training camp.

He stands just two inches shorter than Ben Bishop at 6'4", boasts a 7-5 career record in shootouts with a superb .805 save percentage and truly played like a worthy starter during two 41-game campaigns with Vancouver. In two prior starts versus Carolina, Lack went 2-0 with one shutout and a .968 save percentage.

He replaces a well-liked Khudobin, who struggled for most of 2014-15. The jovial Kazakh regressed from a .926 save percentage the year before to just .900 and, outside of the month of January, lost 23 of his 26 games.

It seems fairly obvious that the indirect netminder swap is a conclusively positive upgrade for Carolina.

Yet Wisniewski is just as, if not more, noteworthy as Lack among the Hurricanes' Saturday additions.

The 31-year-old blueliner is just one season removed from a fantastic campaign in Columbus, one in which he recorded seven goals and 44 assists—leading the Blue Jackets and ranking fourth among all NHL defensemen in such regard—in 75 appearances. He averaged 22 minutes, 37 seconds in ice time per game in those appearances.

He had eight goals and 21 assists in 56 games for Columbus in 2014-15 until being traded to Anaheim. While the Ducks gave up a near fortune to acquire him (depth forward Rene Bourque, top prospect William Karlsson and the pick that became No. 58 overall), Wisniewski didn't click well and was scratched for the entirety of the playoffs by Bruce Boudreau, who played Clayton Stoner instead.

That decision by the coach was criticized harshly by Fansided's Richard Spalding after the Ducks' eventual elimination—and with seemingly good reason.

Yet Wisniewski remained a misplaced, unwanted part in Disneyland this summer and was apparently elated to have found a new team that actually wanted him. The Michigan native spoke to the News & Observer's Chip Alexander:

Wisniewski also noted to Alexander that he enjoys mentoring young players as part of his veteran role, and young defensemen are a commodity that the 'Canes indeed have a wealth of.

He performs well in the advanced stats category, as well, having posted a positive Corsi rating relative to his teammates in nine of 10 career seasons, per War on Ice.

If the right-handed player can shift to the left side, he'll almost certainly partner with secure No. 1 blueliner Justin Faulk in 2015-16. If not, the second pairing wouldn't be a bad slot either, especially with him also expected to captain the power play. 

Wisniewski carries a $5.5 million cap hit with two years left on his contract. By then, Noah Hanifin, Haydn Fleury and others may well be ready to take over the 'Canes defense themselves—but by then, Wisniewski will already have done his job too.

And best of all, all of this comes to Carolina essentially in exchange for mere third- and seventh-round draft picks.

Well done, Ron Francis.

Mark Jones has been a Carolina Hurricanes Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report since 2009. Visit his profile to read more or follow him on Twitter.

The Carolina Hurricanes' selection of Noah Hanifin with the No. 5 pick solidifies their cast of defensive prospects as one of the best in the NHL.

Hanifin joins Haydn Fleury and Ryan Murphy as former top 12 overall selections developing in the Carolina system.

Three players picked in the third or fourth round of their respective drafts—Trevor Carrick, Brett Pesce and Jaccob Slavin—have increased their prospect stocks in recent years and also carry significant upside within the organization.

With Justin Faulk, only 23, established as a world-class NHL defenseman, stabilizing veteran Ron Hainsey sitting on two more years left on his contract and longtime AHL stalwarts Michal Jordan and Danny Biega quietly working their way into the NHL fold, Carolina is prepared for highly competitive training camps and a highly talented back end a few years down the road.

Hanifin has anything and everything that NHL teams look for in defenseman: size and a full frame, strong positioning, active stick play, awareness of both opponents and teammates around him, accurate breakout-pass ability, a booming point shot and a smooth, unflappable style that settles the play down around him.

He's about as NHL-ready as draft-year defensemen—which often take longer than forwards to develop—come. Most experts expected him to be a near-certain bet to debut professionally in the fall.

Yet Hanifin, a Boston College student for the time being, expressed a clear message in his post-draft press conference: The decision whether he goes to the NHL or returns to college for another year is his to make and not entirely up to the Hurricanes. 

"Making that step is obviously a huge adjustment. As far as my abilities go, I’m very confident in myself and I feel that, if I needed to go and play, I could absolutely go and do it. But as of right now, I’m undecided," he said, noting that he would need to discuss it with his family, his college coaches and 'Canes management. 

Chip Alexander of the News & Observer, meanwhile, reports that general manager Ron Francis might seek a short-term defensive option in free agency to avoid rushing the team's prospects.

All of this makes the Canes' selection of Hanifin seem far more based on Francis' long-term vision than filling an immediate hole for 2015-16.

The second-year GM clearly sees a defensive identity in the 'Canes future and, salivating at the idea of either Hanifin or Fleury pairing with soon-to-be perennial All-Star Faulk while the other leads an almost equally daunting second pairing, has planned his first two draft strategies around that plan. 

The choice of the Massachusetts native at No. 5 may have been a simple "best player available" decision—after all, Hanifin was long considered a guaranteed top-four pick until the last few weeks.

But he also may have been exactly what Francis and the 'Canes were hoping for, the newest gleaming piece in Carolina's jewel-studded future defense. 

So what that the team ranked 27th in the NHL in goals per game in 2014-15, as opposed to 17th in goals against, Francis seemingly thought. The turbulence and inevitable struggles of the club in the short term reveal little about and barely affect the long-term outlook for the rebuilding franchise. Hanifin was not only too potential-laden to pass on, but he was also a perfect fit in that vision.

The 'Canes have set up a brutal Hunger Games-type situation for their cornucopia of 'D' prospects in the coming years.

There simply aren't enough depth chart slots to eventually house all of these promising youngsters, and the losers will either be traded or see their NHL chances crash and burn.

Carolina evidently isn't taking the naively optimistic approach that, until proved otherwise, all of their prospects will fully pan out. By amassing such a large, diverse and talented collection of prospects all at the same position, they guarantee that the inevitable failures prove insignificant and the successes enter the big leagues even more battle-tested.

Seemingly in Francis' mind, the team's dire scoring issue can be addressed later.

Friday was about securing the final item in an absolutely loaded group of prospect blueliners, and he did exactly as he hoped.

The Carolina Hurricanes currently hold 10 picks in this weekend's 2015 NHL draft, the most selections they've owned in a single draft since 1998.

If the team's drafting trends of the 17 years since then hold true once again, however, that mass of picks will soon begin to fade slowly into a mediocre collection of lifetime AHL players and forgotten prospects.

Since 1999, just two players picked by the 'Canes in the fourth round or later of any given year (Brett Bellemore in 2007 and Tyson Strachan in 2003) have gone on to play 100 NHL games, and neither have hit the 200-game milestone.

The past two decades have seen the franchise hit a number of jackpots with early picks—including Eric Staal, Cam Ward, Andrew Ladd, Jeff Skinner, Jack Johnson and others—but whiff repeatedly on late-round fliers year after year after year. I described the pattern as a "lifeless swamp of late-round strikeouts" prior to last June's draft after an eye-opening study on the matter by the Section 328 blog. 

Admittedly, the crop of seven players chosen in general manager Ron Francis' debut draft have had almost no time to prove themselves, and three (No. 7 pick Haydn Fleury, No. 37 pick Alex Nedeljkovic and No. 97 pick Lucas Wallmark) have already signed entry-level contracts. It's far too early to analyze the success of the draft class.

But the same man—Tony MacDonald—has been the 'Canes director of amateur scouting for eight consecutive draft classes now and part of the scouting team for 21. He's a common link through both the Jim Rutherford and Francis eras of 'Canes history.

In Chip Alexander's Sunday column for the News & Observer, MacDonald is referenced thinking back to the 1998 draft, when Carolina landed four quality players in the later rounds. Not mentioned is the decade-plus of lean years since, nor the irony of MacDonald's quote, "You can get good value on your picks all the way through the draft."

It's certainly unfair to place the entirety of the blame on MacDonald's shoulders, especially considering that pre-2007 director Sheldon Ferguson did no better.

Yet when MacDonald and the rest of the Hurricanes' scouting team's season of work is acted upon with utmost importance on Friday and Saturday, one must hope that the trust given to the plethora of reports and evaluations is well placed. 

Said Francis to Alexander, "Every draft is critical and every pick is valuable."

Francis has done most of his job already, executing trades to set up the franchise with a healthy 10 selections (as well as an additional first-round pick next year, too).

While he'll still be manning the phone lines and announcing picks at the podium this weekend, almost all of the strategizing and decision-making have already occurred behind closed doors. 

All that's left to do is convert it all into tangible prospects and, later, impact-making NHL players.

Hopefully.

Mark Jones has been a Carolina Hurricanes Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report since 2009. Visit his profile to read more or follow him on Twitter.

Two weeks remain until the official start of the 2015 NHL free-agency period, but the Carolina Hurricanes have already signed three players to their first NHL contracts so far in June.

Recent draft picks Tyler Ganly and Lucas Wallmark, as well as European hockey veteran Derek Ryan, have been inked by the Canes to two-way contracts.

All three are likely to at least start the 2015-16 season with the Charlotte Checkers, the AHL affiliate of the Hurricanes. The two prospects offer promising upside in the future, while the addition of Ryan fits with Ron Francis' new veteran-oriented vision for the Checkers.

What will each recent signee bring to the Canes organization? A breakdown of each lies below.

Tyler Ganly

The Hurricanes' sixth-round selection in 2013, Ganly adds another reliable youngster to the franchise's increasingly immense defensive depth.

The 6'2" rearguard will almost certainly join Charlotte next fall after spending 2014-15 with the OHL's Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. He'll fill a third-pairing and penalty-killing role for the rebuilding Checkers and will hope to one day fill a similar niche for Carolina.

Francis will likely hope Ganly follows a Brett Bellemore-like path, paying his dues in the minor leagues for several years before emerging as a physical, conservative bottom-pairing option at the NHL level at some point in the future.

Lucas Wallmark

Riding a wave of rising stock and skyrocketing expectations, Wallmark, a 2014 fourth-round pick, will join the Hurricanes' professional ranks with considerable fanfare.

Wallmark established himself among professionals with a strong season for Lulea of the Swedish Hockey League in 2014-15. Writes Chapin Landvogt of Hockey's Future:

Long talked about as a truly talented puck magician who knows not only how to create space, but also make great use of it, Wallmark played a central role in Lulea’s success this season while also chipping in six points in seven games for Sweden at the WJC. His face-off skills continue to be far above average while his tendency to set up teammates...is becoming his trademark.

Lulea also won the European Champions Hockey League with Wallmark on the roster. The Hockey News' Ryan Kennedy recently named Wallmark the Hurricanes' prospect of the year.

Wallmark, meanwhile, has indicated that he's shooting for the NHL in 2015-16 and will return to Lulea for another year if he falls short, according to Ola Winther of Hockey Sverige.

While news flies around the blossoming 19-year-old star at a rapid pace, it's still yet to be seen whether he translates his style to the North American game.

Oft-criticized for his inconsistency, Wallmark remains a boom-or-bust prospect for the Canes—his performances at prospect development camp and NHL training camp this summer will be very telling of what the future holds.

Derek Ryan

One of the Hurricanes' more intriguing and unusual free-agent signings of recent years, 2015 Swedish Hockey League MVP Derek Ryan was unexpectedly inked to a one-year contract on Tuesday, according to the Hurricanes website. 

Ryan has never played professional hockey on this continent. He has, however, previously played four seasons for the WHL's Spokane Chiefs (including two under the coaching of Bill Peters), four seasons for the University of Alberta, three seasons in Austria and, most recently, one in Sweden.

Now 28, Ryan is finally getting his first NHL opportunity. Francis noted in Tuesday's press release that he's "excited that [Ryan] chose our organization," and indeed, the Avalanche, Maple Leafs and Capitals were also reportedly interested in the well-traveled veteran, as reported by Mike Chambers of the Denver Post.

It's hard to know whether Ryan is really a viable NHL forward or not—he is only 5'10" and 170 pounds, after all—but his contract is for only $600,000, and Francis has vowed to add older players to the Checkers' AHL roster.

The decision to add Ryan to the fold, regardless of where he ends up within it, seems hard to argue against.

Mark Jones has been a Carolina Hurricanes Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report since 2009. Visit his profile to read more or follow him on Twitter.

The return to a renovated Bojangles Coliseum and a change at head coach are expected to begin a new era for the Charlotte Checkers, AHL affiliate of the Carolina Hurricanes, next season.

Additionally, 'Canes general manager Ron Francis has already shown more interest than his predecessor, Jim Rutherford, in the Checkers' on-ice product, which has soured in recent years without the presence of established AHL veterans.

The collective effort to refresh and revitalize the Checkers is one with surprising importance to the Hurricanes' NHL club.

Next season, the Checkers will move from Time Warner Cable Arena (in the heart of uptown Charlotte)—their home over the past five years since the 'Canes moved their AHL affiliate from Albany, New York, in 2010—to the suburban Bojangles Coliseum, a 60-year-old arena that housed the ECHL-level Checkers from 1956-1977 and 1993-2005.

The team has drawn relatively strong community support during their time in uptown, ranking 10th in the AHL in attendance in 2014-15. However, the cavernous NBA arena was far from optimized for hockey. The Coliseum, meanwhile, will undergo a $16 million renovation prior to October's season opener.

Of greater concern to their parent franchise, though, is the Checkers' play on the ice.

After advancing to the Eastern Conference Final in 2010-11 and finishing third in the Western Conference in the 2012-13 regular season, the Checkers have finished 11th and 13th, respectively, in the 15-team conference over the last two seasons. They finished second to last in the league in scoring this past year.

The team fired head coach and general manger Jeff Daniels after the campaign's conclusion, ending his seven-year tenure at the helm of both positions. A replacement has not yet been named, but the end of the Stanley Cup and Calder Cup Finals within the next eight days will likely open the floodgates on coach free agency.

But veteran goaltender Drew MacIntyre's decision to re-sign with Charlotte last week offers perhaps the most telling—and optimism-inducing—glimpse into Ron Francis' vision for the future of the Checkers.

In 2014-15, the Checkers roster boasted just four regular players over the age of 24, and the 'Canes have long considered their AHL affiliate more of a prospect training ground than an independent club.

As documented by Nicholas Niedzielski of GoCheckers.com, MacIntyre, 31, made clear at his exit interview that he wouldn't consider re-signing if Charlotte would again be one of the AHL's youngest teams next season.

Seven weeks later, MacIntyre had the following to say to Niedzielski about why he is now coming back:

[Ron Francis] said he wants to sign some older guys and there’s going to be a new coach and they want to win here. That’s all I needed to hear.

Ron was true to his word. Near the end of the season he told my agent [that I would hear by] the end of May (whether a new contract would be offered or not) and he was true to his word and I appreciate that.

The move to place additional emphasis on the Checkers' actual win-loss record—rather than merely its developmental effectiveness—comes at a time when the value of a strong minor league affiliate is being showcased on the NHL's biggest stage.

Three of the current Stanley Cup finalist Tampa Bay Lightning's top five playoffs scorers (Tyler Johnson, Alex Killorn and Ondrej Palat), as well as head coach Jon Cooper, were previously part of the Lightning's AHL affiliate in Norfolk in 2011-12.

That Norfolk team set a professional sports record with 28 consecutive wins and won 70 of 94 games in the regular and postseason combined en route to the AHL title. That Norfolk team also sported, despite its plethora of talented youngsters, 12 players older than 24 years old.

Three years down the road, the Bolts are thriving on the experience gained by the prospects intermixed among the veterans on that Norfolk team. And indeed, history reveals significant positive correlations in both points and goal differential between an AHL team in any given year and their NHL parent team three years later.

Such statistics reinforce the veritable importance of the Checkers' new revitalization campaign on not only hockey in Charlotte but also hockey in Raleigh.

How the Checkers fare in the 2015-16 AHL season—in a new home, under a new coach, with a new complexion of players—will, in time, substantially matter to the Hurricanes.

Mark Jones has been a Carolina Hurricanes Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report since 2009. Visit his profile to read more or follow him on Twitter.