Carolina Hurricanes<\/strong><\/p>\n Current Cap Hit:<\/strong> $84,855,709<\/a> (above the $95.5MM Upper Limit)<\/p>\n Entry-Level Contracts<\/strong><\/p>\n F Jackson Blake<\/a><\/strong> (one year, $905.8K) Potential Bonuses Blake and Stankoven will be on very team-friendly contracts for one more season before their long-term agreements kick in.\u00a0 We\u2019ll cover them in more detail at that time while noting that Stankoven\u2019s bonus is tied to games played; as long as he stays healthy, that should easily be met.<\/p>\n Nikishin\u2019s long-awaited NHL debut wound up taking longer than expected as he didn\u2019t suit up for Carolina right away after joining the team, leading to some brief concern that a formal agreement wouldn\u2019t be finalized.\u00a0 But he ultimately signed and projects to be a regular for the Hurricanes this season.\u00a0 Some of the $1MM of \u2018A\u2019 bonuses might be reachable but the $2MM of \u2018B\u2019 bonuses are highly unlikely.<\/p>\n Signed Through 2025-26, Non-Entry-Level<\/strong><\/p>\n G Frederik Andersen<\/a><\/strong> ($2MM, UFA) Potential Bonuses Jankowski was a late-season pickup from Nashville and fared well with eight goals down the stretch.\u00a0 However, he has largely been a depth piece in his career so while a small raise is coming his way no matter what thanks to the pending increase in minimum salary, his next deal might not land too much higher than that.\u00a0 Jost was up and down last season and had a very limited role when he was in the lineup for the Hurricanes.\u00a0 As things stand, he\u2019s someone who\u2019s likely to remain around the minimum salary.<\/p>\n Reilly missed most of the season while recovering from a procedure on his heart to correct an issue discovered while he was out with a concussion.\u00a0 He has been more of a sixth or seventh defender in recent years and projects to land in that same range with the Hurricanes.\u00a0 That should keep him around this range moving forward.<\/p>\n Signed Through 2026-27<\/strong><\/p>\n D Jalen Chatfield<\/a><\/strong> ($3MM, UFA) Martinook was more of a depth player over his first few seasons with the Hurricanes but has become one of their more versatile forwards and is often deployed in the middle six.\u00a0 The end result has been three straight seasons over 30 points.\u00a0 But even with the cap set to jump, it\u2019s hard to forecast a sizable raise on his next contract.\u00a0 A few more years with a small raise might be doable though.\u00a0 Staal, on the other hand, took a big pay cut on this deal to stick around.\u00a0 He\u2019ll be heading for his age-39 year in 2027-28 so a one-year deal with incentives is likely if he decides to keep playing with the combined value coming in around his current price tag.<\/p>\n Gostisbehere was brought back last summer for a second stint with the team to be a depth player at even strength but a power play specialist.\u00a0 He was exactly that, notching 27 of his 45 points with the man advantage.\u00a0 The even strength limitations and his smaller stature limit his earnings upside but this is a niche role he can fill for a few more years.\u00a0 If he has a couple more years of 40-plus points, an AAV starting with a four next time is doable on a short-term deal.\u00a0 Chatfield had largely been a third-pairing player until last season when he was trusted with a bigger role.\u00a0 He isn\u2019t a big point producer but if he gets through these next two seasons around the 18-19-minute mark at the level he played last season, he could push past $4MM as well in 2027 on a longer-term agreement than the three-year pact he inked last summer.<\/p>\n Kochetkov\u2019s contract was a curious one.\u00a0 Signed back in late 2022 with hardly any NHL time under his belt, it has aged pretty well so far as he has carried the bulk of the work for the first two seasons of the agreement.\u00a0 While his overall consistency is a bit spotty compared to some netminders, the good outweighs the bad and if you have a strong-side platoon goalie at this price, you\u2019re doing well.\u00a0 If Kochetkov continues on this trajectory, his next deal could land around the $5MM mark.<\/p>\n Signed Through 2027-28<\/strong><\/p>\n F Taylor Hall<\/a><\/strong> ($3.167MM, UFA)<\/p>\n Hall was the other part of the original Mikko Rantanen<\/a><\/strong> deal but unlike Rantanen, he decided he wanted to stick around.\u00a0 The former Hart Trophy winner certainly isn\u2019t that caliber of player anymore although he\u2019s still a decent secondary scorer.\u00a0 Even if he\u2019s on the third line, if he stays around the 42 points he had last season, Carolina should do fine with this deal.\u00a0 He\u2019ll be almost 38 heading into 2028-29, however, so one-year contracts are likely beyond this one.<\/p>\n Signed Through 2028-29<\/strong><\/p>\n F Eric Robinson<\/a><\/strong> ($1.7MM, UFA) Svechnikov bypassed the bridge contract to sign a max-term agreement four years ago with the hope that he\u2019d be providing surplus value in the back half.\u00a0 He\u2019s not quite there yet especially coming off a down year but his performance the previous two seasons suggests he can get to that level still.\u00a0 At a minimum, he\u2019s a second liner with good size and physicality and with the forecasted jumps coming to the cap, he could beat this deal four years from now, even if he stays at his 2024-25 form.\u00a0 Robinson had a career year last season, fitting in extremely well in Carolina\u2019s system for the first time, earning a four-year agreement in the process.\u00a0 For someone who has reached double digits in goals in three of the last four years, there\u2019s a good chance this deal works out well in the long run.<\/p>\n Walker\u2019s career year in 2023-24 landed him a five-year deal last summer and it looked like he had established himself as a second-pairing blueliner.\u00a0 His usage last season was a step back, however, ranking last out of their six regular defenders.\u00a0 This price tag is on the high side for a sixth option but right now, it\u2019s a luxury they can easily afford.<\/p>\n Signed Through 2029-30 Or Longer<\/strong><\/p>\n F Sebastian Aho<\/a><\/strong><\/strong> ($9.75MM through 2031-32)
D Alexander Nikishin<\/strong><\/a> (one year, $925K)
F Logan Stankoven<\/a><\/strong> (one year, $814.1K)<\/p>\n
<\/strong>Nikishin: $3MM
Stankoven: $32.5K
Total:<\/strong> $3.0325MM<\/p>\n
F Mark Jankowski<\/a><\/strong> ($800K, UFA)
F Tyson Jost<\/a><\/strong> ($775K, UFA)
D Mike Reilly<\/a><\/strong> ($1.1MM, UFA)<\/p>\n
<\/strong>Andersen: $750K<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/USATSI_24526389-217x300.jpg\")
<\/a>When healthy, Andersen has been a decent starter but staying healthy has been a big challenge.\u00a0 He has failed to reach 35 games in three straight years and four of the last five.\u00a0 That particular games played mark is notable as that\u2019s the first threshold of his bonuses for $250K with another $250K coming at 40 games (plus $250K if Carolina makes it back to the East Final and he plays in half the games or more).\u00a0 There isn\u2019t much risk with this contract as if the injury issues return, he\u2019s still a lower-cost second option while if he\u2019s healthy and meets those bonuses, he\u2019s probably going to provide a lot of value at that price.\u00a0 Because of the injuries, it wouldn\u2019t be surprising to see him going year-to-year from here on out with structures similar to this.<\/p>\n
D Shayne Gostisbehere<\/a><\/strong> ($3.2MM, UFA)
G Pyotr Kochetkov<\/a><\/strong> ($2MM, UFA)
F Jordan Martinook<\/a><\/strong> ($3.05MM, UFA)
F Jordan Staal<\/a><\/strong> ($2.9MM, UFA)<\/p>\n
F Andrei Svechnikov<\/a><\/strong> ($7.75MM, UFA)
D Sean Walker<\/a><\/strong> ($3.6MM, UFA)<\/p>\n
F Jackson Blake<\/a><\/strong> ($5.117MM from 2026-27 through 2033-34)
F William Carrier<\/a><\/strong> ($2MM through 2029-30)
F Nikolaj Ehlers<\/a><\/strong> ($8.5MM through 2030-31)
F Jesperi Kotkaniemi<\/a><\/strong> ($4.82MM through 2029-30)
F Seth Jarvis<\/a><\/strong> ($7.42MM through 2031-32)
D K\u2019Andre Miller<\/strong><\/a> ($7.5MM through 2032-33)
D Jaccob Slavin<\/a><\/strong> ($6.396MM through 2032-33)
F Logan Stankoven<\/a><\/strong> ($6MM from 2026-27 through 2033-34)<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/sebastian-aho-carolina-227x300.jpg\")
<\/a>After taking an offer sheet coming off his entry-level deal, Aho\u2019s next contract didn\u2019t have anywhere near that sort of drama.\u00a0 He has averaged exactly a point per game over the last four seasons while playing a premium position (center) and playing at a strong level defensively.\u00a0 As the market shifts in the coming years driving player costs upward, Aho\u2019s value should shift as well.\u00a0 Right now, he\u2019s close to market value given that his offensive game generally isn\u2019t at that high-end level.\u00a0 But over time, this contract should shift toward being a team-friendly agreement as more and more players eventually reach and surpass the $10MM threshold.\u00a0 This deal felt a little risky at first but that isn\u2019t the case now.<\/p>\n