RALEIGH, N.C. — The Carolina Hurricanes seemed to have added a key piece to the lineup when Max Pacioretty made his Carolina Hurricanes debut on Jan. 5.
After only 5 games in which he scored 3 goals, Pacioretty suffered a recurrence of the Achilles injury that kept him on the shelf to begin the season after being acquired from the Vegas Golden Knights.
Placing Pacioretty on long-term injured reserve would give the Hurricanes an additional $7 million to work with prior to the NHL’s trade deadline.
However, general manager Don Waddell isn’t rushing to make a move to improve a team that trails only the Boston Bruins in the overall standings.
“We certainly are in a different position because now we have cap space,” Waddell Waddell told TSN Hockey Insider Pierre LeBrun in The Athletic. “But we still really like our team. We’re going to look and see if there’s anything that makes sense moving forward. But we’re otherwise not out there looking to make a deal just to make a deal.”
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The Hurricanes trail the Bruins by 12 points, and sit just two points ahead of the New Jersey Devils in the Metropolitan Division.
One name out there is Bo Horvat of the Vancouver Canucks, but the reported asking price of three players including a top prospect could be prohibitive.
"(Horvat’s) having a career year and (the Canucks) have pretty much checked in with almost every contender. One of them being, I’m told, the Carolina Hurricanes,” LeBrun further reported.
“A lot of people like the Hurricanes as a fit for Horvat. Remember, Carolina struggled offensively in the playoffs last year. Well, what a boost it could be. And he skates, which is what that team is about in terms of speed. But the price is too steep, I think, for the Hurricanes at this point.”
Carolina fell to the New York Rangers in the second round of the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoffs after beating the Bruins.
The NHL’s trade deadline is set for March 3 at 3 p.m. eastern.