Ehlers To Bring A Layer Of Creativity, Speed To Canes

RALEIGH, N.C. - As the calendar flipped to July 1, there was no shortage of teams vying for the services of forward Nikolaj Ehlers.

A 10-year veteran of the league who possesses jaw-dropping quickness and has scored 20 or more goals in eight of his seasons, the 29-year-old Dane was regarded by many as the best available player on the market come noon this past Tuesday.

In a position that many players aspire to be in, Ehlers was rightfully in line for the biggest payday of his life. But, as was revealed during his introductory press conference to the Raleigh media, currency wasn't the driving factor.

Instead, it was a desire to be in the environment best suited for him and to have a chance at a Stanley Cup.

Welcome to Raleigh.

"He had a lot of teams interested in him. He's a great player," Canes General Manager Eric Tulsky said as he walked through the process of landing the team's newest prize. "I think, in the end, for him, if he just wanted the most money he could've gotten, he could've gotten more, for sure. My understanding is that he was looking for the place that felt like the right fit, where he'd be happy, and where he'd have a chance to win."

Changing scenery for the first time in his NHL career, Ehlers had been with Winnipeg since they selected him in the first round (#9 overall) of the 2014 draft.

Totaling 225 goals and 520 points over 674 games, he's blossomed into "a true game-breaker" and now looks forward to joining a team that plays the game in a way that falls right in line with his best attributes.

"With my speed, I can create a lot of room for the other guys," Ehlers described on Saturday. "I believe I will fit in very nicely, and that's obviously something you look at as well when you try to make a decision. I talked to Rod and we had kind of the same vision about how things are going to go."

Aligned with his new head coach on what's expected from him as he starts a six-year contract, the speedy winger knows exactly what it's like to go against the Canes and is eager to be on the other side of the coin.

"They've always been hard to play against. When you come to Carolina, you know that they're going to be ready to play," Ehlers continued. "They're going to come out hard, and they're going to keep stressing you out until they get the puck back. To now be on the other side of that will be pretty fun."

Producing 12 points in his last 13 games against Carolina, the latest addition has a skillset that his new franchise has been longing for.

"He is incredibly fast and dynamic with the puck. He'll bring creativity to our game," Tulsky reviewed. "We have the puck as much as any team in the league, and the more we can turn that into premium scoring chances, the better off we'll be. Nikolaj is the kind of player who can create scoring chances out of nothing. That's the sort of thing that you layer onto what we've already built, and it can help take us to the next level."

Ehlers admitted that the Canes' longtime coveting of him aided in ultimately landing in Raleigh.

"The interest that Carolina has shown was obviously something that helped a lot with the decision-making. It made me very excited," he explained. "I want to go in and get to know the guys, get to know the organization, get to know the city, and get comfortable as quick as possible."

The latest member of the roster locked into to a long-term deal, Ehlers, is now one of six Hurricanes signed through the 2030-31 season:

• Sebastian Aho
• Nikolaj Ehlers
• Seth Jarvis
• K'Andre Miller
• Jaccob Slavin
• Logan Stankoven

Giving the sextet an average age of just above 26, Ehlers is looking forward to the potential of not just one crack at winning a Stanley Cup, but several.

"I'm very excited about the team in Carolina... I like all the young players that are there," Ehlers reasoned. "The talks that I've had with the people in the Canes organization are something that really excited me."

And as good as the all-time leading scorer from Denmark has been to this point in his career, he also discussed this new venture being an opportunity to see what more he can add to his game.

"Every player always has a little more. I'm hoping that maybe a different culture, a different team, and playing style will help make me a better player," Ehlers said. "(Going to the Canes) was more the overall feeling of, 'Okay, I need to go out and see what's out there and challenge myself.' I think there are still a lot of ways I can improve as a player and as a person. I'm excited to see how that works out."