Prospect Report: Cerrato's Still Hot, Unger Sorum's Stepping Forward

RALEIGH, N.C. - All levels of play are officially over one month into their hockey season. Some Carolina Hurricanes prospects have turned their hot starts into steady seasons, while some have picked up the pace since our last update.

Here are some things you should know about the future of the organization:

• 2025 second-round selection Charlie Cerrato continues to be one of the best producers at the NCAA level this season. With 20 points in 14 games, he currently sits third out of all skaters, even with Penn State facing the top two teams in the country the past two weekends. Next month, Cerrato will play with the United States Collegiate Selects at the 2025 Spengler Cup in Switzerland.
• 2024 fifth-round pick Justin Poirier is still thriving in his first season at school, currently just one of six players with double-digit goals in all of NCAA play. Pacing the Univ. of Maine in scoring, his 15 points are also tied for the most by any freshman in the country.
• And lastly, on a team loaded with 12 NHL-drafted prospects, junior Jayden Perron is heating up at the Univ. of Michigan. Racking up 12 points in his last nine games, the 2023 third-round choice is continuing to round out his game after spending his first two years at the Univ. of North Dakota.

"He's a very talented winger, similar to Jackson Blake," Hurricanes Special Advisor to the General Manager Justin Williams reviewed of Perron. "When he has the puck, he's one of the most dynamic people on the ice."

• At the pro level in North America, 20-year-old Felix Unger Sorum is showing huge strides in his second season with Chicago (AHL). Producing at least one point in 12 of the Wolves' 14 games this season, his five goals and 13 total points both pace the group.
• The slew of injuries on the Canes' blue line has meant call-ups for Domenick Fensore, Charles Alexis Legault, and Joel Nystrom, all of whom started the season in Rosemont. The trickle-down effect has meant more playing time with the Wolves for 2021 sixth-round draft pick Bryce Montgomery, who has already played a career-high 11 games at the AHL level. Standing at 6-foot-5, 230 lbs., he's put his frame to use already this season, picking up three fighting majors.
• Between the pipes, there's no shortage of depth for the organization. With Frederik Andersen, Brandon Bussi, and Pyotr Kochetkov all healthy and with the big club, Amir Miftakhov and Cayden Primeau are a solid one-two punch for the Wolves. Ruslan Khazheyev and Nikita Quapp are now with Greensboro (ECHL), allowing everyone to get game action.

"I think what we're seeing is the natural progression with Felix," Hurricanes Associate General Manager/Chicago Wolves General Manager Darren Yorke said of Unger Sorum. "If you look at how he performed at the World Junior Championship last season, you saw a player who was consistently able to use his body to defend a check, and then his elite hockey sense took over to quickly cycle through progressions. Throughout the season this year at the AHL level, he is demonstrating the ability to complete those same types of plays consistently."

• Overseas, 6-foot-4, 205 lbs. Timur Kol has been dominant at the top junior hockey level (MHL) in Russia. With 15 points in his first 16 games, the 19-year-old sits just one back of the league's lead in points by a defenseman.
• In net, 2025 top draft pick Semyon Frolov started the season 4-1 in net before going down with an injury. 2023 seventh-round pick Egor Velmakin has posted a .926 save percentage in eight games played with Dynamo St. Petersburg in the second-highest pro league in Russia.

For more information on the team's prospects, stay tuned to @CanesProspects on X.