Understandably, a good chunk of the questions I received this week were about the Hurricanes' goaltending situation, which now features a new face. This was the most open-ended of the questions, so here we go.
As you've no doubt heard already (if not - where have you been?!), the Hurricanes acquired goaltender Scott Darling from the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for a third-round pick on Friday night. There are a few things to dissect with this move, and we'll start with the trade itself.
Simply, it was a great trade. Ron Francis signed Viktor Stalberg to a one-year deal last summer. Stalberg was dealt at the deadline for Ottawa's third-round pick in the 2017 NHL Draft, the pick - the lowest of the three that the Canes were slated to make in the third round - that was then flipped to Chicago for Darling. That's incredibly deft asset management.
Here's the catch: Darling is slated to become an unrestricted free agent on July 1, so an additional step remains for the Hurricanes to add him to their goaltending fold. In trading for Darling, the Hurricanes now have exclusive negotiating rights with him until free agency opens; had they not traded for him, the Canes would be directly competing with other clubs for his services come July 1, and that can get messy (and pricey).
Obviously, there is inherent risk in trading for a player who is due to hit the open market in a couple of months. The Hurricanes, well aware of this risk, are willing to take the chance in order to attempt to get a deal inked with Darling before July 1 even becomes a thought.
Assuming that happens and Darling is officially added to the Canes' roster for the 2017-18 campaign and beyond, what becomes of either Cam Ward or Eddie Lack? Both are under contract for next season, and carrying three goaltenders is not practical or ideal. One of the two will have to be exposed in this summer's expansion draft. What happens beyond that is uncertain at this point. But one thing is clear: the Canes hope Darling is a big part of their goaltending future.
When Francis was asked about offseason priorities in his end-of-season press conference, he said it was no secret that goaltending needed to improve. The trade to acquire Darling is an important step forward in that direction.
