The signing comes just four days after the Hurricanes traded for Nino Niederreiter, who is in the second year of a five-year, $26.25 million contract. In tandem, these transactions help to secure the Canes' core moving forward.
"It's great news," Brind'Amour said after practice. "The management group here has done a nice job assembling the group, and now we've got to keep it together and continue to add. I think we made a pretty good trade the other day. … We're trying to get better."
I spoke with Hurricanes President and General Manager Don Waddell during the first intermission of Friday's game, and the main discussion point was
how the Niederreiter trade came about
. We also briefly touched on a few other subjects, including contract talks with the three oft-discussed Canes forwards: Aho, Teravainen and Micheal Ferland.
Waddell was not concerned with new deals for either Teravainen or Sebastian Aho, who is a restricted free agent this upcoming summer.
"They're not going anywhere," Waddell said. "We're going to get them done whether it's today, next week or the summertime. We're going to get them done."
It obviously didn't take long to cross Teravainen's name off that list.
LISTEN: TERAVAINEN ON CANESCAST
Aho, who will participate in NHL All-Star Weekend for the first time and who is on pace for a career high 92 points, is a cornerstone piece around which the Hurricanes will build, and he figures to be the team's highest paid forward in the near future.
Of those three, then, the largest question mark looms over Ferland, and his situation is much sticker for a number of reasons, including the fact that he can test the market as an unrestricted free agent on July 1.
"Micheal's had a good year this year. We've had a lot of talks with his agent. We'd love to sign him," Waddell said. "We think he's good for our hockey club. He brings a spark, and he's got some skill along with his grit."
Brind'Amour echoed that sentiment.
"We didn't have that presence. We've been missing that physical presence," he said. "His scoring touch is something I didn't realize he had. He's got a nice touch. That's a pleasant surprise."
But this is, after all, a business, and business could prove to be tricky with Ferland, whose 13 goals and 25 points rank second on the team.
"We also can't take the chance of going through the season and letting a guy walk at the end of the year when he's a valuable asset for us. It's a fine line," Waddell said. "We want to be patient with that to see if we can get a deal done, and at the end of the day, we'll have to make a tough decision when we see where we are closer to the trade deadline."
For now, though, the Hurricanes have one less contract to mull over, as Teravainen is locked in long term.
"I love this team. I love my teammates here," he said in an interview on the newest episode of
CanesCast
. "I like the direction we're going."
