Canes Sign Honka To Entry-Level Contract

RALEIGH, NC - Don Waddell, President and General Manager of the National Hockey League's Carolina Hurricanes, today announced that the team has signed defenseman Anttoni Honka to a three-year, entry-level contract. The deal will pay Honka $750,000 at the NHL level in 2022-23 and $775,000 in 2023-24 and 2024-25, and he will receive $80,000 at the American Hockey League (AHL) level for all three seasons. Honka will receive a signing bonus of $210,000.

"Anttoni is a puck-moving, right-shot defenseman," said Waddell. "He has produced at a high level in Finland and we believe he will continue to grow in North America."
Honka, 21, registered 37 points (6g, 31a) in 57 Liiga (Finland) games with JYP last season. The 5'11", 190-pound blueliner led all Liiga defensemen in assists and ranked tied for fourth among all skaters in the category in 2021-22. Honka has skated in 205 career Liiga games, all with JYP, tallying 104 points (18g, 86a). He recorded 35 points (8g, 27a) in 60 Jr. SM-liiga games with JYP U20 from 2016-19 and won the Reijo Ruotsalainen Award as the Jr. SM-liiga's best defenseman in 2017-18. Honka has represented Finland internationally at the IIHF World Junior Championship in 2019 and 2020, winning gold in 2019. The Jyvaskyla, Finland, native was drafted by the Hurricanes in the third round, 83rd overall, of the 2019 NHL Draft.