The Carolina Hurricanes are heading into a pivotal offseason in their Stanley Cup window with a grand total of zero restricted free agents (RFAs) on their main roster. While they do have eight of them in the system, their crop of RFAs are considered more depth pieces and potential futures rather than guys who are in need of an immediate payday — which bodes well for the team’s ability to spend on the open market.
While there aren’t really any cornerstone players with RFA status this summer, the Hurricanes will have some promising young players due for new contracts who they’ll hope to keep in the organization. Let’s have a look at these players, their development and future potential, as well as the likelihood of each individual to stay or go heading into the 2025-26 season.
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Ryan Suzuki
A player who’s had a whirlwind of a ride since his arrival into the organization as a first-round pick back in 2019, I feel like Ryan Suzuki’s progress has him on the cusp of an NHL opportunity. The question is — will that opportunity come in Carolina? He had a superb season with the American Hockey League’s (AHL) Chicago Wolves, scoring 12 goals and 59 points across 69 games, finally managing to play his first full season injury-free and finishing as the club’s leading scorer.
Now age 24 and hitting his stride as a player, he should be right on the Hurricanes’ doorstep — right? Unfortunately, I’m not so sure. Even with the uncertain future of Jesperi Kotkaniemi, I’m having a hard time finding a place for Suzuki on the Hurricanes’ roster. I don’t think he’s a top-six centerman at this point, and with Jordan Staal and Mark Jankowski holding down the 3C and 4C slots, it leaves Suzuki in no man’s land. Rod Brind’Amour seemingly has a type in his bottom-six — big, fast, hard-forechecking, tough to play against. Suzuki is…not that. He’s got nice skill, smarts and can create offense, but he’s not a hard player to play against even with his 200-foot game making significant strides.
At this point, I’m not sure what’s in store for Suzuki. Organizationally, he faces an uphill battle on the depth chart, especially if you consider the emergence of Justin Robidas. I still feel he’s worthy of an NHL shot somewhere. He cleared waivers last fall, but…
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