For those of you in a Black Friday shopping mood, here is a quick reminder that you can pick up a Canes and Coffee coffee cup for just $18.75 (in North Carolin) or $17.50 (outside North Carolina) with shipping and handling included.
Just click on the PayPal link at the bottom of this page, make a credit card or PayPal payment for the appropriate amount and be sure to include your address in the notes, and your coffee cup will be on the way.
Canes and Coffee cups could make a great gift for a Hurricanes fan who already has 25 things with a Hurricanes logo on it and could use something unique. The price range and eclectic nature is also perfect for the anonymous gift grab bag events where people say, “What’s this?”
Today’s Daily Cup of Joe goes with the Black Friday theme and discusses the current bargains on the Carolina Hurricanes roster.
Though it will not last as Hurricanes players come off inexpensive entry-level contracts and require raises, the team is currently 30th out of 31 teams in the NHL in terms of salary cap hit for the 2017-18 season. At $59.5 million the Hurricanes are more than $15 million below the league’s $75 million salary cap that many teams push up against.
The entry-level and inexpensive deals on defense
The biggest component in the Hurricanes being so far below the salary cap but still able to field a competitive team is the volume of contributing players who are still on entry-level deals that pay less than $1 million per season. All of Jaccob Slavin, Brett Pesce and Noah Hanifin are playing the final season on his entry-level contract. Haydn Fleury has two years remaining on his entry-level contract. Despite not being on their entry-level deals, Trevor van Riemsdyk and Klas Dahlbeck are also being paid less than $1 million for the 2017-18 season. When one totals it up, the six of the Hurricanes seven defensemen have almost exactly a $5 million salary COMBINED. In today’s NHL, that is seemingly impossible. Justin Faulk who has a $5.5 million actual salary and $4.8 million salary cap hit for the 2017-18 season, is paid more than the rest of the blue line combined and nearly matches them on salary cap hit.
As noted, the current bargain of the century expires at the end of the 2017-18 season when Slavin, Pesce and Hanifin start their second contracts. Slavin is scheduled to make $5.3 million per year starting in 2018-19 and Pesce $4.0 million.
The entry-level and inexpensive deals at forward
At forward, only Sebastian Aho is on his entry-level deal (which runs through the 2018-19 season, but he is one of six forwards who will earn less than $1.5 million in 2017-18. The others are Derek Ryan, Joakim Nordstrom, Josh Jooris, Brock McGinn and Phil Di Giuseppe. The difference between defense and forward is that the players on inexpensive deals at forward are largely depth players for whom a sub-$1.5 million is fair value.
Nonetheless, the six forwards represent another big chunk of roster whose total combined salary cap hit is $6 million for the 2017-18 season.
Many of the pricier contracts are cheap too
In addition to the sheer bargains on entry-level or second deals, many of the Hurricanes priciest contracts represent bargains. In an NHL where a second tier for forwards salaries has pushed up into the $8 million range, Jeff Skinner and his 37 goals from 2016-17 look cheap at only $5.7 million salary cap hit and $6 million salary. Similarly, Jordan Staal’s $6 million annual salary has gradually become inexpensive based on today’s prices.
And in a middle tier, Elias Lindholm and Teuvo Teravainen who are both paid just under $3 million for the 2017-18 could prove to be incredible bargains if they have break out years. In that vein, Teravainen and his $2.86 million 2017-18 salary has looked dirt cheap of late. The same could easily become true for Lindholm if he can similarly find a hot streak.
The challenge ahead
The immediate challenge ahead in terms of maintaining bargain status will be re-signing Noah Hanifin, Teuvo Teravainen and Elias Lindholm next summer. All three are set to join the ranks of Slavin and Pesce as players coming off inexpensive contracts with the potential to cost significantly more for next season.
What say you Caniacs?
1) Which of the more expensive contracts (Staal, Skinner, Faulk, Darling, Williams, etc.) would you say represents the best value relative to contribution and/or fair value?
2) Which Hanifin, Lindholm or Teravainen do you think will represent the biggest challenge to get re-signed at a reasonable rate next year?
Go Canes!
1) One of the things about a market is that it mostly determines value. My point being that all the more expensive contracts are pretty close to fair value. Pesce and Slavin might be “deals” a few years from now. At this point, they appear to be having mini junior slumps. I don’t expect that to last–though perhaps Caniacs were a little presumptuous in arguing that Slavin would be a perennial Norris contender.
2) Teravainen should have been signed to a longer deal before this season. He is going to be a 60-point (maybe 70) producer going forward. While that wasn’t totally apparent based on his play last season, it was mostly obvious based on his play at other levels. He and Aho have had very similar production at each level. Working together, they will both be better-than-average first liners. While TT will still be an RFA, my guess is the next contract is $5.5M per year. He probably could have been signed for around $4M for 6 years prior to this season. Folks may point to Rask as a reason to be hesitant–but Rask didn’t have TT’s numbers in international play.
Too early to get a good idea of what level players we have here!
At this moment Lindy hasn’t shown much, and can be moved or kept for a modest amount. TT is showing signs of exceeding many people’s hopes, and could command a significant amount (but he must show a high level of concistancy)!
Hanafin is a great skater, and looks to be the star DMAN who is VERY EXPENSIVE… and worth it! That said, it’s not a certainty he will be a great 2-way Dman, as his offense is still a work in progress, IMO!
The 2nd question was the easier to answer… NOW the 1st…
Skins IS THE BEST!
After that, Staal (down a little), Williams (down a little more),AND the others are not worth more, and probably less…!!
Darling is a borderline gk, and is a little bit of a disappointment for me (at this moment)!
…of course Wardo isn’t a good starter, either… it’s not looking REAL PROMISING…right now?!!
…time will tell
Of course the real question here is, why didn’t the Canes management use the opportunity to lan a short-term deal for a top end scorer or playmaker to lead this young and inexpensive team to the playoffs and create new expectations for Carolina hockey.
When we keep hoping for better food tomorrow, we overlook the fact that the true bargains will stop being bargains tomorrow, and then we won’t have the cap room to improve the core, and have to rely on another round of brilliant drafting and ELC players to improve the team.
The 2017 2018 season was an opportunity to send the Canes back to the playoffs. After the utter incompetence that was 5 of the last 6 periods of hockey that I have seen, I am sadly convinced by now that playoffs are not something this team will get, nor does it deserve based on the number of defensive lapses, lack of finishing (except after the team has dug a hole too deep to climb out of) and questionable goaltending.
And I don’t see how that situation will magically be solved next year, with a lot more of the same players commandending multi million dollar raises.
These players aren’t getting it done for us now. Why will they get it odne for us tomorrow?
I remain high on guys like Nichas and some of the Checkers guys, but only if they get some NHL experience and enter a team where winning is a culture, not a luxury
I admit my comment is somewhat colored by having watchid a truly embarrassing hockey game (and I stopped watching 5 minutes into the third period because I have work obligations that I chose to do, and I see the canes came close to a comeback, but, as usual, didn’t manage one).
As we all know from having bought 32 pairs of woolen socks, 80 camel shaped nose rings and an electronic cow defleecer on 80% off, you usually end up getting what you paid for, either stuff you didn’t need or stuff that doesn’t work.
With the Canes being the second cheapest team in the NHL, we can’t expect much.
Breezy…elegant analysis of the defective management of our “painful-to-watch” TEAM!
I was there…and my only positive was the awesome tailgate, which started about 3pm!!!
Soon after getting to the arena a truck came by, while we were setting up our grill, chairs, etc. They (three guys from OSHAWA CAN.) Wanted to know where to park etc etc. So we told them and invited them join us. They had been down to Orlando, FL playing golf, and had gone further south to Sunrise to see a Panthers game.
Because they were heading back home, and the MAPLE LEAFS were playing here, they stopped for the game. We gave them some STOUT and IPA we had, and Thai curry (my wife had made), and brats we grilled!
Unfortunately we stayed for the game…
Otherwise it was a good time!
The best contracts, $ for value, are definitely Staal and Skinner.
Turbo is making his case right now as a “how much do you want?” type of contract. Hanifin will be the same if he can convert his improved shot to goals (and primary assists). There is a reason that Hanifin’s agent refused to pursue a longer-term contract as lesser money.
Lindy is playing like a $3M forward right now -but he has upside he can develop and exploit for contract purposes.
But I am thinking Turbo is a must-sign – and I wasn’t giving him that type of credit this summer. He is our All-Star.