RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The Carolina Hurricanes wanted to add one top-shelf forward this offseason. They got two.
By trading for Jordan Staal and signing Alexander Semin, the Hurricanes have sent a clear message: They’re in it to win — now.
General manager Jim Rutherford said Friday it’s hard to judge a hockey team during the summer but “we are a much stronger team going into the season than we have been in a long time.”
Carolina continued its productive offseason this week by signing free agent Semin to a one-year, $7 million contract. That came a few weeks after trading for Staal — the brother of captain Eric Staal — and locking him up with a 10-year extension.
Those deals were made to meet the team’s stated objective of adding scoring punch.