With roughly 30 games left in their regular season, it is pretty clear which teams will make the playoffs and which ones won’t. The Carolina Hurricanes should make the playoffs, but the forward group could use a boost before the March 8 trade deadline, or even their goaltending since they’re thin with injuries to Frederik Andersen and Antti Raanta.
Related: 2024 NHL Trade Deadline Tracker
However, there is a case to be made for adding depth to their defense. While Carolina has Tony DeAnegelo as their seventh defenseman, he has been a healthy scratch for most of the season and is rumored to be on the trading block. Furthermore, it seems that the Hurricanes could benefit from having a pure defensive defenseman. Here are two players they should look to add for their playoff push.
Hurricanes’ Depth Blue Line Options
Jakub Zboril
One player who could use a change of scenery and have his game elevated in the Hurricanes’ system is 26-year-old Jakub Zboril. The Brno, Czechia native has spent most of this season with the Providence Bruins of the American Hockey League (AHL), where he’s tallied eight assists in 28 games. He’s in the final year of his two-year, $2.275 million deal, signed with the Boston Bruins in May 2022. He was also the 13th overall pick by the Bruins in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft and has only played 76 NHL games over his four seasons with the organization. His $1.137 million cap hit could easily fit under the Hurricanes’ cap, with $4.383 million available as of now.
While Zboril might not be a needle-moving acquisition, he does give the Hurricanes another defensive defenseman who can move the puck up. In his last season with the Saint John Sea Dogs of the Quebec Maritimes Junior Hockey League (QMJHL), in 2016-17, he had 32 assists (and 41 points) in 50 games. After that, he had 19 points in three straight seasons with the P-Bruins from 2017-18 to 2019-20.
If anything, he is consistent in his offense and can play a good defensive game – he has never finished worse than minus-5 in his career and is usually on the positive side. He could use a change of scenery, and Hurricanes assistant coach Tim Gleason could help develop his game.
Related: Bruins’ Zboril Making the Most of Recent Opportunities
Outside of Jaccob Slavin, the Hurricanes have offensive-minded defensemen on their roster, so having a player like Zboril as their seventh blueliner could balance out the group. He can also play on either side, which would give head coach Rod Brind’Amour and Gleason another option if someone is out with illness or injury. The Hurricanes could benefit from this type of versatility instead of having players play on their off-side.
Since he has been with the Bruins’ AHL affiliate all season, a fourth-round pick might be a reasonable offer unless the Hurricanes are willing to move a B-tier prospect along with a pick for Zboril. More likely, just a draft pick could make the Bruins willing to move him. Zboril is an unrestricted free agent (UFA) after this season but is young enough that the Hurricanes might consider re-signing him.
Troy Stecher
The other possibility is 29-year-old Richmond, BC native Troy Stecher. This season, he has one goal and five points in 42 games with the Arizona Coyotes. He signed a one-year, $1.1 million deal with the Coyotes in July, and he will become a UFA at the end of the campaign.
He was an undrafted signing by the Vancouver Canucks in 2016-17, but now in his eighth NHL season, he has 19 goals and 108 points in 482 games in his career. While he is mainly a right defenseman (RD), he fits within the Hurricanes’ budget.
After four seasons with the Canucks, he had stints with the Detroit Red Wings, Los Angeles Kings, and Calgary Flames and is now on his second stint with the Coyotes. Outside of his rookie season with the Canucks and one season with the Red Wings, Stecher has maintained a decent plus/minus stat – he was a minus-17 with Vancouver in 2016-17 and a minus-13 in 2020-21 with the Red Wings. This season, however, he is a plus-7 and could finish on the plus side for the first time since 2019-20 when he was a plus-10 in his final season with Canucks.
Related: Troy Stecher’s Journey To The NHL
Like Zboril, Stecher would be a great depth option for the Hurricanes, who are looking for a reliable shutdown defenseman who can cash in on assists when the opportunity is there. He has also been used on the penalty kill often this season, with over 44 minutes of ice time, and would be a veteran presence at 29 years old who can fill in as needed down the stretch.
The Coyotes could ask for a pick along with a middle-tier prospect for Stecher. Maybe Scott Morrow and a third or fourth-round pick would be enough to get this deal done. But maybe a third-round pick could be enough for the Coyotes to be okay with the move. Again, this wouldn’t be a franchise-altering trade for either side.
Zboril and Stecher: Reliable Options
While Zboril or Stecher won’t put up 30 to 50-point seasons, their main job is to play defense and help the team win games. As long as they aren’t allowing grade-A chances against, they are doing what’s asked of them. Brind’Amour has said over and over again that if a player is doing his job, that’s all that matters. It’s not only about putting up points.
Either one of these players would be a great depth addition to the Hurricanes’ defense core going into the final two months of the season and the playoffs. These moves would be about adding to an already great defensive unit rather than changing the complexity of the team.
