The Carolina Hurricanes returned home to Raleigh, North Carolina, after a six-game road trip and must have been glad to be back in familiar territory for a back-to-back homestand versus the Seattle Kraken and the San Jose Sharks. They faced the Kraken on Oct. 26 and won the game in overtime 3-2. They will conclude the back-to-back against the Sharks on Friday, Oct. 27.
The team is back to playing .500 hockey, sitting with a 4-4 record on the season. A couple of milestones were reached against the Kraken: head coach Rod Brind’Amour claimed his 230th win with the Hurricanes, and defenseman Jalen Chatfield played in his 100th NHL game.
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However, the main story of the game was the performances of forwards Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Martin Necas, who combined for five points in the Hurricanes’ 3-2 comeback overtime win. Necas finished the night with two goals and an assist, while Kotkaniemi accumulated a goal and an assist. Carolina is really benefitting from the second line clicking so well, especially after each of them had a career year last season. Now eight games into the 2023-24 season, there are no signs of either one slowing down.
Kotkaniemi Silencing the Doubters
Coming into the 2023-24 season, some still doubted that Kotkaniemi was a bonafide second-line center for the Hurricanes. The claims are surprising despite him having a career year last season in his first full season playing on the second line. In 2022-23, he set career highs in goals (18), assists (25), and points (43), which are pretty remarkable after the slow start to his career.
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Since the 2023 NHL All-Star Break, Kotkaniemi has 32 points in 39 games for a .80 points-per-game average. He is more than earning his eight-year, $38.56 million deal, and he’s only 23 years old entering the second year of that deal.
As of Oct. 27, Kotkaniemi is tied for the team lead in points with nine in eight games — four goals and five assists after his two-point performance against the Kraken on Oct. 26. He is playing as just over a point-per-game player to start the season. Plus, he is showing no signs of taking his foot off of the gas.
Kotkaniemi is also developing into the 200-foot player that the Hurricanes were hoping for when they extended him an offer sheet as a restricted free agent in the 2021 offseason. If he keeps playing at this level, the 2018 third-overall pick by the Montreal Canadiens could reach the 60-point mark.
Martin Necas Is Mr. Overtime
What else is there to stay about Martin Necas? Some thought last season was a fluke when he reached career-highs in all scoring categories like Kotkaniemi, with 28 goals, 43 assists, and 71 points. Last season, he led the team in points with 71. He was snubbed from the All-Star Game, which still baffles pundits and fans.
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He is tied in points with Kotkaniemi after eight games. Along with Michael Bunting, they are right now the deadliest line for the Hurricanes. Necas is in the final year of his deal before he becomes a restricted free agent (RFA) at the end of the season.
His two-year, $6 million contract (signed in August 2022) was a prove-it deal so the Hurricanes could see if he would take the next step. After the season he had in 2022-23, the 24-year-old Necas more than proved that deal with Carolina. Even more so, the start of this current season just adds more to the argument for an extension. He is sure to earn a contract extension that will be comparable to the likes of Kotkaniemi, Andrei Svechnikov, and Sebastian Aho.
He might get the dollar amount of an Aho or Svechnikov, but he certainly can get within the pay range of a Kotkaniemi deal that’s currently $4.82 million over the next seven seasons. At $3 million average annual value, a bump to $4.5 million to $5.5 million would not be a stretch, and there’s a good chance he gets more if he posts another 70-point season. He has more than shown the Hurricanes that he is worthy of a long-term deal, and more — since the start of the 2022-23 season, he has scored five overtime-winners, which leads the NHL.
Necas is worthy of a five or six-year deal worth $4.5 to $5.5 million per season. Carolina needs to extend him and keep him slotted on the second-line right-wing spot next to Kotkaniemi, where they could be lethal together for a long time.
Will anyone be able to slow these two forwards down? They both play a 200-foot game and have solid stick-handling skills and quickness that frustrate opponents.
Another Career Year for Kotkaniemi and Necas?
Despite their 4-4 record, the bright spot for the Hurricanes is knowing that Kotkaniemi and Necas, on that second line, could turn a game on its head real quick. Is there a possibility of another career year for both players? If the signs keep pointing in the same direction, and the productivity stays relatively close to where it is now, it is likely to happen.
