Hurricanes Should Pursue a Trade for Predators’ Ryan O’Reilly

As the second week of the free agency is coming to a close, the Carolina Hurricanes have been busy so far. The team has made some key moves in getting Nikolaj Ehlers and K’Andre Miller, while extending Logan Stankoven. However, general manager Eric Tulsky has stated before, dating back to the end-of-season press conference, that the team will continue building. Even with the moves so far, the Hurricanes have $10.644 million left in cap space and have room to continue fleshing out the roster before the start of the 2025-26 season. One player who could be targeted via trade this offseason is Nashville Predators’ Ryan O’Reilly.

Bring O’Reilly to Carolina?

Despite the moves for Ehlers and Miller, they still need to address their second-line center spot. While they do have Jesperi Kotkaniemi, there is a clear need for an upgrade at 2C. The Hurricanes still have faith in Kotkaniemi, who has five seasons left on $4.82 million annual average value (AAV) deal. If they want to keep him, they can, but he will need to move down from the 2C spot. O’Reilly could be a great addition to the Hurricanes’ roster if they can find a suitable trade to bring the 34-year-old Clinton, Ontario native to Raleigh.

O’Reilly has two seasons left on his current four-year, $18 million deal with an AAV of $4.5 million per season with the Nashville Predators. He will become an unrestricted free agent (UFA) following the 2026-27 season at 36 years old. For the Hurricanes, adding a player like O’Reilly, especially with that team-friendly AAV, would be a huge upgrade at 2C. He won the Stanley Cup in 2019 as the captain of the St. Louis Blues, along with being a 2018-19 Conn Smythe and 2018-19 Frank J. Selke winner. O’Reilly also has a 2013-14 Lady Byng Trophy for good measure.

In 1,152 NHL games, O’Reilly has 303 goals and 824 points with stops in Nashville, Colorado, Buffalo, St. Louis, and Toronto. Furthermore, he has tallied 96 power-play goals, 11 shorthanded goals, and 40 game-winning goals. O’Reilly just knows how to score. His veteran presence and Cup pedigree, could be a nice addition to a great locker room that already has Jaccob Slavin, Jordan Staal (2009 Stanley Cup winner), Jordan Martinook, and Sebastian Aho. His clutch play alone could be a proven commodity for the Hurricanes as they look to reach the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 2006.

O’Reilly averaged 19:33 of ice time over his career, with it not dipping below 18 minutes since his second season back in 2010-11 with the Colorado Avalanche at 19 years old. During the 2024-25 season, he averaged 18:59 for the Predators, while tallying 21 goals and 53 points in 79 games. He had nine power-play goals and three game-winning goals in the process. What makes O’Reilly stand out is his career faceoff percentage of 55.7%. The only time he was under 50% was during his rookie season (2009-10) when he posted a 47.8% win rate as an 18-year-old. During his career, O’Reilly has won 51.8% (Avalanche), 56.8% (Blues), 58.3% (Sabres), 54.7% (Predators), and 62% (Maple Leafs) of his draws. The Hurricanes thrive when centers are over 50% and O’Reilly is the best among them.

There is no indication of what a possible trade package could look like. However, if the Hurricanes can make an offer the Predators can’t refuse, O’Reilly could be the team’s best 2C since Vincent Trocheck. The AAV is perfect for the Hurricanes, especially with it concluding two seasons after 2026-27. Plus, O’Reilly fits the system perfectly and could slot in behind Aho for the center core. Furthermore, he could slide onto the Hurricanes’ second power-play unit as the center for that group. The many roles he could fulfill all comes down to whether the Hurricanes want to bring a former Stanley Cup-winning captain to the team.

Hurricanes Never Done Building

There is a lot of time between now and Sept. 22, when the Hurricanes’ first preseason game takes place against the Tampa Bay Lightning. The team is always looking to get better, so there could be more moves along the way before camp starts, Either way, it’s been a great offseason so far for the Hurricanes, and they may have only gotten started.