“How You Like Me Now?” Hurricanes Still Without a Superstar

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JUNE 14: Carolina Hurricanes player celebrates in the locker room after winning the 2026 Stanley Cup Final against the Vegas Golden Knights at T-Mobile Arena on June 14, 2026 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Josh Lavallee/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images One of the biggest criticisms in years past by the hockey experts around the league was that the Carolina Hurricanes did not have a superstar to take them to the next level. They did not have that all-time reliable player they could count on to score a goal when they absolutely needed it. The Canes had a few players who were close, although they were not quite there.

class="has-text-align-none">But as it turned out Carolina didn’t need a superstar, they just needed a couple more “regular stars” to get the job done.

class="has-text-align-none">Still missing a true superstar, who I will define as a player averaging more than a point a game in his career or someone considered one of the best at his position in the league, the Canes added K’Andre Miller and Nikolaj Ehlers to their stable of “ regular stars.” Both of these players fit in perfectly and played their best hockey in the heat of the playoffs.

class="has-text-align-none">Miller, who was acquired via trade from the New York Rangers, had signed an eight year contract with an average annual cap hit of $7.5 million. He is locked up until 2032-33.

class="has-text-align-none">The defenseman led the team in the playoffs averaging just over 24 minutes a game. He added 9 assists, 29 blocked shots, and had a plus +12 rating, good for second best on the team.

class="has-text-align-none">Ehlers, who was signed during the free agency period for $8.5 million a year, certainly scored his share of timely goals and chipped in with several nifty assists as well. He finished with 8 goals and 10 assists with a plus +9 rating.

class="has-text-align-none">The rest of the Pack are not “superstars” either, but they ain’t too shabby.

class="has-text-align-none">Who would have picked Jackson Blake to lead the team in postseason scoring? (7G 13A). He is signed until 2033-34 at $5.1 million a year. The winger was supposed to be suffering from his sophomore slump this year but scored a career high in goals (22) instead.

class="has-text-align-none">Perhaps a former “superstar”, Taylor Hall, was playing like a man possessed at times in these playoffs. He was a hitting machine with 24 hits, some of them crushing. Oh yes, he also had 7 goals and 12 assists, good for second on the team. He is locked up for two more years at $3.166 million a year.

class="has-text-align-none">Next up is Logan Stankoven, part of the return for the true superstar, Mikko Rantanen, who signed up for $12 million a year at Dallas. Stankoven, who has been a winner wherever he’s played, was like a pitbull on the ice, doggedly fighting for the puck. This “pitbull” also has some skill and contributed a team high 11 goals along with 5 assists. Stankoven is signed for $6 million a year until 2033-34.

class="has-text-align-none">The closest player to a superstar on Carolina would be Sebastian Aho, who is nearly a point-a-game scorer. Aho was a bit inconsistent on offense this postseason, but held his own defensively. The other team’s best players were not scoring either. Aho is under contract until 2030-31 at $9.75 million a year.

class="has-text-align-none">Another player on the fringe of being a superstar is Andrei Svechnikov. The Russian winger can do it all, hit, shoot, play defense, whatever you ask of him. He had 6 goals and 11 points and was third on the team with 74 hits this postseason. Svechnikov is signed through 2028-29 at $7.75 million a year.

class="has-text-align-none">What about the Captain, Jordan Staal? Certainly no superstar and he was not even nominated for the Selke, which would be a no-brainer. Staal played arguably the best hockey of his career starting off with a fight with Ottawa Captain, Brady Tkachuk, and ending up by dominating the Stanley Cup Final along with winning the Conn Smythe. He had the second highest hit total on the team, 86 and had an amazing 56.6% faceoff winning percentage. Who cares about the Selke? The Captain is currently signed for one more season at $2.975 million.

class="has-text-align-none">Seth Jarvis, who had a team high 32 goals in just 71 games in the regular season had 4 goals and 7 assists in the playoffs. Jarvis is signed at $7.421 million a year until 2031-32.

class="has-text-align-none">Jordan Martinook is not a big scorer but is known to be a heart and soul guy. He was moved to the first line with Aho and Svechnikov late in the Final and did well. He is signed for one more season at $3.125 million.

class="has-text-align-none">The fourth line did what they were supposed to do. They played defense, created chaos, and even chipped in with a few points. Eric Robinson led the way in that category with 3 goals and 5 assists. Mark Jankowski won 50% of his faceoffs and William Carrier did what William Carrier does best…..hit people. He had a total of 91 hits while playing just 10 minutes a game. That comes to a 28.68 hits per 60 minutes average, almost double second place Staal.

class="has-text-align-none">Robinson is signed through 2028-29 at $1.7 million, Jankowski through 2027-28 at $1.85 million and Carrier is through 2029-30 at $2.150 million.

class="has-text-align-none">Jaccob Slavin at times did not look perfect. He might even have had a bad game or two, but he was back to being the “human eraser” in the Final. He was second averaging 23:30 a game on the ice and he was tied for the team lead with Chatfield with 34 blocked shots. Slavin is signed until 2032-33 for $6.4 million per.

class="has-text-align-none">Speaking of Chatfield, again he was tied for the team lead with 34 blocked shots. Chatfield is signed for one more year at $3.075 million.

class="has-text-align-none">Miller’s partner, Sean Walker upped his game in these playoffs, especially his physicality. He was fourth on the team with 68 hits, one of them knocked William Karlsson out of the final series. He had 29 blocked shots and averaged 22:30 minutes of ice time per game. He is signed through 2028-29 at $3.625 million per.

class="has-text-align-none">Shayne Gostisbehere helped to ramp up the powerplay in the Final. He finished with 12 points in his 19 games and also had a +2. Gostisbehere has one more year on his contract for $3.2 million.

class="has-text-align-none">Alexander Nikishin finished up the postseason looking a bit tentative. He still had 25 hits in his 17 games played. Nikishin needs a contract before playing again next season.

class="has-text-align-none">Frederik Andersen did the heavy lifting during these playoffs and was sterling for the most part. Word is that he hurt his knee during game two of the Final. Brind’Amour waited until Vegas had scored four goals on him in game three before taking him out. He also needs a contract before playing next year although Pyotr Kochetkov should be ready to play.

class="has-text-align-none">When Andersen got hurt, Brandon Bussi was called in and had a superb postseason. He finished up with a 1.60 GAA and a save percentage of .931. Bussi is signed for the next three years at $1.9 million per.

class="has-text-align-none">(Stats taken from NHL.com https://www.nhl.com/stats/skaters?report=realtime&reportType=season&seasonFrom=20252026&seasonTo=20252026&gameType=3&playerPlayedFor=franchise.26&sort=hits&page=0&pageSize=50 )

class="has-text-align-none">(Salaries taken from https://puckpedia.com/team/carolina-hurricanes )

class="has-text-align-none">Once again, there are no superstars listed above. There are no players paid more than $10 million per year. But there is a team of “regular stars” who gelled together and who dominated this postseason with an overall record of 16-3. Maybe the Hurricanes don’t need a superstar.