Rachel Barkley
We are two weeks past the 2026 Trade Deadline, and even still, we have new information trickling in. However, unlike the whispers of things the Carolina Hurricanes missed out on in the drive to the postseason, it seems this time we are hearing rumors about something that may shape their summer.
In the March 18th edition of DFO Rundown, insider David Pagnotta joined host Irfaan Gaffar to discuss a plethora of topics, including the Hurricanes’ perceived attention to improving goaltending.
“My estimation is that Freddie Anderson won’t be back with the club,” Pagnotta said. “There is some indication that they are going to be exploring the goaltending market in the offseason.”
Then, Pagnotta mentioned that the Hurricanes had already begun the pursuit of another goaltender during the trade deadline.
“They did explore [the goalie market] ahead of the trade deadline. They were one of the teams that had poked around on Sergei Bobrovsky, and there was some who believed there was a decent pathway to potentially making that happen.
“Obviously, it didn’t. Montreal and Vegas were the other two teams that were kind of in that mix. There was a little bit of internal belief that they might be going in that direction. So, they’re certainly going to explore their options in the summer by all accounts. We’ll see where that goes.”
Sergei Bobrovsky May Be Available This Summer, but Would He Be Good for Carolina?
It is certainly too early to consider free agency when we haven’t even finished the regular season – that is not lost on me. Nonetheless, we cannot ignore the rumor and what it could mean for the Hurricanes.
During the deadline, it was said that there hadn’t been much action surrounding him and that the Florida Panthers decided to instead work toward signing him to a new contract. Ever since then, there has been little word out of Sunrise on whether those contract talks have advanced or not.
Next season, he will be 38 years old. With that being said, at age 40, teams were trying their hardest to pull Marc-André Fleury out of retirement. While an older goalie may not be ideal, someone with his caliber of talent – especially in the playoffs – is sure to draw eyes if the Panthers cannot secure an extension.
There are still games left to play for the Hurricanes, and Andersen has begun heating back up since the Olympics. He could still go on a heater and leave Carolina smashing print on the old inkjet to get another contract lined up.
Should Andersen not get an extension, however, the Hurricanes will still have a fine tandem in Bussi and Pyotr Kochetkov, who have both been good for Carolina.
But they are both still rather young in their careers.
Kochetkov has the most NHL experience of the two, with 125 games played, which is still a low number. Meanwhile, Bussi will only be in his second NHL season.
Considering the frequency of goaltender injuries added on top of that, it may benefit Carolina to have a seasoned veteran to call on when things get dicey.
