Carolina Hurricanes add a 30 goal scorer to their already potent offense
The Carolina Hurricanes are already one of the best teams in the NHL and they just got better. Today the Hurricanes officially activated forward Max Pacioretty from the season-opening injured reserve, with Ondrej Kase moving to long-term injured reserve to make room. Pacioretty is coming back from offseason surgery to repair a torn Achilles, and will be making his Hurricanes debut whenever head coach Rod Brind'Amour inserts him into the lineup.
Pacioretty could make his Hurricanes debut on Thursday, as they activated him from the injured non-roster list. Carolina hosts the Nashville Predators in their next game.
Pacioretty tore his Achilles about a month after the trade. According to the veteran forward, he knew what the issue was as soon as it happened.
The 34 year old was acquired from the Vegas Golden Knights along with Dylan Coughlan in a salary dump last offseason, with the Hurricanes sending back nothing but future considerations. Carolina assumed all of Pacioretty's $7MM cap hit for this season, the last in his four-year $28MM deal signed with Vegas in 2018.
Pacioretty mentions his motivation to reporters for the season is not only to go on a long run to the Stanley Cup but also it's his pride, and those around him that continue to drive him forward.
The 22nd overall pick from 2007 has been supremely consistent in the playoffs of late. He made the playoffs in three of the four seasons he spent with the Golden Knights, scoring 36 points in 30 playoff games.
It will be interesting to see if Pacioretty makes his debut tonight or coach Brind'Amour waits until Saturday's matchup against the Blue Jackets.
| POLL | ||
How far will the Hurricanes make it in the playoffs this season? | ||
| 1st Round Exit | 13 | 14.4 % |
| 2nd Round Exit | 20 | 22.2 % |
| Conference Finals | 37 | 41.1 % |
| Stanley Cup Final | 20 | 22.2 % |
| List of polls | ||
