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Just when you thought the Carolina Hurricanes were done making offseason moves, they surprised you yet again.
The Canes, who’ve reached the Eastern Conference Finals twice in the past four seasons (2019, 2022), are dedicated to improving their roster so they can actually win their second Stanley Cup. Carolina’s major offseason moves have included signing defenseman Dmitry Orlov and winger Michael Bunting, plus re-signing goalies Frederik Andersen and Antti Raanta.
The Canes added a few more guys to the mix last week, signing former Chicago Blackhawks defense Caleb Jones to a 1-year, $775,000 contract and trading for former Philadelphia Flyers forward David Kase, the younger brother of former Hurricane Ondrej Kase.
Jones will likely slot in as a depth piece for Carolina, as its top six defensemen are likely set in Orlov, Brent Burns, Jaccob Slavin, Brett Pesce, Brady Skjei and an interchangeable sixth spot with Jalen Chatfield and offseason acquisition TonyDeAngelo.
Caleb Jones, who has 50 points across 217 NHL games, is the younger brother of Blackhawks defenseman Seth Jones. Caleb is coming off his fourth professional season, in which he scored four goals and added 12 assists across a career-high 73 games. Caleb now gets the chance to join a team in contention for the Cup – the Blackhawks finished second-to-last in the Central Division last season.
“Caleb is a reliable, two-way defenseman,” Canes GM Don Waddell said in an article on the team’s homepage. “His NHL experience will help boost our depth on defense.”
There is no guarantee David Kase suits up for the Canes, as he is currently under contract with Czech Republic team HC Sparta Prague. Kase has 73 career points in 157 Czech Extraliga games. Interestingly enough, Ondrej opted to sign with another ELH club so he could join David.
Will David choose Carolina or stay in the Czech Republic
“David is an intelligent forward who competes hard on both ends of the ice and will add to our organizational depth,” Waddell said.
It sounds like David will be coming to the United States. Regardless of the impact Jones and Kase have this year, the Canes have truly shown a commitment this offseason to bringing in the right players needed for a Stanley Cup run.
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