Trade deadline day is always a day that fans will have circled on their calendars, as it can be one of the most exciting days of the hockey season. Over the past couple of days combined, we've seen approximately 15-20 trades take place, but as far as Friday goes, the first deal did not occur under just after 10:30am.
The first trade of deadline day was a trade that almost nobody saw coming, as the Carolina Hurricanes swung a deal with the Washington Capitals to bring in Evgeny Kuznetsov just a day after bringing in Jake Guentzel from the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Per TSN's Pierre LeBrun, the Hurricanes will be bringing Kuznetsov in at 50% of his $7.8M cap hit, so he'll carry a $3.9M cap hit for the Canes this year and next. In exchange for Kuznetsov, the Hurricanes have sent a 3rd round pick in 2025 back to the Capitals in the deal.
Kuznetsov has had another tough season in Washington, entering the Player Assistance program earlier this year and then being waived and demoted by the Capitals on the same day he was released from the program.
Kuznetsov has just 17 points this season in 43 games played, but perhaps a fresh start in Carolina is just what the doctor ordered. For the Russian forward, another chance at a Stanley Cup must be pretty exciting as well.
