Hurricanes of Carolina Secure Nik Ehlers with a Million-Dollar Contract
The Carolina Hurricanes have finalized their marquee signing of the offseason, securing forward Nik Ehlers with a six-year, $51 million contract on Thursday. Ehlers was the most prominent unrestricted free agent available after the new league year officially opened on Tuesday.“Nikolaj was the best free agent available on July 1st, and we are proud that he has chosen to make Carolina his home,” said General Manager Erik Tulsky. “He is a very skilled winger who really knows how to skate and will fit in very well with our forward group.”
Erik Tulsky, General Manager of the Hurricanes
The winger had spent his entire 10-year career to date with the Winnipeg Jets, who selected him ninth overall in 2014, amassing 225 goals and 520 points in 674 games. Ehlers has surpassed the 20-goal mark in eight seasons and averaged nearly 16 minutes per game in both 5-on-5 play and on the power play.
The 29-year-old player is coming off one of his best seasons, after scoring 24 goals and earning 63 points in 69 games. Winnipeg won the franchise’s first Presidents’ Trophy, awarded to the league’s best team, thanks to their 122-point campaign, and Ehlers added five goals and seven points in the playoff games, as the Jets battled to a second-round postseason defeat against Dallas. Carolina has been trying to add a long-term scorer like Ehlers for over a year. Former general manager Don Waddell brought in Jake Guentzel at the 2024 trade deadline to give the Hurricanes a boost, but Guentzel ultimately left again in free agency. Then, current general manager Erik Tulsky tried to improve the Hurricanes by acquiring Mikko Rantanen in a trade with Colorado in January. However, the association was not meant to be, as Rantanen, then a pending unrestricted free agent, made it clear that he would not re-sign with Carolina, so Tulsky was forced to trade him again (this time to the Stars). Tulsky had also tried to acquire Toronto Maple Leafs forward Mitch Marner at the deadline, but Marner refused to waive his no-trade clause to complete the transaction. The Hurricanes could have used some help somewhere. Carolina was a top-10 team in offense in the 2024-25 regular season, averaging 3.24 goals per game, but that number fell below three in the playoffs and Carolina struggled especially in the Eastern Conference Final against Florida to consistently generate up front. Now, the Hurricanes have a pure offensive threat in Ehlers, who has committed to the franchise. He will be incorporated into a top-six role and should elevate potential new linemates like Sebastian Aho and Jesperi Kotkaniemi.
