We are officially a week from the 2024 NHL Entry Draft and 10 days from the start of the re-sign phase and free agency. However, that has not stopped other general managers around the NHL from making trades before the Stanley Cup winner has been crowned. Regarding the Carolina Hurricanes, they’ve been in conversations about what they will do with Czech forward Martin Necas. Per Pierre LeBrun of TSN, they have gotten “concrete trade offers” for him but nothing yet they would say yes to. However, it seems that something could potentially happen either right before, or at the draft on June 28-29 in Las Vegas. There might be a team that some have not thought of who could be in talks with Carolina for Necas. It might feature one of the hottest and most underrated goal-scorers in the NHL over the last two seasons.
The Case of Frank Vatrano
There is one name mentioned previously in speculations as someone who the Anaheim Ducks could potentially trade: forward Frank Vatrano. The 30-year-old East Longmeadow, MA native had a career year during the 2023-24 season. In 82 games for the Ducks, he tallied 37 goals, 23 assists, and 60 points, all career highs. That was on the back of a season where he had career highs (at the time) in assists (19) and points (41) during the 2022-23 season. Vatrano is in the last year of his three-year, $10.95 million deal that he signed in July 2022, with an average annual value of $3.65 million. He will be an unrestricted free agent (UFA) after the season and could see a decent pay raise for what could be the final deal of his career.
In the last two seasons with the Ducks, Vatrano has 59 goals, 42 assists, and 101 points in 163 regular season games. He has only missed one game in the last two seasons for Anaheim. Before joining the Ducks, his best season came in 2018-19 when he had 24 goals and 39 points for the Florida Panthers. The undrafted forward started his career with the Boston Bruins then was traded to the Panthers before getting traded again to the New York Rangers. Once he went to Southern California, his production soared and he has become one of the most underrated scorers in the NHL over the last two seasons.
Related: Frank Vatrano Used Breakout Season to Become Ducks’ MVP
When it comes to how Vatrano is as a player and person with the Ducks, head coach Greg Cronin stated, “Frankie’s a low maintenance person and player. He’s 30 years old. He’s got a wife, he’s got a kid and he’s passed through that development phase that all of our young guys are going through now. He’s been through organizations where they expect to win. The Boston Bruins had a profound effect on him in terms of leadership, accountability, standard-bearing and doing everything to an extraordinary habit within the concept of team they play…So when you’re asking him a question about what happened in a specific play, particularly during the game, his answer is basically a reflection of that experience. He’s also a very competitive person, so he’s never going to negotiate or compromise his competitive nature. I think for anybody that watches the games, that’s expressed in the way he forechecks, the way he backchecks, the way he blocks shots and the way he kills penalties. That’s in his DNA.”
The fact that you get a player like Vatrano who has been there and done that in growing his game through his career, he is level-headed and could be someone the younger players can look to for guidance. Going through the Bruins and being around guys like Patrice Bergeron and Zdeno Chara to name a couple goes a long way. While his tenure with the Ducks hasn’t been what he or the team hoped for, bottom-five in the league, he does bring a lot of elements that teams like the Hurricanes could benefit from.
For most of his career, even more so since joining Anaheim, he’s always provided goal-scoring and he is viewed as more of a shooter than a distributor. Scoring 59 goals over the last two seasons, 37 in 2023-24 for a career-high, proves that he can put pucks on the net and provide an offensive boost. In addition to his scoring touch, he can play quick and fast which makes him a transition threat when skating between the blue lines with the puck on his stick. That element of his game is what the Hurricanes love to use and Vatrano being able to use that part of his game could be a huge benefit. Especially on the powerplay where he could be put on either PP1 or PP2 and be turned to for a quick north-to-south attack. Furthermore, when in transition and reading plays, he’s also not shy about chipping pucks deep and pressing the play as the main guy on the forecheck. That ability to hustle for the puck on the forecheck fits well into the Rod Brind’Amour system for the Hurricanes.
Related: Hurricanes’ Cap Situation Could Force a Martin Necas Trade
While his offensive game is off the charts, what makes Vatrano more of a dynamic player is his commitment to detail defensively. Despite his plus/minus with the Ducks being minus-49 over the last two seasons, that is nothing he can control on how the team has been constructed and managed. However, he has become a player who the Ducks can use in a variety of roles whether at even-strength or on special teams. He might not be the most high-end penalty killer, but he can hold his own when called upon. When on the powerplay, he has one of the most lethal one-timers from the weak side of the ice. He manages to beat goalies clean from range which makes him a huge threat. Furthermore, just when talking about Vatrano as a whole and how he’s become so well-rounded in Anaheim with the Ducks, he is someone who just competes in all three zones and is always involved at a high level.
Potential Trade Details
Regarding a trade between the Hurricanes and the Ducks, there is a way both teams can benefit from a player swap. When talking to The Hockey Writers Ducks writer Charlie Hiller, he says a player swap of Vatrano and Necas is one Anaheim should make. He stated that the Ducks’ right-winger depth behind Troy Terry is not ideal and adding Necas could give their top six and the right side of the ice a boost. Furthermore, he went on to say that if they can sign him for any decent amount of term, it makes a good practice out of the “take expiring assets and flip them into long-term pieces” part of the rebuild. Vatrano can play on both wings so he can bring versatility and flexibility to the Hurricanes. Plus if they know they can get a four or five-year extension with him, it’ll carry him in a decent-sized window to win now with Carolina until he is 34 or 35 years old.
While discussing the trade with Hiller, it came down to the player swap but the Hurricanes would get draft assets in return as well. That being said, this is what a potential deal between the Hurricanes and Ducks could look like:
Hurricanes Recieve:
- Frank Vatrano (one-year, $3.65 million left)
- 2024 2nd Round Pick (Anaheim)
Ducks Recieve:
- Martin Necas (RFA Rights)
Both teams will get a top-six winger while the Hurricanes get a high second-round pick in the process. Carolina gets Vatrano’s physicality, 200-foot two-way play, lethal shot, high compete level, and high-end speed that makes him the well-rounded scoring forward that can fit the Hurricanes system perfectly. The Ducks get a 25-year-old Necas who they could lock up long-term and put in the top six along with the powerplay. He will see the uptick in time-on-ice that he wants, and Anaheim also gets the great stick handling and speed aspect of his overall game.
Final Thoughts
Overall, it is a swap for better fit in systems for Vatrano and Necas. Regarding the Hurricanes, they get a second-round pick as part of the deal along with the potential of extending Vatrano long-term. Could there be a better deal out there for the Hurricanes? No one knows because all that’s been said is “concrete offers” but with no details to prove that. If the Ducks are willing to move Vatrano and the Hurricanes can extend the shooting winger they need, this could be the trade that benefits them. All in all, it’s a possible win-win for both sides and the Hurricanes will benefit from the consistency and high-end play from Vatrano that they need for a deeper playoff run.
