Carolina Hurricanes trade No. 27 pick in 2024 NHL Draft to Chicago Blackhawks

On a day when there was much talk about the Carolina Hurricanes potentially signing Jake Guentzel to a long-term contract or possibly trading Martin Necas, the Canes did neither.

Nor did the Hurricanes use their first-round draft pick Friday on the first day of the 2024 NHL Draft at the Sphere in Las Vegas. Carolina traded the pick, No. 27 overall, to the Chicago Blackhawks for the 34th and 50th picks of this year’s draft.

This is the second time in four years the Hurricanes have traded out of the first round. The Canes drafted Bradly Nadeau in the 2023 first round.

There was no surprise that Macklin Celebrini, a dynamic center from Boston University, was made the No. 1 pick of the draft by the San Jose Sharks on Friday.

There was one early surprise: the Anaheim Ducks taking Oshawa Generals forward Beckett Sennecke with the No. 3 selection. Sennecke, generally considered a late first-round pick, was so stunned that he looked at his parents in disbelief and uttered a few choice words that quickly went viral on social media.

The Hurricanes came to Las Vegas with a lot of draft assets — nine picks in all. General manager Eric Tulsky also arrived facing a full workload, trying to sign Guentzel before the start of NHL free agency on Monday and perhaps making a decision on Necas.

Tulsky said he relies on assistant general manager Darren Yorke to handle amateur scouting and determine the draft list and selections. Yorke and Tulsky huddled at the Hurricanes team table with owner Tom Dundon and the rest of the Canes’ management and scouting team.

Throughout the day, there was speculation the Columbus Blue Jackets might be willing to deal the No. 4 pick or the New Jersey Devils the No. 10 selection to Carolina as a part of a deal that would involve Necas. The Czech forward, set to be a restricted free agent with arbitration rights, has been mentioned as a trade target for several teams.

Will Tulsky and the Canes trade Necas, the team’s leading scorer in 2022-23? Or can Tulsky and management be “creative” — a word Tulsky has used — and find a way to keep the speedy, skilled winger at a time when the Canes also try to re-sign several unrestricted free agents who could soon hit the open market?

The Canes brought in Guentzel in a trade March 8 with the Pittsburgh Penguins, and want to keep a player who can provide so much offense. It’s possible the Canes could be offering Guentzel, now a pending UFA, an eight-year contract that would pay $8 million or more a season.

The intrigue should continue on a busy second day in Las Vegas as the Canes have 10 draft picks in the final six rounds and Tulsky continues to try and make other moves.

In 2021. the Canes sent the No. 27 pick to Nashville for a pair of second-round selections. Carolina used one of the picks to take defenseman Scott Morrow.

Aho chosen for Four Nations

Canes center Sebastian Aho was one of the first six players chosen to represent Finland in the NHL Four Nations Face-off, to be played Feb. 12-20 in Montreal and Boston.

The event will match the U.S., Finland, Canada and Sweden in a round-robin format, with the championship game to be held in Boston.