Wild Send Niederreiter to Hurricanes for Rask

The Carolina Hurricanes have acquired winger Nino Niederreiter from the Minnesota Wild for centre Victor Rask.

Niederreiter is signed through the 2021-22 season with a $5.25M cap-hit but has always had a difficult time sticking in the Wild’s top-6. Niederreiter is a strong defensive winger with offensive upside, who has always been a darling of the analytics community. Despite a 52.2 CorsiFor% and +2.9 CF% relative this season, Niederreiter has averaged under 15 minutes per game for the first time since 2014-15. He has also been limited by an 7.7 on-ice shooting percentage, picking up just 14 assists to go with nine goals (23 points) in 46 games this year.

Niederreiter is a player that is capable of playing up and down the Hurricanes lineup and could be a lethal option if they elect to skate hime with Sebastian Aho and Teuvo Teravainen.

As for Rask, he missed the start of the season because of a bizarre kitchen incident in the preseason. Following a career-best 21-goal, 48-point campaign in 2016, Rask’s offence has diminished in each succeeding season. Rask is signed through 2021-22 with a $4.0M cap-hit and a limited no-trade clause in the final two seasons. The acquisition of Rask could push Charlie Coyle back to the wing, which would be a peculiar move considering he has played so well in recent weeks.

At first glance, the Hurricanes appear to have fleeced the Wild in this one-for-one. Perhaps Minnesota was so thrilled with their addition of Pontus Aberg on Wednesday that they believed they were set on the wing and needed to add some centre depth.