Stu Cowan: Former Canadien Jesperi Kotkaniemi finds match with Hurricanes

Article content material

Canadiens followers will in all probability preserve questioning for years to come back what may need been if the workforce had chosen Brady Tkachuk as an alternative of Jesperi Kotkaniemi with the No. 3 choose on the 2018 NHL Draft.

Article content material

Tkachuk has performed 359 video games with the Ottawa Senators since they took him with the No. 4 choose and he has 125-150-275 totals to guide all gamers from that 12 months’s draft in each objectives and factors. The rugged, 6-foot-4, 211-pound left-winger additionally leads all gamers from that draft in penalty minutes with 493 and is now captain of the Senators.

Article content material

The 23-year-old Tkachuk would have been an ideal linemate for Canadiens captain Nick Suzuki, 23, and Cole Caufield, 22, for the foreseeable future.

In the meantime, life in Carolina has been fairly good for Kotkaniemi because the Hurricanes acquired him from the Canadiens with a proposal sheet through the summer time of 2021. As compensation, the Canadiens obtained a first-round choose on the 2022 NHL Draft, which they then traded to the Arizona Coyotes together with a second-round choose in 2024 in change for Christian Dvorak.

Article content material

Whereas the Canadiens and Senators each missed the playoffs this season, Kotkaniemi and the Hurricanes are within the Japanese Convention last with Recreation 1 towards the Florida Panthers slated for Thursday in Carolina (8 p.m., CBC, SN, TVA Sports activities).

Kotkaniemi, 22, performed all 82 video games with the Hurricanes this season, posting 18-25-43 totals and a plus-10 differential whereas averaging 14:44 of ice time and successful 51.4 per cent of his faceoffs. Within the final 22 regular-season video games, he had 7-11-18 totals. In 11 playoff video games, Kotkaniemi has 3-3-6 totals and it was his shot on an influence play that teammate Jesper Quick deflected in for a 3-2 OT win over the New Jersey Devils in Recreation 5 for the Hurricanes to clinch their second-round collection.

Article content material

Article content material

Article content material

The Hurricanes paid a giant value to get Kotkaniemi, providing him a one-year supply sheet value US$6.1 million after he had scored solely 5 objectives and added 15 assists in 56 video games the earlier season with the Canadiens. After being made a wholesome scratch for Recreation 5 of the 2021 Stanley Cup last — which the Lightning gained 1-0 to clinch the championship — Kotkaniemi was in all probability in search of a highway out of Montreal and the Hurricanes have been keen to pave one for him.

The $20 signing bonus that got here with the Hurricanes’ supply sheet to Kotkaniemi was an apparent shot at former Canadiens GM Marc Bergevin for the five-year, US$42.27-million supply sheet he gave Hurricanes centre Sebastian Aho — who wears No. 20 — through the summer time of 2019. Hurricanes billionaire proprietor Tom Dundon was keen to match the supply that had US$38.62 million in signing-bonus cash, together with US$20 million within the first 12 months.

Article content material

Aho, 25, had 36-31-67 totals in 75 video games this season and has 5-5-10 totals in 11 playoff video games.

Hurricanes GM Don Waddell insists the supply sheet for Kotkaniemi wasn’t payback for Aho, noting he had tried unsuccessfully to make a commerce with the Canadiens to get Kotkaniemi earlier than making the supply sheet. The Hurricanes now have the No. 2 (Andrei Svechnikov) and No. 3 picks from the 2018 draft they usually even have former Canadiens captain Max Pacioretty after buying him from the Vegas Golden Knights final summer time.

The Hurricanes have superior to the convention last with out having Svechnikov or Pacioretty within the lineup. Svechnikov tore the ACL in his proper knee throughout a recreation in March and Pacioretty tore the Achilles tendon on his proper leg for the second time in January. Pacioretty suffered the identical harm throughout coaching final summer time and after returning to the lineup he scored three objectives in 5 video games earlier than tearing his Achilles once more.

Article content material

Article content material

“It actually was not revenge,” Waddell stated about buying Kotkaniemi. “We talked about this participant, we all know this participant. We had a chance to make use of the CBA as different groups have previously to attempt to purchase a 21-year-old participant. To us it was all in regards to the participant. We regarded across the league and thought this made essentially the most sense from the place we’re as a workforce. As you recognize, we’ve a few different good Finnish gamers on our workforce and thought this may be an excellent match.”

Kotkaniemi is now trying like an excellent match with the Hurricanes, who’ve him locked up by the 2029-30 season with an eight-year, US$38.560-million contract that has an annual salary-cap hit of $4.82 million. Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind’Amour stated Kotkaniemi has impressed him together with his two-way play, including he nonetheless has room to develop and that he’s simply “scratching the floor.”

Article content material

Article content material

One has to surprise if issues may need been completely different for Kotkaniemi’s improvement in Montreal if he had Martin St. Louis as head coach as an alternative of Claude Julien and Dominique Ducharme.

After Kotkaniemi scored the successful aim in a 4-3 shootout victory over the Canadiens on the Bell Centre on March 7, I requested him if he ever wonders what it may need been wish to play for St. Louis.

“Not for a second,” he stated. “I’m completely happy the place I’m proper now. I actually love my life in Raleigh. I like this group. We’ve an excellent group of men and all the things is figuring out rather well thus far.”

[email protected]

twitter.com/StuCowan1