Hurricanes add veteran goalie on PTO contract
They're down to their 4th string option now in Carolina.
HockeyFeed
This just in, the Carolina Hurricanes have added veteran goaltender Aaron Dell on a professional tryout (PTO) contract.
Check it out:
The 34 year old Dell played just four games for the San Jose Sharks last season, spending the majority of the campaign with the team's AHL affiliate San Jose Barracuda. In total he has suited up for 130 NHL games split between the Sharks, the Buffalo Sabres and the New Jersey Devils. He put up a 3.14 goals against average and a .898 save percentage in 38 games with the Barracuda last season.
Dell's signing, of course, is a result of the team walking away from netminder Antti Raanta earlier this week. The 34 year old Raanta has been absolutely dreadful for the 'Canes this season and it very much looks like he won't be able to fill in the hole left by Frederik Andersen's absence. Then there's Pyotr Kochetkov who has been middling to average as well this season.
By my count that puts the Hurricanes on their fourth string goalie and we're not even yet into the New Year. Yikes...
Raanta had managed just six wins in 14 starts this season and had largely been entrusted with the Hurricanes' starting job after it was announced that Andersen would miss significant time due to a serious blood clotting issue. The pair have split time in the Hurricanes' crease in recent seasons but with Andersen receiving the bulk of the workload. Certainly, Andersen was the guy that the Hurricanes would have between the pipes when things mattered most. Raanta, unfortunately, looks like age and injuries have caught up with him. He was waived earlier this week and it looks like his NHL future is in jeopardy. He's on a one year contract worth $1.5 million and is slated to become an unrestricted free agent this upcoming offseason. Andersen is signed for next season at a reasonable $3.4 million, while Kotchetkov is signed to a very reasonable $2 million contract for the next four seasons. It remains to be seen what happens with Dell, but suffice it to say that Hurricanes fans are getting desperate for the return of Andersen.
