The Hurricanes are only playing four NHL preseason games. Is that a problem?
Is the Montreal Canadiens-Carolina Hurricanes feud back on again?
According to the league’s collective bargaining agreement, each team is required to play no fewer than six — and no more than eight — preseason exhibition games. The Canes are playing four, with the fourth Saturday against the Nashville Predators.
Frank Seravalli of DailyFaceoff.com Hockey claimed Friday on a podcast that while there was no official confirmation, the Canadiens might have alerted the NHL to the Hurricanes not meeting the number of preseason games.
It’s a juicy accusation, but to what end?
NHL senior vice president of communications John Dellapina confirmed Friday the Canes were one of several teams granted an exemption on the number of preseason games from the league.
“The requirement wasn’t changed. But the pandemic has required us to be agile and flexible in many areas,” Dellapina said in an email.
The New York Islanders, New Jersey Devils and San Jose Sharks each are playing only five preseason games.
“We’re not the only team this year,” Don Waddell, the Canes’ president and general manager, said Friday in an interview. “Because of COVID, teams cut back on games. We talked to the league months ago about it. We actually couldn’t find enough games.”
The unexpected rivalry between the Hurricanes and Canadiens dates back to their playoff meetings in 2002 and 2006 but has been fueled lately by dueling offer sheets.
In 2019, the Canadiens made an offer sheet for Canes center Sebastian Aho, then a restricted free agent, that Carolina owner Tom Dundon quickly matched. The Canes then made an offer sheet this year to Habs forward Jesperi Kotkaniemi, offering a one-year, $6.1 million contract that the Habs decided not to match.
The Canes’ offer sheet was announced on Twitter in French, and the offer to Kotkaniemi included a $20 bonus — matching Aho’s No. 20 with the Canes. Waddell later said there was no “revenge” element involved in the Canes’ offer sheet.
This story was originally published October 8, 2021 at 3:23 PM.
