Since the Carolina Hurricanes signed Montreal Canadiens former player Jesperi Kotkaniemi for a $6.1 million offer sheet in the Summer of 2021, plenty has been written about the centerman, but it has rarely been positive. Earlier in the Eastern Conference final, the soon-to-be 25-year-old was scratched for a couple of games.
On Wednesday night, he was dressed for game five. With the Hurricanes leading 2-0, the center took a terrible holding penalty, which became the turning point of the game. After just 16 seconds on the power play, Matthew Tkachuk cut the Canes’ lead in half, and 30 seconds later, Evan Rodrigues tied up the game. Just over four minutes later, Anton Lundell gave Florida its first lead of the game.
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Carolina managed to even the score in the final frame, but Florida got its lead back within minutes and scored an empty netter through Sam Bennet with less than a minute to go. The Panthers took the game 5-3 and the series 4-1. One can wonder if this will be the last time we see Kotkaniemi wear the Hurricanes jersey.
After his penalty, he only took five more shifts during the game and was the forward who saw the least ice time for Carolina with just 9:31. He still has five years left on the eight-year $38.56 M contract he signed with the Canes in March 2022.
Even though the contract has a reasonable $4.82 M cap hit, the Hurricanes cannot be pleased with the Finn’s performances since signing the extension. He never scored more than 43 points in a season, and that was in the 2022-23 season. Since then, he has posted seasons of 27 and 33 points and has moved up and down the lineup.
“It’s not like just a turnover or some other mistake, that was such a dumb thing to do.”
The panel discusses Jesperi Kotkaniemi’s penalty that tipped the momentum Florida’s way. pic.twitter.com/pXPX4Io6oK
— Sportsnet (@Sportsnet) May 29, 2025
From the 2026-27 season, a modified no-trade clause will kick in in his contract, which will allow him to submit a 10-team no-trade list. Could the Canes manage to trade him this offseason? It would be surprising, given the term left on his deal and the fact that his numbers are not exactly trending in the right direction.
It’d cost Carolina $8,413,333 to buy him out, as they’d be on the hook for $841,333 per year for 10 years. This is not a huge penalty, and it will be up to the front office to determine what’s worse: a 10-year financial penalty or a player who has fallen out of favor with the coach and can no longer perform consistently.
While it was a mistake for the Canadiens to draft Kotkaniemi with the third-overall pick in 2018, it certainly wasn’t one to let him go when he signed the offer sheet with Carolina.
Photo Credit: James Guillory-Imagn Images
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