The Carolina Hurricanes are next up in an NHL off-season series examining each team’s prospect pool.
Tony Ferrari digs into the Hurricanes’ strengths and weaknesses, latest draft class, positional depth chart and next player in line for an NHL opportunity. A player who no longer holds rookie eligibility in the NHL is considered graduated and no longer a prospect for these exercises.
Initial Thoughts
The Hurricanes are a rare example of a team that built a promising prospect pool while also contending for a Stanley Cup. It is a testament to the front office’s mindset that taking swings on talent in the draft, regardless of whether they are undersized, Russian or have one glaring flaw, is worth the risk.
Bradly Nadeau was drafted out of the BCHL and has since blossomed into a nice prospect. Nadeau went to the University of Maine for a season before signing his entry-level contract and having a fantastic rookie season in the AHL.
Nadeau has a wicked shot, getting a ton of leverage on his release and blowing pucks by goalies' ears or right over their pads. The sniper’s 32 goals were the fifth-most in the AHL. Nadeau could make the NHL club in camp, and Carolina could use his shooting talent in the lineup.
Nikita Artamonov is one of the most engaged and high-motor players in the Hurricanes’ system. The Russian winger had a fantastic season in the KHL, putting up 22 goals and 39 points in 63 games. Artamonov consistently showed a high level of creativity, and when his plays didn’t work out, no one worked harder to get the puck back. The second-round pick in 2024 popped off in his draft-plus-one season, coming into his own as a shooter and attacking higher-danger areas more consistently.
The Hurricanes were over the moon when they drafted Felix Unger Sorum 62nd overall in 2023. Unger Sorum is a skilled puckhandler and a slick passer, but what seems to have drawn the Hurricanes in his direction was his competitiveness. Although he isn’t the most fleet of foot, he works hard on every shift to mitigate that weakness. Unger Sorum had a decent rookie year in the AHL, but Carolina is hoping he can take on a bigger offensive role this year.
Russian wingers Timur Mukhanov and Gleb Trikozov are the ultimate swings on potential and talent.
Trikozov joined the AHL’s Chicago Wolves this past year and played in just 20 games because of an injury. It was a big adjustment for the shifty and skilled winger. He’s shown flashes of potential, and the Wolves could use his offensive punch.
With Mukhanov, the Hurricanes have been patient as he develops in the KHL, but the speed, forechecking and passing ability are all such intriguing traits. He’s a bit raw, but the Hurricanes can be patient as he finishes up his final year under contract in the KHL.
On the blueline, Alexander Nikishin is the big name Hurricanes fans have been clamoring for as they’ve seen him lead all defenders in scoring in the KHL in two of the past three years. He was the captain of St. Petersburg for the past two seasons as well. The 6-foot-4 blueliner is arguably one of the best and most complete defenders outside of the NHL. Carolina is stoked to see him come over and help form one of the strongest and most underrated left sides of any team’s defense group with Jaccob Slavin and the recently acquired K’Andre Miller.
Vladimir Grudinin’s development has been quite impressive to watch. His fluid skating is the base for everything he does, and it’s been a major area of growth for him defensively, where he has learned to defend with his feet and stick. He has the passing and mobility to be a more effective offensive player, and the flashes are becoming more consistent as well.
Noel Fransen has been such an interesting player over the past couple of years. In his draft year, he dominated offensively at the junior level in Sweden, with 20 goals and 44 points in 45 games. He also showcased a level of creativity and aggressiveness at the blueline that is encouraging for where the NHL game is going. His defensive game grew this past year in Sweden’s second pro tier, the Allsvenskan, where he was the top-scoring U-20 defender. There is still some work to do, but Fransen has some enticing potential as a two-way defender with good mobility.
Dominik Badinka has all of the tools to be a very solid defenseman at the NHL level one day. He has size, skating and some sneaky good puck skill as a passer. He should be a fairly important piece of the puzzle with the Wolves as he jumps to North America full-time. Badinka won’t blow anyone away, but he has flashed some puck-rushing and playmaking skills that should hold up in North America.
2025 NHL Draft Class
Round 2, 41st overall - Semyon Frolov, G, Spartak Moscow Jr. (Rus.)
Round 2, 49th overall - Charlie Cerrato, LW/C, Penn State (NCAA)
Round 2, 62nd overall - Ivan Ryabkin, C, Muskegon (USHL)
Round 3, 67th overall - Kurban Limatov, D, Moscow Dynamo Jr. (Rus.)
Round 3, 87th overall - Roman Bausov, D, St. Petersburg Dynamo Jr. (Rus.)
Round 6, 183rd overall - Viggo Nordlund, LW, Skelleftea Jr. (Swe.)
Round 7, 221st overall - Filip Ekberg, RW, Ottawa (OHL)
GM Eric Tulsky and the Hurricanes love to trade down in the draft, and they did exactly that on the first night. This helped equip them with three second-rounders, in which they added some very solid prospects to their pipeline.
Semyon Frolov bolstered their depth in goal. He started to soar up draft rankings at the end of the year with his mobility in net and athleticism. Like many Russian netminders, he’s proficient at sealing the ice with his pads, even while moving laterally. Frolov has the size and skating teams need from their goaltenders.
Overage forward Charlie Cerrato had an impressive season for Penn State, putting up 42 points in 38 games. He plays with pace and commitment at both ends of the ice. He’s an off-puck attacker for the most part, using quick passing and swooping routes in the offensive zone to generate chances from high-danger areas. He won’t be an offensive stud, but he has some nice qualities that can chip in while providing excellent defensive value.
Ivan Ryabkin became a topic of discussion when he continued to slide down the draft. When the Hurricanes finally ended his fall with the 62nd pick, everyone said, “Of course it was Carolina.”
Ryabkin came into the year as a potential top-10 pick. His playmaking and physical edge made him one of the most interesting players to emerge from Russia, where their best players in recent years – the Flyers’ Matvei Michkov and Canadiens’ Ivan Demidov – were pure skill. Unfortunately, the season went about as poorly as it could have. Ryabkin sometimes looked slow and uninterested. There were reports that he was out of shape or not committed to the team throughout the year.
Ryabkin’s high-IQ playmaking dwindled, and we saw him become a bit of a one-dimensional physical presence. He brought value as a center who played hard, but he only seemed to play hard when he could throw a hit. After bouncing around between the two pro levels and the junior level in Russia, he joined the Muskegon Lumberjacks in the United States League halfway through the year. Although he looked better with the Jacks, he still looked a bit slow and too focused on inflicting pain, and his offensive flashes were merely flashes. If Carolina can get this kid right, this could very well be the best pick in the draft.
Another Russian, Kurban Limatov is a big, mobile blueliner who is very raw but incredibly intriguing due to his tools. Limatov has some offensive skill at times, chaining together some nice passing plays or moving along the blueline to open up lanes. In his own zone, he needs to make some better reads, but his length and physicality can often deter forwards from making the play that creates the most danger. Limatov has a ways to go, but he has a great base.
The Canes added another big, rangy Russian defender in Roman Bausov a few picks later in the third round. While he doesn’t quite present as much upside or raw skill as Limatov, there is a very solid defensive base once again, which is something the Canes seem to value quite highly. Bausov is a stopper who shadows and swipes at pucks, disrupting possession and annoying attackers with ease.
Carolina didn’t pick again until the sixth round, when they snagged one of the top scoring players in Swedish junior hockey, 5-foot-9 left winger Viggo Nordlund. His dynamism and skill are incredibly enticing, and the fact he’s not a one-trick pony makes him even more of a draw. Nordlund attacks downhill and gets himself into excellent scoring positions. He can shake defenders or dangle them out of their skates en route to creating some sort of play offensively, whether it’s for himself or a teammate. His stature is the big question, and whether he can overcome that alone will likely determine if he can play in the NHL.
Speaking of undersized Swedes, the Canes’ final pick was Filip Ekberg out of the OHL. He came to North America to get extra eyes on him, but a disastrous first half had scouts tuned out on him by Christmas. After that, he began to understand how to adapt his shifty, skilled game based around possession to play within the north-south, heavy-forecheck OHL style. When he did, it all clicked, and he averaged nearly a point and a half per game in the second half. Ekberg must continue to adjust and use his skill within the structure of the pro-style game, but he has some big boom potential. In the seventh round, that’s a worthy swing.
Strengths
It’s odd that the strengths portion of this overview might be the toughest part to nail down. Usually, a legitimate Cup contender has one or two prospects of note in the system, but the Canes have notable players and depth that make their system sneakily strong.
They have a plethora of talented and intriguing wingers. Artamonov and Unger Sorum lead the way, but with Cerrato, Trikazov, Mukhanov and Nordlund all looking like solid bets, the wings are loaded.
On the back end, this team has stockpiled defenders who can move the puck. They recently traded draft picks along with top prospect Scott Morrow, an incredibly skilled and mobile blueliner, for K’Andre Miller to bolster their NHL lineup, but that didn’t even affect them. Nikishin looks like a stud. Grudinin and Fransen have shown impressive flashes over the past couple of years. Badinka is a vastly underrated prospect who could be a legit second-pair guy down the road. Forsmark, Siryatsky and Heimosalmi all look like nice swings on talent as well.
The strength of the Canes pipeline comes from the philosophy of their front office. Swing big on talent and allow their players to develop, often on pro teams overseas or in the AHL. The Hurricanes have been a unicorn among contenders for the most part, but they’ll need to get over the hump sooner rather than later, and maybe, a couple of these guys can help do that.
Weaknesses
The center position looks a little bleak. Nadeau can play center, but he is likely a winger in the NHL. They have a few players like that. The one true center that they have, Ryabkin, is such a gamble because of the off-ice issues that seemed to follow him and affect his on-ice play. Carolina has done a fantastic job of supplementing its prospect pool with big swings on skill and almost an eagerness to draft Russians as they fall in the draft. Unfortunately, centers don’t fall, and they aren’t a team that reaches as many others do.
Hidden Gem: Dominik Badinka, D
The 2024 second-round pick is a solid defensive player who has played a key role in the Swedish League for each of the past two years. His skating and length allow him to close quickly and suffocate play before it even gets started.
He’s not an offensive black hole either, despite some fairly pedestrian counting stats. Badinka makes an excellent first pass, hitting an outlet along the wall or finding a seam and putting it on a teammate's tape in stride. Badinka is the kind of defender the Canes love. He’s active, mobile and plays a smart game defensively.
Next Man Up: Alexander Nikishin, D
After waiting for Nikishin to come over from Russia, Carolina is finally getting its prized defender this upcoming season. He joined the Canes in the post-season and managed to get into four games with mixed results, but the 6-foot-4 Russian blueliner will be asked to play a fairly big role for this team.
Although he will likely start on the bottom pair, the Canes are hoping he can try to force his way into some important minutes in all situations. Nikishin is a solid two-way presence who has been one of the most impressive defenders in the KHL over the past couple of years. Now, it’s time to see if he can fit in with the NHL squad.
Prospect Depth Chart Notables
LW: Nikita Artamonov, Viggo Nordlund, Oskar Vuolett, Charlie Cerrato, Alexander Rykov, Andrey Krutov
C: Bradly Nadeau, Ivan Ryabkin, Justin Robidas
RW: Felix Unger Sorum, Timur Mukhanov, Gleb Trikozov, Filip Ekberg, Justin Poirier, Jayden Perron
LD: Alexander Nikishin, Kurban Limatov, Vladimir Grudinin, Noel Fransen, Simon Forsmark, Timur Kol, Alexander Siryatsky
RD: Dominik Badinka, Aleksi Heimosalmi, Roman Bausov
G: Nikita Quapp, Semyon Frolov, Ruslan Khazheyev, Jakub Vondras
For a deeper dive into the prospect pool with player rankings, check out the Yearbook and Future Watch editions of The Hockey News in print.
Matthew Pouliot