Apr 7, 2018; Raleigh, NC, USA; Carolina Hurricanes defensemen Noah Hanifin (5) watches the play against the Tampa Bay Lightning at PNC Arena. The Carolina Hurricanes defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning 3-2. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-USA TODAY Sports
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Each team receives a young defenseman in this trade, as the Hurricanes part ways with Noah Hanifin (21 years-old) whose three seasons in Carolina come to an end, whilst 25-year-old Dougie Hamilton leaves Calgary after three seasons there. Also going to Carolina are Michael Ferland, a bruising winger, and Adam Fox, an unsigned 2016 draft pick. The Flames acquire a talented young forward from the Canes in Elias Lindholm, who went fifth overall in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft, as well as Hanifin.

Rumours had surfaced that the Carolina Hurricanes were looking at opportunities to move Noah Hanifin, and this came after their GM, Don Waddell, said he was open to trading anyone, except prized forward Sebastian Aho, earlier in May.

With this trade, the Canes add a proven number one pairing defenseman in Hamilton who in his last four NHL seasons has managed 40 points or more each season. There have been questions raised over Hamilton’s character, however, as this is the second trade he has been involved in, whilst being a prized asset. The former ninth overall pick (2011) of the Boston Bruins has been speculated to be the odd-man-out in the locker room, struggling to find cohesion with his teammates.

The Flames land Elias Lindholm, the 23-year-old Swede offers some depth scoring that the Flames need after their disappointing 2017-18 campaign. Calgary will hope that their organization can maximize the potential of this former first round pick, as they will push Lindholm to surpass the fifty-point mark for the first time in his career.

Trying to understand who wins this trade may be difficult to do in the short-term, but Adam Fox, in the long-term, might prove the decider once his development is advanced. The unsigned college defenseman, who is set for his third season at Harvard this fall, has been impressive through 64 games in the NCAA, posting 68 points. Calgary’s third round pick from 2016 has also produced on the international stage, as part of the United States’ winning World Juniors team in 2017.

The Canes, in general, had a better weekend acquiring assets than Calgary did. They managed to land a future bonafide winger in Andrei Svechnikov with the second overall pick in the draft, whilst Calgary had no pick through the first three rounds. The acquisition of Michael Ferland from the Flames is helpful to their middle six, as they add some grit, too. Calgary will be pleased to have added Hanifin to their ranks, as he has shown since entering the league that he is a valuable asset with room to develop. All things told, Carolina look to have the more promising defensive depth after this trade as they also have Jacob Slavin and Justin Faulk on their back end.

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