McKenzie: Hurricanes aren't in sell mode yet

Bob McKenzie was on NBCSN’s NHL Live on Wednesday evening.

On the Carolina Hurricanes seemingly being a seller, and their thought process:

“I think at some point the reality is going to set in for the Carolina Hurricanes that this is not going to be their year. They’ve had to deal with a lot of injuries. People wondered if they were going to be good enough in the first place. But when Jordan Staal got injured the way he did early on, that really put a kink in their plans. Jordan Staal is close to returning to the Carolina Hurricanes lineup. Coach Bill Peters says there’s a chance he could be the lineup before Christmas, if not shortly after.

“So I think what Ronnie Francis and the Carolina Hurricanes want to do is get Staal back in their lineup. Get as healthy as they possibly can. And then in the New Year, see how the team is functioning. And if they continue to be reeling and going down the wrong road, then I would suspect they’re going to have to offload salary.

“Guys have no-move clauses. Eric Staal. Jordan Staal. Cam Ward. There are defensemen. Andrej Sekera is an unrestricted free agent. People are interested in Jiri Tlusty. There are a lot of assets on the Carolina Hurricanes that NHL teams will want if they decide they’re in sell mode. They’re just not there yet. We’ll wait to the New Year to see how they function, once they get Jordan Staal back in the lineup.”

Source: NBCSN/ Transcript: Nichols on Hockey

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