The Carolina Hurricanes have decided to obtain a speedy, dangerous, and tough to play against winger, as Nikolaj Ehlers signs. After a frustrating loss in the Eastern Conference Final, the Canes hope Ehlers can be a spark that propels the team over the hump.
The Carolina Hurricanes Decide on Nikolaj Ehlers as He Signs
Nik Ehlers
Carolina
— Elliotte Friedman (@FriedgeHNIC) July 3, 2025
The contract is for six seasons and is worth $8.5 million.
In some ways, it is surprising that the Jets wanted to move on from Ehlers throughout his time in Winnipeg. For whatever reason, the 2023-24 Jets head coach Rick Bowness and his staff, didn’t have a lot of confidence in Ehlers. You could argue otherwise, but then why the lack of ice time and opportunity. Ehlers only averaged 15:52 a night. In contrast, very little of his offensive statistics supported that decision. He scored 25 goals and added 36 assists, while suiting up in all 82 games for the Jets in 2023-24. Moreover, he maintained a solid 11.6 CF% rel. His lack of opportunity was seen on the power play as well, or should we say, not seen. Compared with a player like Mark Scheifele, who in fewer games played, still had over 50 more minutes of ice time on the power play then did Ehlers.
However, under the new head coach Scott Arniel, 2024-25 was a resurgence of sorts for the Danish sniper. His average ice time was down slightly from the previous year. In contrast, in fewer games, his power play time was right around the same. If it was stretched out over a full season, it would’ve been more. That is besides that fact that he was on the top unit often. His totals were 24 goals and 39 assists, but a high points-per-game from the previous season. In 2023-24, he had 2.8 pts/60 minutes and that was up to 3.5 this most recent campaign.
Now, Ehlers takes his talent to Carolina.
What Does He Bring to the Lineup
The lines that Ehlers has played on, tended to be quite successful. In Winnipeg, he played on four different lines, that played a minimum of 107 minutes on ice together, and they all had an xGoals% between 52.2% and 58.6%. In other words, in terms of analytics, they were very strong.
The Hurricanes will hope to see that success from Ehlers in their lineup. After trading away Martin Necas and Mikko Rantanen, the Hurricanes are looking for a boost to their offence. Ehlers can be that.
Main photo credit: Terrence Lee-USA TODAY Sports
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