The Carolina Hurricanes have acquired winger Jesse Puljujarvi in a trade with the Edmonton Oilers.
Carolina sent the rights to 22-year-old unsigned draft pick Patrik Puistola to Edmonton in the swap of young Finns completed Tuesday.
The Hurricanes hope to unlock Puljujarvi’s offensive potential after the No. 4 pick in 2016 has put up just 117 points in 337 NHL regular-season and playoff games. The move helps replace what Carolina expected out of Max Pacioretty before the veteran winger re-tore his right Achilles tendon last month.
“Jesse possesses a great blend of size and skill, and he will add to the depth of our forward group,” Hurricanes general manager Don Waddell said. “He has familiarity with some of our other Finnish players, and we see him as a great fit for our team and locker room.”
Puljujarvi joins countrymen Sebastian Aho, Teuvo Teravainen, Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Antti Raanta with the Hurricanes. He played on a line with Aho for Finland at the 2016 world junior championship and led the tournament with 17 points in seven games.
Edmonton clears $3 million of salary cap space to work with in preparation for making more moves before the trade deadline Friday afternoon. The Oilers, who are giving up more than three goals a game, are on the lookout for help on defense.
Puistola was a third-round pick of the Hurricanes in 2019 and has since continued to play in Europe.
___
Follow AP Hockey Writer Stephen Whyno on Twitter at https://twitter.com/SWhyno
___
AP NHL: https://apnews.com/hub/nhl and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports
