All Shook Up is a song by Elvis Presley. The song, which Presley wrote for his album, Elvis Presley: The Singles, tells the story of a fictitious relationship the singer had with a woman. The relationship goes well. However, Presley says his partner puts him in a lovestruck state, making him wobbly and shaken up. At one point, he says, “What’s wrong with me,” asking why the girl makes him feel the way he does.
Although Presley wrote the musical opus in 1956, the feeling of being “all shook up” could reflect how some hockey fans, especially Colorado Avalanche and Carolina Hurricanes supporters, felt after the events of two Fridays ago.
On Jan. 24, the first blockbuster of the National Hockey League (NHL) trade season went down. In the late hours of the night, Colorado forward Mikko Rantanen was traded to the Carolina Hurricanes. In return, Carolina traded forward Martin Necas, depth forward Jack Drury and a pair of draft picks.
But that’s not all.
Included in the trade was the Chicago Blackhawks. Chicago picked up 50 per cent of Rantanen’s salary, along with dealing veteran forward Taylor Hall to Carolina.
“It happened too quick and today was a game, so I had to get ready for the game. So maybe [it will] when we have a couple of days off here now,” Rantanen told reporters after his debut with the Hurricanes against the New York Islanders on Jan. 22.
“I really wanna just think about the future now. It’s behind us. It’s a rough business in the NHL and sometimes it goes like this. I think it’s gonna hit a little bit. It hasn’t hit maybe yet.”
Rantanen is one of the NHL’s premier power forwards.
This season, the Finland native had 63 points in 49 games with Colorado. He was also an alternate captain for the team over the better part of the last five years, helping the Avs make the playoffs each of those years.
On a larger scale, his best season in Denver came during the 2022-23 season, one year after Colorado hoisted Lord Stanley’s Cup. That season, Rantanen had 105 points in 82 games.
Rantanen is also slated to play for Finland in the Four Nations Cup later this month alongside his new Carolina teammate, Sebastien Aho.
On the flip side, Necas is having a great season in his own right.
After being drafted 12th overall by Carolina in 2017, the Czechia-born forward burst into the league in 2019. He had a career year in the 2022-23 season, collecting 71 points in 82 games. This season the forward had 55 points in 49 games with Carolina. Those numbers were good enough for tops on the team.
‘It’s just sad’
The move caught many off guard. Before the trade, Rantanen had made it clear to Colorado that he wanted to move on from the team, stemming from how he was slated to become an unrestricted free agent at season’s end.
At the time of the deal, contract talks between the two sides had reportedly stalled. Both parties were about a million or so apart, with Sportnet’s Elliot Friedman saying that Rantanen was looking for the money Edmonton Oilers forward Leon Draisaitl received when he signed an extension last season.
Rantanen spent his entire 10-year NHL career in Denver, becoming a fan favourite and a face of the franchise. Therefore, no one thought Rantanen would be a candidate to be shipped out of Colorado.
“Just sad, obviously,” Rantanen’s teammate Nathan MacKinnon told reporters. “Bigger picture, losing Mikko – a great friend, nine years, 10 years together, won a [Stanley] Cup obviously. It’s just sad. I don’t know exactly what happened. I called Mikko shortly after and we talked for close to 20 minutes. It’s just unfortunate. I’m going to miss him.”
“I never thought in a million years he would leave so, yeah, it just sucks.”
After a blockbuster like this, many NHL fans and analysts ask one question: who won the trade?
Although the dust has settled, all signs point to Carolina being the victors in the deal. Bringing in a player like Rantanen, who can put up anywhere between 30 to 40 goals a season, is always a plus. However, the versatility that the forward brings gives the team another choice in their top six forward group.
The trade also shortened the Hurricanes’ Stanley Cup odds to +600 on FanDuel.
Yet, fans should not sleep on the Avalanche down the stretch.
Necas is on pace to have career highs in goals and points.
Also, Necas will be playing on a team with the likes of Nathan MacKinnon, a former Hart Trophy winner and Cale Makar, one of the NHL’s top five defensemen.
