EDINA, Minn. — jake gardener he’s hungrier than ever to start the next NHL season.
The 32-year-old Carolina Hurricanes defenseman missed the entire 2021-22 season after undergoing hip and back surgeries. He last played on May 10, 2021.
Gardiner was cleared to return to play in early June and is participating in the Da Beauty League, a 4-on-4 summer hockey league for NHL, American Hockey League and NCAA Division I players living in Minnesota. .
“It was tough,” Gardiner said Wednesday of the missed time. “I’ve put in a lot of effort and done countless treatments, rehabs and exercises to be ready to come back.”
The Hurricanes will certainly welcome the 10-year NHL veteran, who played two seasons with Carolina after playing his first eight with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
“Unless something unforeseen happens, he’s going to come to camp and we’ll go from there,” Hurricanes general manager Don Waddell said at the 2022 NHL Draft in Montreal on July 7.
Gardiner has one season remaining on a four-year, $16.2 million ($4.05 average annual value) contract that he signed on Sept. 6, 2019.
How Gardiner will be used and who he will play with in 2022-23 will be a big question mark because the Hurricanes have been aggressive in rebuilding their defenders since he was injured.
The Hurricanes traded for a veteran defenseman brent burns on July 13, sending forward Steven Lorentz, goaltender prospect Eetu Makiniemi, and a conditional third-round pick in the 2023 NHL Draft to the San Jose Sharks.
Burns won the Norris Trophy in 2016-17 as the best defenseman in the NHL. The 37-year-old scored 54 points (10 goals, 44 assists) in 82 regular-season games last season and has 777 points (227 goals, 550 assists) in 1,251 games with the Sharks and Minnesota Wild.
Burns will help make up for the loss of the defender tony deangelowho was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers on July 8. DeAngelo scored 51 points (10 goals, 41 assists) in 64 games in his only season with the Hurricanes, including 20 points (two goals, 18 assists) on the power play.
The Hurricanes also lost defenders ian cole (Tampa Bay Lightning) and Brendan Smith (New Jersey Devils) in free agency.
Last offseason, Carolina lost defenseman dougie hamilton while Gardiner was injured. Hamilton signed a seven-year deal with the New Jersey Devils after 2020–21 after scoring 42 points (10 goals, 32 assists) in 55 regular season games for the Hurricanes that season.
“We lost Tony DeAngelo, who was a great power player for us,” the Hurricanes defenseman said. brady skjei, who also participates in Da Beauty League. “But I think ‘Burnsy’ or [Gardiner] you can fill that role right away.
“We know what Jake brings to our team, and it’s great to have him back, but I think having a guy like Burns, who has had an amazing career and can play some big minutes for us, is going to be a lot of fun to watch.” I think he is going to have a very good year. He’s going to be a perfect fit for us.”
The Hurricanes have been busy this offseason after losing in the second round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the second straight season.
They also added ahead max pacioretty in a trade with the Vegas Golden Knights on July 13. Pacioretty had 37 points (19 goals, 18 assists) in 39 regular-season games last season. In the previous eight seasons, he has averaged 29 goals per season.
They lost the first six forwards Nino Niederreiter (Nashville Predators) and Vicente Trocheck (New York Rangers) in free agency, however, Skjei and Gardiner said they believe the Hurricanes remain a Stanley Cup contender.
“We’ve gotten pretty close, but we’re not quite there yet,” Gardiner said. “And I think we have a very good team, it’s just a matter of execution.”