The Colorado Avalanche stunned the hockey world when they shipped superstar Mikko Rantanen to the Carolina Hurricanes. The team was already struggling to break into the top three of the Central Division,
Rantanen’s world has been upended. He joined the Hurricanes during a road trip. Carolina has played seven games since the trade, but Rantanen missed one with a minor injury. He does have an apartment now in Raleigh but hasn’t spent much time there.
Coming out of the 4 Nations Face-Off break, the hope was that a two-week reset would be beneficial for several players who have been struggling. Specifically, the eight forwards not named Nathan MacKinnon,
Mikko Rantanen was born on October 29, 1996 in Nousiainen, Finland. The left-shot forward played for the TPS U16 team during the 2010-11 season and scored a total of 11 goals with 22 assists in 29 games.
Avalanche’s top defensemen aren’t particularly excited about playing against Artturi Lehkonen at 4 Nations tournament.
How is Mikko Rantanen doing since his arrival in Carolina? Badly. Very badly… The star forward seems to be struggling to establish himself in the Hurricanes’ lineup.
Rantanen acknowledged the transition following 10 seasons with the Avalanche, including winning the Stanley Cup in 2022, hasn’t been easy. He has two points (one goal and one assist) in six games with Carolina after getting 64 points (25 goals and 39 assists) in 49 games with the Avalanche before the trade.
Mikko Rantanen was traded to the Carolina Hurricanes from the Colorado Avalanche in a three-team deal on Jan. 24.
The final group stage game is Monday in Boston against Lehkonen, Mikko Rantanen and Finland. Lehkonen isn’t on any of the promotional posters for this event, but the Avs defensemen know he’s ...