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After the NHL Draft, free agency and other offseason moves, NHL.com is examining where each team stands in preparation for the 2024-25 regular season, which starts Oct. 4. Today, the Carolina Hurricanes:

The 2023-24 season concluded with a record of 52 wins, 23 losses, and 7 ties, securing the team a second-place finish in the Metropolitan Division. Unfortunately, they were eliminated in the Eastern Conference Second Round.

Key arrivals

Sean Walker, D: The 29-year-old signed a five-year contract July 1. He had 29 points (10 goals, 19 assists) and was plus-11 in 81 NHL regular-season games for the Philadelphia Flyers and Colorado Avalanche last season and held without a point in 11 Stanley Cup Playoff games with the Avalanche. … Shayne Gostisbehere, D: The 31-year-old signed a three-year contract July 1. He had 56 points (10 goals, 46 assists) in 81 games for the Detroit Red Wings last season. Gostisbehere had 10 points (three goals, seven assists) in 23 regular-season games with the Hurricanes in 2022-23 and three assists in 15 playoff games. … Jack Roslovic, F: The 27-year-old signed a one-year contract July 4. He had 31 points (nine goals, 22 assists) in 59 games for the Columbus Blue Jackets and New York Rangers last season, and eight points (two goals, six assists) in 16 playoff games with New York. He gives the Hurricanes a needed right-shot forward who can take face-offs. … William Carrier, F: The 29-year-old signed a six-year contract July 3. He had eight points (six goals, two assists) in 39 regular-season games for the Vegas Golden Knights last season and one goal in seven playoff games. Carrier won the Stanley Cup with Vegas in 2023. … Eric Tulsky, GM: Named general manager June 18 after he was an assistant GM since 2020. He joined the organization as a consultant in 2014. He replaced Don Waddell, who became Columbus Blue Jackets GM on May 28.

Key departures

Jake Guentzel, F: Traded to the Tampa Bay Lightning on June 30 and signed a seven-year contract with them July 1. Guentzel had 77 points (30 goals, 47 assists) in 67 regular-season games for the Hurricanes and Pittsburgh Penguins last season, including 25 points (eight goals, 17 assists) in 17 games and nine points (four goals, five assists) in 11 playoff games after a trade from Carolina to Pittsburgh on March 7. … Brady Skjei, D: Signed a seven-year contract with the Nashville Predators on July 1. Skjei, who was acquired from the Rangers on Feb. 24, 2020, had an NHL career-high 47 points (13 goals, 34 assists) last season and nine points (one goal, eight assists) in 11 playoff games. For four-plus seasons with the Hurricanes, Skjei skated on the second defense pair with Brett Pesce. … Brett Pesce, D: Signed a six-year contract with the New Jersey Devils on July 1. Pesce had 13 points (three goals, 10 assists) in 70 regular-season games. He had one assist in two playoff games before missing the rest of the postseason with a lower-body injury. Pesce, who played his first nine NHL seasons with Carolina, had 198 points (39 goals, 159 assists) in 627 regular-season games. … Teuvo Teravainen, F: Signed a three-year contract with the Chicago Blackhawks. Teravainen returns to the team that chose him in the first round (No. 18) of the 2012 NHL Draft. In his eighth and final season in Carolina, he had an NHL career-high 25 goals and 53 points. He had six points (two goals, four assists) in 11 playoff games. … Stefan Noesen, F: Signed a three-year contract with the Devils on July 1. Noesen had an NHL career-high 37 points (13 goals, 24 assists) in 81 games last season. … Antti Raanta, G: In 24 games last season (20 starts), Raanta was 12-7-2 with a 2.99 goals-against average, .872 save percentage and one shutout. He was 46-15-9 in 79 regular-season games and 9-8 in 19 playoff games in three seasons with the Hurricanes.

On the cusp

Bradley Nadeau, F: The 19-year-old had 46 points (19 goals, 27 assists) in 37 games of his first season at University of Maine. Carolina’s first-round pick (No. 30) in the 2023 NHL Draft signed a three-year, entry-level contract April 7 and made his NHL debut in the final regular-season game April 16. He will compete for a roster spot but is likely to play for Chicago in the American Hockey League. … Felix Unger-Sorum, F: The 18-year-old had 15 points (three goals, 12 assists) in 35 games for Leksands IF of the Swedish Hockey League last season. Unger-Sorum helped Sweden win the silver medal at the 2024 IIHF World Junior Championship with six points (one goal, five assists) in seven games. He impressed the Hurricanes in training camp last season and will compete for a roster spot in his first professional season in North America. … Jackson Blake, F: Blake, who turns 21 on Aug. 3, had 60 points (22 goals, 38 assists) in 40 games at University of North Dakota in 2023-24, his second collegiate season. He was named NCHC Forward and Player of the Year and selected as a top-three finalist for the Hobey Baker Award. Blake signed his entry-level contract with Carolina on April 10 and made his NHL debut in its last regular-season game. He could earn time in the NHL but is likely to spend time in Chicago. … Scott Morrow, D: The 21-year-old made his NHL debut April 12 after three seasons at UMass-Amherst, where he had 94 points (28 goals, 66 assists) in 109 games. The Hurricanes have a veteran defense corps, so Morrow will probably begin the season in the AHL.

What they still need

One or two forwards for the top six. The Hurricanes need a left-shot who can play on his natural side and could use more production at center behind Sebastian Aho. Evgeny Kuznetsov, Jesperi Kotkaniemi and Jack Drury shared the role last season and will compete for the job again. The Hurricanes must also determine whether to trade or keep restricted free agent forward Martin Necas, who has filed for arbitration.

They said it

“There is plenty of time between now and training camp to adjust the roster. We plan to keep exploring all of our options. We have some ideas in mind that we are still actively pursuing. There are a lot of teams right now that are trying to figure out how they can get out of contracts very similar to the ones being signed.” — general manager Eric Tulsky

Fantasy focus

An under-the-radar addition was bringing back Gostisbehere, who was tied with Erik Karlsson of the Penguins for the 13th-most points among defensemen in the NHL last season. He’s coming off the second-best season of his NHL career behind the 65 points in 78 games for the Philadelphia Flyers in 2017-18. Gostisbehere is a key part of Carolina’s defense, specifically with the departure of Skjei and Pesce. He could be a late draft option in larger fantasy leagues or a player to monitor on the waiver wire early into the season. — Anna Dua

Projected lineup

Sebastian Aho and Seth Jarvis flank Andrei Svechnikov.

The line consists of Jesperi Kotkaniemi, Evgeny Kuznetsov, and Martin Necas.

The new lineup includes Jordan Martinook, Jordan Staal, and Jack Roslovic.

The order of names is: Jack Drury, William Carrier, Eric Robinson.

Jaccob Slavin — Brent Burns

Dmitry Orlov — Jalen Chatfield

Shayne Gostisbehere — Sean Walker

Frederik Andersen

Pyotr Kochetkov