Hurricanes Sign Shayne Gostisbehere to Three-Year Deal Worth $3.2 Million AAV
Shayne Gostisbehere has rejoined the Carolina Hurricanes after a brief period with the team in the 2022-23 season, where he was acquired at the trade deadline. Previously, he was an unrestricted free agent after completing a one-year, $4.125 million contract with the Detroit Red Wings.
The new contract reduces Gostisbehere’s annual cap hit by $925,000, making it the lowest non-entry level AAV of his career. The Hurricanes have secured him until he turns 34, with his contract accounting for 3.64% of the 2024-25 salary cap.
Details regarding no-move or no-trade clauses and signing bonuses have not been disclosed.
With this deal, Gostisbehere’s cap hit will rank 111th among defensemen next season. His closest cap hit comparables include Ilya Lyubushkin, Carson Soucy, Mario Ferraro, and Cody Ceci, all at $3.25 million AAV, and Brian Dumoulin at $3.15 million AAV.
In the 2023-24 season with the Red Wings, Gostisbehere had one of his best seasons, recording 10 goals and 46 assists for 56 points in 81 games, matching his career-best from the 2017-18 season with the Philadelphia Flyers.
Drafted in the third round by the Flyers in 2012, Gostisbehere debuted in the NHL in the 2014-15 season. He spent parts of seven seasons with the Flyers before being traded to the Arizona Coyotes in 2021 as a cap dump. After nearly two seasons with the Coyotes, he was traded to the Hurricanes at the 2023 trade deadline, contributing to their run to the Eastern Conference Final before joining the Red Wings for the 2023-24 season.
Gostisbehere’s signing is one of several significant moves by the Hurricanes on the first day of free agency. The team also signed Jaccob Slavin to an eight-year contract extension, Sean Walker to a five-year deal, re-signed Jordan Martinook for three years, and signed William Carrier to a six-year contract. Following these signings, the Hurricanes have over $10 million in projected salary cap space and four restricted free agents on their NHL roster: Seth Jarvis, Martin Necas, Jack Drury, and Dylan Coghlan.
