Mikko Rantanen’s trade with the Carolina Hurricanes was one of the biggest deals of the season, but little is resolved when new concerns arise. NHL player and analyst Paul Bissonnette recently shared a startling claim regarding Rantanen’s future with Carolina, saying that Finnish sensation Mikko will not sign an extended contract with Carolina. With Carolina trading such high-value assets for him, such a move could become a big gamble in case Mikko wishes to become a free agent.

On a recent episode of Spittin’ Chiclets, Bissonette did not beat about the bush, speculating about whether Hurricanes overreached with sign-ing. “I honestly thought that it would have been easy for Rantanen to get to a place where he was making 100 grand less than Nathan MacKinnon,” he said. In Bissonette’s view, if the financial margin had been a little less, Colorado could have possibly retained him and not traded him out.

However, the most jaw-dropping one came when he simply questioned Rantanen’s commitment to returning to Carolina. “Mind you, if he doesn’t sign in Carolina—which, that is my hot take—I don’t think that he’s going to sign in Carolina. I think there’s not a chicken d**k’s chance that he’s going to sign in Carolina,” Bissonnette said, with no one in a position to misjudge him.

If that occurs, the Hurricanes can have a repeat of Jake Guentzel, trading high-value assets for a high-scoring forward and then having him depart in free agency. “If you can’t get a deal done, I would ship him. I would not be left holding the bag like they did with Guentzel,” Bissonnette added, recalling Hurricanes’ previous failures in holding onto its big-ticket additions.

Carolina’s High-Stakes Wager On Rantanen For Carolina, a player of Rantanen’s caliber was a blockbuster move that conveyed winnow. Still, Bissonnette’s critique raises a fair concern—was a gamble with no long-term security in a short-term move?

Carolina’s high-stakes gamble on Rantanen

Rantanen is worth a big contract, and Carolina can make it work, but Carolina’s past is one of not getting long-term deals out of high-end talent. Carolina has gone out and gotten big deadline deals in recent years, but not holding onto Guentzel, whom they signed in free agency a year ago, creates a concerning precedent.

The numbers don’t lie, either. Two-time All-Star Rantanen has been one of the NHL’s most consistent offensive workhorses over the past several years. In four years, he averaged more than 90 per annum, and with his scoring ability, a necessity for any team wishing to make a championship run at a Stanley Cup title, a necessity. With such production, he will most assuredly command a salary in the $ 10 million range, at least.

However, if not for a sign, then the Hurricanes will miss him for free, and that will hurt a team that traded high-value assets in a try to sign him. As emphasized by Bissonette, the margin between holding and losing Rantanen can cost a whopping $10 million over the life of his new contract. That kind of calculation can hurt a lot.

With the trading deadline having cleared, Hurricanes will then have to work through its biggest challenge yet: securing Rantanen for the long-term. On-ice performance will obviously have a lot to say in terms of that, but Carolina’s success in providing a competitive image that will speak to him will have a lot to say about it, too. If the Hurricanes can’t lock down long-term a player like Rantanen, then this blockbuster will become one of most contentious deals of the year. In years gone by, the best assets have departed from the franchise, and if Rantanen isn’t an exception, then it will mean catastrophic questions about Carolina’s future in holding onto the best talent. The following months will say a lot about whether hurricanes can make a long-term success out of one or have a big bet one more time on a rental player with no future security for one period of one year. In case a deal can’t be negotiated, one behemoth trade move could be in store—one that will shape Carolina’s future for years to follow.