The Carolina Hurricanes delivered a major surprise to NHL fans on January 24. The surprise? A mind-blowing three-way trade that involved the Colorado Avalanche and the Chicago Blackhawks, where the Hurricanes acquired star winger Mikko Rantanen and forward Taylor Hall. But here is the kicker: Rantanen is in the final year of his contract and will become an unrestricted free agent on July 1. And his numbers since arriving in Carolina have been… well, underwhelming.

Just two points in six games? That is a far cry from the 25-goal, 64-point run that he had with the Colorado Avalanche this season. Now the rumor mill is going round and round. NHL insider Nick Kypreos said that if the Hurricanes and Rantanen cannot agree on a contract extension before the trade deadline on the 7th of March, then the front office may trade him again. And let’s just say that fans are not taking this lightly. Speculation is running wild, with some already anticipating another major shake-up.

Greg Wyshynski, the senior NHL writer at ESPN, hopped on X on February 7th to drop his two cents on the whole Mikko Rantanen situation, and let’s just say, he didn’t hold back. He wrote, “The speed with which hockey punditry has gone from “Mikko Rantanen is perfect for the Hurricanes because of his remarkable playoff scoring success” to “maybe we put him BACK on the trade board?!?” is truly breathtaking.”

Talk about a rollercoaster—one minute, Rantanen is the missing puzzle piece for the Canes’ playoff dreams, and the next, he’s back on the market? Wild. And the fans? Oh, they were all over it. The comment section became a debate on whether Rantanen should remain in Carolina or if the team should trade him while he is still there. But wondering where all this chaos started?

Now, just a couple of days prior to this game, the Canes announced that Mikko Rantanen would not be playing in Saturday’s game because of a lower body injury. As it was revealed later, he received a knock during the Hurricanes’ game on Thursday. And to make matters worse? The Hurricanes lost this game against the Minnesota Wild with a score of 1-2 at Xcel Energy Center. So yeah, you can bet fans had some big questions. One even put it out there bluntly, “Are you saying the Mikko Rantanen era at Carolina is over?” I mean, talk about a storyline shift—barely got started, and now people are already wondering if it’s a wrap? But wait, it doesn’t stop there.

The Mikko Rantanen drama leaves fans frustrated!

Oh boy, the Mikko Rantanen debates just keep getting spicier. One fan didn’t hold back, straight-up calling him “extremely overrated” and going all in on his game. “I’ve watched too many games of him turning the puck over, skating slow, awful positioning on both sides of the ice. All he has is that one timer on the PP. Aside from that he’s a 5 million dollar player.” And let’s be real—handing Rantanen the kind of bumper contract that he wants (similar to Leon Draisaitl’s), would put Carolina in a bit of a cap crunch. Locking him down at that price could mean saying goodbye to key talent down the road. So yeah, management has some serious thinking to do. One user even threw out a wild suggestion: “Canucks will take him for Pettersson.”

But here is the tea—the Hurricanes were already speaking with Vancouver before they signed Mikko Rantanen. According to Elliotte Friedman, Carolina was eyeing two blockbuster trades: one for J.T. Miller and another for Elias Pettersson. Yeah, they were cooking up some serious moves. And get this, it was not the first time they tried to lure Pettersson to their side. The Canes had attempted to pull it off last year, but the Canucks signed him to an eight-year, $92.8 million contract in March. Therefore, was Rantanen their backup plan, or was Carolina just willing to bet on any star forward? In any case, it does not end there.

And just like that, another fan jumped in, adding to the chaos with, “100% accurate! It’s almost as if the whole NHL has caught “Trade Deadline Itis”!!! It’s ludicrous!!!” Mikko Rantanen was a first-round pick, 10th overall, in the 2015 NHL Draft by the Colorado Avalanche. He stepped onto the NHL stage that same year, and oh yeah, he hoisted the Stanley Cup in 2022. So, acting like he’s just another trade chip? Yeah, that’s a bold claim.

And of course, someone else had to chime in with their own take, “It’s insane. The guy got his professional life swept out from under him. I think he’ll be fine.” Fair point. This guy has been through it all, from the highs of being a Cup champion to now having fans and analysts question his entire worth. But if history tells us anything, Mikko Rantanen isn’t the type to just fade into the background.