What to expect from each defenseman the Hurricanes added this offseason

Follow me on Twitter: @BenShelley_20 Follow HockeyBuzz Hurricanes on Twitter: @HB_Canes The Carolina Hurricanes made quite a few additions to their defense group early in the offseason, in order to offset the loss of other members of their blue line heading elsewhere. The team acquired Ethan Bear in a trade with the Edmonton Oilers, then proceeded to sign Ian Cole and Tony DeAngelo, as well as Brendan Smith. So with a new-look defense heading into next season, here’s what to expect from each player. Bear is certainly the most exciting addition. He’s still just 24 years old but does have 132 games of NHL experience. While his ice time did drop last year, he averaged nearly 22 minutes per game as a 22-year-old with the Oilers in the 2019-20 season, which ranked third amongst the team’s defenders. While he saw a drop in production this past season, Bear could rebound to post 20 points or more next year. Given there’s an open spot remaining on the right side of the top-four group, he’s probably the most likely to be called on to fill it. He’s also capable of killing penalties, considering he averaged 1:48 per game on Edmonton’s penalty kill last season. Ian Cole, on the other hand, is 32 years old and joins the Hurricanes with 595 games of NHL experience. He averaged under 16 minutes per game with the Minnesota Wild last season, while facing a lower quality of competition than other defenders on the team (according to Hockey Abstract). He was also used in an extremely defensive role, with the highest defensive zone start percentage of any defenseman on the team (according to Hockey Reference) and he too can kill penalties.