-Gabriel Dorris-

As the 2024-25 NHL season approaches, the Canes find themselves with limited cap space, roster spots to fill, and a top-10 prospect pool in the league to fill them. But only so many of these prospects can actually make the league, which begs the question; who will and who won’t? These are the five Canes prospects I think have a reasonable chance of playing at least three NHL games.

Bradly Nadeau (F)

Out of every Canes’ prospect, Bradly Nadeau seems like the most likely to make the NHL jump. Despite a very difficult rise from the BCHL to the NCAA last offseason, Nadeau was able to dominate the collegiate league. His 46 points in 37 games were 16th among all players and 5th among freshmen, beind only Will Smith, Macklin Celebrini, Gabe Perreault, and Ryan Leonard. If any prospect is capable of making a massive jump to top six NHL minutes, it’s Nadeau.

Chance of making the NHL full time: 7/10

Chance of playing at least ten games: 9/10

Chance of playing at least three games: 9/10

Felix Ugner-Sorum (F)

It’s been an eventful year and a half for Ugner-Sorum, who the Canes picked in the second round of the 2023 NHL draft despite him being elegible by just one day. Ugner-Sorum then had an excellent training camp performace which led to him recieving legitimate consideration for a roster spot. After just barely missing the cut, Ugner-Sorum played out most of the season in the SHL, where his .343 Assists/GP lead all under-20 players. If Ugner-Sorum can replicate his performance from last preseason, he now has a legitimate chance of becoming one of the Canes’ 12 starting forwards (especially if Jesper Fast goes on LTIR).

Chance of making the NHL full time: 5/10

Chance of playing at least ten games: 7/10

Chance of playing at least three games: 8/10

Jackson Blake (F)

Like Nadeau, Jackson Blake also spent last season in the NCAA, where his 60 points were 5th among all collegiate players and led him to a finalist position for the Hobey Baker award (essentially the Ted Lindsay of the NCAA). Despite being the oldest among the three players, I believe that Blake, a fourth round pick in 2021, needs a year in the AHL more than Ugner-Sorum or Nadeau. Still, if he puts forward a phenomenal show in the preseason, he could potentially crack the roster.

Chance of making the NHL full time: 3/10

Chance of playing at least ten games: 4/10

Chance of playing at least three games: 6/10

Scott Morrow (D)

Scott Morrow, coming off his third year in the NCAA, seems poised to play the 2024-25 season in the AHL, locked out of the NHL by the signings of Shayne Gostisbehere and Sean Walker. Because the Canes have six bonafide NHL defensemen, the odds of Morrow making the NHL full time are essentially zero barring injury. Still, it’s not a stretch to say that Morrow is the Cane’s 7th best defenseman. However, barring a long term injury, it’s likely the Canes simply opt to call up Riley Stillman or Ty Smith to play third pairing minutes and allow Morrow to continue playing well over 20 minutes a night in the AHL.

Chance of making the NHL full time: 1/10

Chance of playing at least ten games: 2/10

Chance of playing at last three games: 4/10

Ruslan Khazheyev (G)

Khazheyev, as things stand, is only on this list because of the injury history of Frederick Andersen and to a lesser extent Pyotr Kochetkov. If, as we saw last season, there is a several week period where both Andersen and Kochetkov are unfortunately injured, it is not unreasonable to picture Khazheyev backing up Spencer Martin, especially if he is having a good debut season in the AHL. After all, injuries also forced fellow Russian goalie Pyotr Kochetkov into three NHL games in his first season in North America.

Chance of making the NHL full time: 0/10

Chance of playing at least ten games: 1/10

Chance of playing at least three games: 2/10