NHL insider Frank Seravalli deems Hurricanes owner "crazy enough" to trade recent $55,500,000 acquisition Miko Rantanen

The Carolina Hurricanes stunned the hockey world when they traded Martin Necas and Jack Drury to the Colorado Avalanche in exchange for Mikko Rantanen, who is viewed as one of the top players in the National Hockey League.

Since the trade, the Avalanche have been getting great numbers on the offensive side of things from Necas, while Rantanen has only a pair of points since joining the Hurricanes.

Rantanen is in the final year of his $55,500,000 contract, making him a free agent when this season ends. According to The Daily Faceoff's Frank Seravalli, the Hurricanes could entertain the idea of trading Rantanen just weeks after acquiring him if his production doesn't improve and he doesn't show a willingness to ink an extension.

"They want to find out in short order here. They gave him some time to get used to the market and 'Hey, get your feet wet and understand what this is like here'. But this stretch during (the) 4 Nations is going to be really telling. I think if this gets closer to March 7 and he's unsigned, and they have a feeling he's not going to sign, again, I wouldn't be shocked.

"They've got an owner who is just crazy enough to turn around and say, 'Let's see if we can get back what we paid, if not more' - especially if his production remains relatively limited. Of course they're going to give it all the time in the world they can, it's so hard to get your hands on a difference maker."

Seravalli then pointed out that the time is now for the Hurricanes to try and get a long-term relationship established with Rantanen, who didn't come cheap in the trade to bring him to Raleigh.

"But if he does't want to sign and he's unproductive, it's not really a good fit. But I think it's way too early to make those determinations - I'm just saying, let's see how these negotiations go in the next two weeks. This is the time to get a deal done."

Mikko Rantanen explained that he wants to settle in with the Hurricanes

Rantanen was in for quite the transition after spending 10 years with the Avalanche. While his focus is on the immediate challenge ahead as part of Team Finland in the 4 Nations Face-off tournament, he also wants to settle in with his new NHL club.

“I think it’s only been, it was two weeks I was there, so it’s too quick even to get settled after a long time in another place,” Rantanen said. “And we were on the road a little bit. So many games, so you just try to focus on the games. So, I think it’s going to take time. This tournament is, obviously, nice to see how we can do as a Finnish team. So, just try to focus here now.”

"But like I said, it's really early for me because I've got to settle in first."

If Rantanen isn't showing a willingness to commit to the Hurricanes long-term, they may very well be forced to trade him to get as much value back in return rather than see him depart in the offseason via free-agency.