This summer, the Hurricanes raised some eyebrows when they offered Jesperi Kotkaniemi a one-year, $6.1 million contract. Just three months later, the young Finn may already be considered one of the most overpaid players in the National Hockey League, with only six goals and eight points in 24 games for one of the league's top teams.
The potential has always been there, but just like his last two seasons in Montreal, the performances just haven't kept up. In fact, Kotkaniemi was the player least used by his head coach Rod Brind'Amour with a time of seven minutes and 25 seconds. Remember that this same Kotkaniemi had started the season on the team's first line...
The Hurricanes are getting dangerously close to the salary cap, and unless they part ways with another big earner, they won't be able to acquire a rental player, for example. Luckily for them, Kotkaniemi's contract is only for one year, because the team would have certainly become the NHL laughingstock. Hahaha!
