For one, Brind’Amour is pairing his two best players by putting them on a line together. Aho has led the Hurricanes in scoring in six of the last seven seasons, and Rantanen was a superstar in Colorado, logging more minutes than any forward in the league since the start of the 2021-22 season.

Rantanen can become an unrestricted free agent July 1. He was available because the Avalanche couldn’t sign him to a long-term contract. Tulsky said the Hurricanes wanted to acquire Rantanen as long as possible before the NHL Trade Deadline on March 7 and have had only preliminary discussions with his camp.

Chris MacFarland pointed to Rantanen’s pending free agency and the club’s desire to get deeper after three years of being short in that department as reasons for the trade. The NHL’s salary cap ceiling, which is set at $88 million this year but is expected to rise — possibly significantly — in the next couple of seasons is also a factor.