Though they haven’t seen Justin Williams in NHL action since May, the Hurricanes are still hoping there’s a chance their former captain returns in Carolina colours some time this season.
There hasn’t been much indication that the 38-year-old is close to doing so, but Hurricanes GM Don Waddell said Monday that the team is still in contact with Williams about a potential return.
“We continue to talk with him,” Waddell said in a Q&A with CarolinaHurricanes.com. “I think he’s working out a little bit more on his own right now. I think he’s going to start coming to the gym a little more. That’s a positive sign.
“What that end result is yet is still a mystery to all of us, but we’re hopeful that maybe there is an opportunity there to have him come back.”
Williams spent the past two seasons with the Hurricanes, returning to the club following stints with the Washington Capitals and Los Angeles Kings after spending parts of five seasons with Carolina early in his career.
While it’s unclear whether the team will get a mid-season addition in the form of their former captain, Waddell said the club is currently engaged in trade talks that could bring other names to the roster.
“We are up close to the cap. We have a little room. As the season goes on, hopefully that room becomes a little bigger, and you can do a deal that’s not just strictly a hockey deal,” Waddell said. “Maybe it’s acquiring something down the stretch for assets we already have in the organization.
“Certainly, the deals we’re talking about today — actually, today was a busy day with a lot of talk going on — they’re all deals where the money is going to have to match up pretty much even, and most teams are in the same situations. They’re looking at it the same way.”
The Hurricanes currently sit in the first wild-card spot with 35 points to their name. The club has only roughly $1 million in cap space to work with, according to CapFriendly.
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