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With Carolina believed to be among the teams shopping around the goalie market, there’s a possibility that they might need to clear out some money to bring out an impact netminder. To that end, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman reports that some teams have called the Hurricanes regarding the potential availability of winger Michael Bunting.
The 28-year-old is in his first season with Carolina after signing a three-year, $13.5M contract in free agency this past summer. Suffice it to say, moving a $4.5M cap charge off their books would certainly open up plenty of flexibility to go after a goalie if that’s a route they decide they want to go.
However, moving Bunting would also take a player of note from their lineup. While his playing time is down a bit compared to last season at just under 15 minutes a night, he has been a capable secondary contributor offensively, chipping in with eight goals and 17 assists in 36 games while taking a regular turn on their top power play unit. Taking him out of the lineup would create a fair-sized hole to try to fill up front, so it would be surprising to see them go in that direction.
As things stand, Carolina has a little over $3M in spending room, an amount that jumps past $8M at the trade deadline, per CapFriendly. Accordingly, if the Hurricanes stay healthy, they might not necessarily have to clear out a sizable contract to bring in help between the pipes.
In the meantime, GM Don Waddell is likely still working on moving blueliner Tony DeAngelo, a player whose usage has been quite limited in his second go-round with the team. DeAngelo is on an expiring deal with a $1.675M salary and cap hit so even moving out that contract might be enough to give the Hurricanes the flexibility they desire should the opportunity to bring in an impact netminder present itself.
More must-reads:
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Ivan Demidov impresses Nathan MacKinnon
In Montreal, there’s no questioning Ivan Demidov’s talent. All you have to do is watch him play, and you know the Russian is brimming with talent. It’s not unusual for an opponent of the Montreal Canadiens to be impressed by Demidov. But when it comes from the NHL’s top scorer, the words are worth even more. As TVA Sports reported in this article, Nathan MacKinnon has nothing but positive things to say about the young Russian sensation. “I saw his goal on Wednesday night. What a shot! He’s having quite a season and I think he’ll become a really special player.” – Nathan MacKinnon It must warm Demidov’s heart to hear comments like these, especially when they come from the NHL’s top scorer. MacKinnon’s comment on the Russian’s shot leads me to discuss something else: Demidov needs to shoot more. As Anthony Martineau said earlier today, Demidov needs to be more selfish and take a cue from Lane Hutson, who’s shooting the net a lot more these days. He’s a little too willing to look for the perfect play when that perfect play is often just a shot away. He’s got quite a shot and we’ve seen it. He can easily outwit opposing goalies with it. Demidov’s early career has been quite impressive. It’s even more impressive when you compare his first 25 NHL games to the first 25 games of Auston Matthews and Mitch Marner. The Canadiens Muse page, which publishes some interesting statistics, has made it clear that Demidov is currently off to a better start than Mitch Marner and Auston Matthews. It’s not a huge difference, but he’s still ahead of two excellent NHL forwards. Plus, we know that Demidov’s playing time is limited by his head coach. This isn’t necessarily because he doesn’t deserve it (far from it), but rather a question of taking it easy in his first full season in the big league. The Canadiens Muse page has posted the playing time per game during the first 25 games of the careers of the three players in question, and there’s still a three-minute difference. Demidov is definitely on his way to an excellent NHL career. Let’s see what the future holds for him. Overtime – Unbelievable. – Love it. – It doesn’t really make sense. – That’s a great nickname.
Jerry Jones claims Jets turned down absurd trade offer involving Micah Parsons, Quinnen Williams
Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones recently revealed that he offered Micah Parsons plus a first-round pick to the New York Jets in exchange for Quinnen Williams during training camp. Jerry Jones says Jets turned out incredible trade offer for Quinnen Williams “I wanted a one and Parsons for Williams,” Jones said on 103.5 The Fan. That seems like an absurd offer, but Jones left little up to interpretation. “A one and Parsons for Williams,” he repeated. Later, he added that the deal did not go through because the Jets “did not have the cap room to pay [Parsons].” Jones also said something similar to WFAA’s Ed Werder: “We tried at training camp with the Jets to basically make an exchange that was ready to go, heads up, with Quinnen and Micah and a one, and we didn’t get it done.” Parsons, of course, was instead sent to the Packers for defensive tackle Kenny Clark and two first-round picks. The Cowboys later acquired Williams before the trade deadline for a package including a 2027 first-rounder, a 2026 second-rounder and defensive tackle Mazi Smith. Jones has slowly revealed more and more information about the Parsons trade since it was completed. During a September radio appearances on ESPN New York, Jones said that called the Jets regarding Williams when he was shopping Parsons before the season. The Jets were not interested, he claimed, because they “didn’t have the resources to entertain [the] conversation,” similar to his pronouncement on 103.5. If true, Jets made a big mistake If Jones’ latest revelation is true, that means two things. First, he was willing to sacrifice a massive amount of value to move Parsons and acquire Williams. Second, the Jets made a huge mistake in not accepting the deal. Although Williams is an excellent defensive tackle, Parsons is undoubtedly a better and more valuable player, even at a higher price point. This year, Williams has 2.5 sacks and 10 tackles for loss this season; per Pro Football Focus, he ranks fifth among interior defenders with 40 pressures but 38th with a 12.1% pass-rush win rate. Parsons, meanwhile, has 12.5 sacks and 12 tackles for loss, plus 67 pressures and a 24.3% pass-rush win rate, both top-three marks among NFL edge-rushers. In his career, he has averaged 0.89 sacks and one tackle for loss per game; Williams’ per-game numbers are 0.41 sacks and 0.60 tackles for loss. Those numbers may not tell the complete story of either player, but it seems like the Jets should have taken Jones’ offer. Sure, they would have had to pony up for Parsons’ mega-extension, but they were already prepared to move on from Williams. Adding an extra first-round pick on top would also give the Jets an opportunity to add another starter — if not a star — on a rookie contract. That would help to offset the financial cost of acquiring Parsons. How realistic is Jerry Jones' claim? But Jones’ words should also be taken with a grain of salt. He has spent a lot of time trying to retroactively justify trading away Parsons, especially after using some of the resulting draft capital to acquire Williams. Claiming that the Jets were not interested in Parsons and a first-rounder for Williams serves to downplay the former’s value and boost the latter’s. The idea that the Jets could not afford to pay Parsons does not hold water, either. After his extension, the All-Pro edge-rusher’s cap hit in 2025 is just $9.97M. New York certainly could have designed a similar contract structure and absorbed Perhaps the Jets didn't want to commit so much money to Parsons as they were clearly contemplating a rebuild. Parsons would still be a cornerstone for that effort, but he may not have wanted to weather any losing seasons in the hopes of a future turnaround. But again, adding another first-round pick would have accelerated that process, and a core of Parsons, cornerback Sauce Gardner and wide receiver Garrett Wilson seems like a solid foundation for the Jets to build from. That is an expensive trio, but having elite players at three of the sport’s most important positions is a good problem to have. Instead, the Jets declined the Cowboys’ initial offer for Williams before moving him and Gardner at the deadline as part of what appears to be a full-on franchise reset.
Details emerge on Francisco Lindor's alleged incident with Mets teammate
Mr. Smile apparently wasn’t smiling too much about one of his teammates last season. New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor had a "heated confrontation" with teammate Jeff McNeil last June, Mike Puma of the New York Post reported on Friday. Puma writes that Lindor began verbally attacking McNeil on June 20 over a defensive lapse that McNeil had during that day’s game against the Philadelphia Phillies. The confrontation, which was only verbal and never got physical, came in the midst of a seven-game losing streak by the Mets at the time. Puma also reports that the flashy Lindor clashed personalities during the year with the business-like Juan Soto during the season as well. Interestingly enough, the five-time All-Star Lindor also had a confrontation with McNeil in the dugout during a game in the 2021 MLB season. That confrontation did turn physical, and Lindor later offered an extremely unconvincing excuse for the incident. Meanwhile, the incident last June underscored the Mets’ struggles to get on the same page with one another during the 2025 campaign. Despite having a mammoth $342 million payroll, the Mets completely collapsed in the final weeks of the season and missed the playoffs altogether. Now there are rumors that the Mets could make some big changes this offseason, including a potential trade of McNeil. After another apparent confrontation between the veteran utilityman and the four-time Silver Slugger Award winner Lindor, it is clear that something is not quite working right now in that clubhouse.
Eagles fans loudly booed Nick Sirianni for questionable decision
Philadelphia Eagles fans were fuming at their team after the first half of Friday’s game against the Chicago Bears, and coach Nick Sirianni took a lot of heat for one particular decision. The Eagles offense once again struggled at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia, Pa. on Friday, scoring just three points against the Bears. The Eagles tallied just two first downs and 83 total yards in the half while running only 17 plays. Sirianni remained conservative right down to the half. The Eagles got the ball back down a touchdown with 2:47 left, and completed a 1-yard pass on the first play of the drive. Sirianni then opted to let the clock run down to the two-minute warning instead of trying to run another play, leading to loud boos. The Eagles did have all three timeouts left, and Sirianni was likely trying to prevent the Bears from getting the ball back before halftime. Given how bad the offense had been up to that point, however, fans did not care one bit. Sirianni’s plan did not work, as the Eagles wound up going three-and-out. Sirianni was angrily yelling on the sideline at that point as the boos got louder. The Eagles were loudly booed off the field at halftime, and they were lucky to only be down a touchdown. The Philadelphia offense has been a source of frustration for much of the season, but things have hit a fever pitch after their collapse against the Dallas Cowboys last week. The Eagles ended up losing, 24-15. The team is 8-4, but if the offense does not turn around, they will have a hard time repeating as Super Bowl champions.
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