In 2017, the Carolina Hurricanes felt they were finally getting the goaltender they needed to reach the playoffs when they traded for and immediately signed Chicago Blackhawks backup Scott Darling to a four-year, $16.6M contract.
After two disappointing seasons, it looks like the Hurricanes are ready to pull the plug on the deal. David Pagnotta of the Fourth Period reports that Carolina intends to buy out Darling's contract when the buyout period opens.
If the Hurricanes follow through with a buyout, the buyout cap hit would break down like this (according to CapFriendly): 2019-20: $1.233M; 2020-21: $2.333M; 2021-22: $1.183M; 2022-23: $1.183M.
Darling, 30, who was the backup to Corey Crawford during the Blackhawks’ successful playoff runs, was acquired for a third-round pick in 2017. In his final season in Chicago, he posted a 2.37 GAA and a .924 save percentage in 32 games, but never served as a starter. However, nothing went right once Darling hit the ice in Carolina. He struggled in 2017-18 when he 3.18 GAA and a .888 save percentage in a career-high 43 games.
Despite talk last summer that Darling was committed to conditioning and getting back on track, the Hurricanes claimed goaltender Curtis McElhinney off waivers, giving the team three goaltenders (McElhinney, Darling and Petr Mrazek). The three played in tandem, but Darling only made eight appearances this season, struggling even more. He finished with a 3.34 GAA and a .884 save percentage, eventually being placed on waivers and sent to the Charlotte Checkers of the AHL in hopes of regaining his confidence.
Instead, Darling continued to struggle, putting up a 3.40 GAA and a .882 save percentage in 14 appearances for the Checkers, prompting the goaltender to take a leave of absence in February from which he never returned.
If the Hurricanes do buyout Darling, they will have to sign another goaltender before July 1 as teams need to have three goaltenders under contract, according to the CBA. At the moment, Carolina only has two goaltenders under contract, Jeremy Helvig and Callum Booth, neither of which are in their 2018-19 plans.
McElhinney and Mrazek are both slated to become unrestricted free agents, while AHL star Alex Nedeljkovic will be a restricted free agent this summer.
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