John Carlson might not sign with Hurricanes after all

The Carolina Hurricanes had an excellent opportunity to add John Carlson to their Stanley Cup-winning roster after acquiring his exclusive negotiating rights from the Anaheim Ducks — but no contract has materialized as of yet.

“John Carlson hasn’t closed the door to Carolina, but the Hurricanes couldn’t close the deal before noon ET so Carlson’s agent Rick Curran now taking calls from other teams as well,” reported The Athletic’s Pierre LeBrun on Wednesday afternoon.

“I think Tampa Bay and Philadelphia are among them. We’ll see where this goes for the No. 1 UFA D.”

Carlson just enjoyed another successful campaign split between the Washington Capitals and Ducks; he amassed 60 points in 71 games, and added another six assists in 12 Stanley Cup Playoff contests.

It was a terrific season for Anaheim, who returned to the dance for the first time since 2017-18 before defeating the back-to-back Western Conference champion Edmonton Oilers in six games in Round 1. They came within two victories of a trip to the West Final, but lost to the Vegas Golden Knights in six games.

It must have been disappointing for general manager Pat Verbeek when Carlson informed him he wasn’t going to re-sign, and instead head back to the Eastern Conference — especially as he parted with a first-round pick to acquire the 2018 Stanley Cup champion.

Still, that chapter is closed, and the Ducks are working to reload their blue line after trading Olen Zellweger and the rights to Radko Gudas to the Buffalo Sabres and Florida Panthers, respectively.

It’s been rumored that Carlson is looking for at least a two-year deal with a $9 million AAV, and it appears Hurricanes GM Eric Tulsky isn’t willing to pay that price.

It’ll be intriguing to see where the top defenseman on the market ends up as free agent frenzy continues on Wednesday.