Carolina Hurricanes Rightfully Extend Captain & Conn Smythe Winner Jordan Staal – The Hockey Writers – Carolina Hurricanes

The Carolina Hurricanes late Tuesday night (Sept. 15) announced the signing of Conn Smythe winner and Stanley Cup Champion Jordan Staal to a One-Year extension. The deal came in right before the midnight deadline of the new collective bargaining agreement (CBA). What does it mean for both sides as Staal will remain in Raleigh through the 2027-28 season?

Staal Signs One-Year Extension

When it comes to the one-year extension for Staal, the base salary will be $900,000, with a $4 million signing bonus and up to $5.1 million in additional performance bonuses. The average annual value (AAV) of the deal comes out to $4.9 million on the cap.

After helping lead the Hurricanes to their second Stanley Cup back in June, along with winning the 2026 Conn Smythe, the captain has more than earned an extension. Especially after scoring six goals in five Stanley Cup Final games.

Following the announcement of the extension, Hurricanes general manager Eric Tulsky stated, Jordan is not only our captain, he’s the bedrock of the culture we’ve established in this organization. His leadership and on-ice performance throughout last season and especially in the playoffs was a primary factor in bringing the Stanley Cup back to Raleigh.”

During the 2025-26 season, Staal finished with 20 goals and 36 points in 75 games. The last time he had 20 or more goals was during the 2015-26 season, when he had 20 in 82 games. He is currently 28 games from playing 1,000 with the Hurricanes since being traded to them before the 2012-13 season. Since joining the Hurricanes, Staal has tallied 198 goals, 301 assists, and 499 points.

What really speaks to his character is that Staal could have left at any time during the low points of the frenchsie, but decided to stick it out, even signing a 10-year deal before the 2013-14 season. Fast forward, and he is now a two-time Stanley Cup champion.

What’s been impressive with Staal since coming to Carolina is that he’s been inside the top 10 for Selke voting five times, and somehow still hasn’t won the trophy as one of the best defensive forwards in the NHL. One of the knocks was that he did not score enough, but in 2025-26 he had 20 goals for the first time in 10 years.

During the upcoming 2026-27 season, he will become the first Hurricanes player since relocation in 1997 to reach 1,000 games with the franchise in Raleigh. It’s impressive that he’s about to achieve that milestone while already having played 1,403 games in his 20-year career. He will be entering his 15th season in Raleigh, and eighth as the captain since taking over in 2019.

The thing is, even with the extension, who says he won’t be in Raleigh past the 2027-27 season? This could be where Staal might sign one-year extensions until be retires. He’s at a point where he has earned that right. With everything he has done, and still do over the next two seasons, he could solidify his number being retired in Raleigh. Honestly, when it’s all said and done, there is no reason why Staal’s number 11 isn’t in the rafters at the Lenovo Center following his retirement.