Despite being a fan favorite and a key part of the Avalanche's recent success, the salary-cap reality forced their hand.

Carolina Hurricanes general manager Eric Tulsky is explaining his reasons for pushing for Mikko Rantanen, in a trade with the Colorado Avalanche. Carolina engaged in a trade with the Avalanche, as well as Chicago on Friday. The end result is that Rantanen is now a Hurricane.

Speaking to The Athletic’s Peter Baugh on Monday, Rantanen shared his thoughts on the trade, his contract talks with the Avalanche and his new chapter in Carolina. Most interestingly, Rantanen confirmed that he was "ready to take a significant discount" to stay in Colorado, as initially reported by Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic.

Mikko Rantanen's trade from the Colorado Avalanche to the Carolina Hurricanes shocked the NHL world on Saturday, but it didn't take him long to fit in with his new team.

Here are three blockbuster Avalanche trade targets in the wake of the stunning Mikko Rantanen trade with the Hurricanes.

The Colorado Avalanche have traded Mikko Rantanen to the Carolina Hurricanes, according to multiple reports. Once official, this will be one of the most stunning transactions in franchise history. Martin Necas and Jack Drury are coming to Colorado as part of the deal,

The Rangers look to rebound from a disappointing loss to the Avalanche. After facing Martin Necas and Jack Drury with their new team, New York gets to take in Mikko Rantanen on his. The Blueshirts are on the midst of a critical and rough six game stretch leading into the 4 Nations Faceoff.

The word “blockbuster” gets thrown around a little too often in today’s NHL, often for trades unworthy of the term, in the same way that anything might feel like a five-star meal to a starving man. But the deal that dropped on Friday night? That one deserves the title, no questions asked.

Fresh off their massive blockbuster trade to acquire Mikko Rantanen from Colorado, the Carolina Hurricanes might not be done making trades (as per TSN’s Chris Johnston on Insider Trading).

The Rangers fell to 24-22-4 (52 points) and failed to gain ground in their chase for a playoff berth. They remained three points behind Tampa Bay for the final wild-card spot. They’ll try to pick up the pieces when they go to Boston for an afternoon game Saturday before coming back home Sunday for a game against Vegas.

Most recently, the Carolina Hurricanes acquired forwards Mikko Rantanen in a blockbuster three-team trade with the Colorado Avalanche and Chicago Blackhawks on