Amid insider Elliotte Friedman's report that the Carolina Hurricanes will not re-sign Mikko Rantanen to a contract extension before the trade deadline on March 7, it is clear the organization owes it to itself to explore a potential trade for the 28-year-old Finnish star,

Jim Nill moved the Stars to the top of the contenders’ list at Friday’s trade deadline by acquiring big-time scorer Mikko Rantanen from Carolina.

Stars have said all season they’re “all in” to win the Stanley Cup this year after back-to-back runs to the Western Conference finals.

Mikko Rantanen could be on the move again if Carolina cannot sign him to an extension. Brock Nelson, Erik Karlsson and brothers Brayden and Luke Schenn are all in the mix. Seth Jones, Ryan Lindgren and Gustav Nyquist have already changed teams.

With a likely Stars-Avalanche first round in the cards, GMs Jill Nill and Chris MacFarland spoke to The Athletic about their deadline moves.

Mikko Rantanten’s stay in Carolina was about as long as Abe Simpson’s taking a lap around the “Maison Derrière” burlesque house when Bart spotted him. Rantanen was dealt to Dallas on Friday after being unable to reach an agreement with the Hurricanes on a long-term deal — it’s reported that Rantanen will now sign an eight year deal with Stars worth $12M AAV.

Mikko Rantanen didn’t want to leave. He thought he’d finish his career in Colorado. But now that he’s in Dallas Stars green, how should fans react?