Rantanen, who has back-to-back 100-point seasons and also played at that pace the two seasons prior, had just two points in six games with Carolina before the 4 Nations break, missing the last game due to injury. He had one assist on Saturday vs. Toronto.

With the March 7 trade deadline less than two weeks away, Carolina has to decide whether to keep Rantanen for a Stanley Cup run risking losing him next summer if he doesn't extend his contract, or flip him for assets now to avoid that potential worst-case scenario as it happened to the franchise last summer.

The Carolina Hurricanes made the trade of the season by landing Mikko Rantanen in January. They gave up Martin Necas and Jack Drury to land him, two young forwards with star potential. Rantanen’s contract expires after this season and his negotiations with the Avalanche fell apart.