Insider: 28 Teams Attempted Martin Necas Trade, 3 Teams Were Close

Martin Necas was this close to getting traded by the Carolina Hurricanes this past June, after the restricted free agent (and his father) made it clear they were looking for a fresh start after a tough year for the youngster in Raleigh.

Luckily for the Hurricanes, they didn't pull the trigger and instead re-signed him to a bridge deal, as Necas is off to an insane start to the season with 11 goals and 30 points in 17 games.

But according to insider Pierre LeBrun in The Athletic, almost the entire league tried to pry him loose in trade talks.

My understanding is that 28 NHL teams reached out to Carolina on Necas, with varying degrees of interest.

It sounds like the most serious of those 28 teams were the Winnipeg Jets, Columbus Blue Jackets and Montreal Canadiens.

For Winnipeg, the trouble was term: "The Jets were a serious bidder, to be sure," wrote LeBrun. "I’m told Necas would have been fine signing short-term in Winnipeg but not long-term, and that was a trade killer."

Former Carolina GM Don Waddell, now in Columbus, engaged in talks around the No. 4 pick in the NHL Draft, but that didn't come to fruition.

“There was never a question of whether we could get him into camp (because he filed for arbitration),” Canes GM Eric Tulsky told LeBrun. “The only question was whether there was another option that would blow us away. And nothing did. So we’re happy to have him back and we’re glad to see his season go the way it is.”

That's an understatement. Necas is 3rd in the NHL in points, 6th in assists and 11th in goals. The Hurricanes lead the entire league at 14-4-0 for 28 points, atop the Metropolitan Division.