Predators’ Alexandre Carrier a no-maintenance option to boost a contender at Trade Deadline

Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

With less than one month to go until the NHL’s March 8 trade deadline, we’ve got you covered at Daily Faceoff with at least one trade-focused story every day until Deadline Day.

Today we continue our player profile series with Nashville Predators defenseman Alexandre Carrier, who ranks No. 11 on our Trade Targets board.

2024 Trade Deadline Countdown: 29 Days

ALEXANDRE CARRIER
Right Defense, Nashville Predators
Shoots: Right
Age: 27
Height: 5-foot-11 | Weight: 174 lbs
Cap Hit: $2.5 million
Term: Pending UFA
2023-24 Stats: 46 GP, 4 G, 10 A, 14 Pts, 18:09 TOI
Career Stats: 6th season (all Nashville), 190 GP, 10 G, 46 A, 56 Pts
Best Year: 2021-22, 77 GP, 3 G, 27 A, 30 Pts, plus-26, 20:59 TOI
Playoffs: 2 appearances, no rounds won, 10 GP, 0 G, 5 A, 5 Pts

Archetype and Ideal Role

Depth Defenseman, 3rd Pair

Carrier burst onto the scene two seasons ago under coach John Hynes. Carrier racked up 30 points in his first full NHL season, earning a nod on the NHL All-Rookie team next to Moritz Seider. What’s happened since? Carrier was injured for the bulk of last year, sitting out for two separate four-to-six week stints. That led to a one-year, $2.5 million contract on July 1 as an RFA, but his ice time under Andrew Brunette is down nearly three minutes from two years back.

Scouting Report

If you’re looking for a trade comp, one NHL pro scout referred Carrier as “a poor man’s Jared Spurgeon,” for comparison, which sounds like a knock but isn’t. They are roughly the same size – and Carrier has a few of the same steadying dynamics as the Minnesota Wild captain that would make him attractive at the trade deadline.

In fact, steady is one of the perfect words used to describe Carrier. He plays a simple game. Carrier handles the puck well above average for a defenseman on breakouts, committing the 18th fewest giveaways in the defensive zone among all defensemen with 40 games played this season.

His mobility and backwards skating are fluid and he can move laterally, east and west across the rink, with ease. Carrier relies on his hockey intelligence to scan the ice. He doesn’t necessarily shut down the rush early, but he is in the top tier among denying the rush after it enters the zone, playing well in between the dots.

Carrier anticipates the play well, allowing him to block shots, where he ranks 35th among defensemen. He has earned a reputation for playing hard every night, and he’s managed to stay disciplined and out of the box. Carrier is a plus-32 player for his career, and although it’s a flawed stat, he has never been a minus player in a season.

Buyer Beware

That steady nature, which makes Carrier solid, is also part of what may not make him of interest to some teams. He isn’t flashy, and some might say he will not move the needle for them. However, during a stretch drive and deep playoff run, consistency is worth its weight in gold to coaches.

In line with the Spurgeon comp, Carrier does not have size in his arsenal. Since he isn’t big, and not heavy, he is forced to rely on body position in the defensive zone. If he doesn’t establish an early box-out position, he has to get in the way of pucks.

Carrier is a strong skater, but he isn’t fast. His speed bursts and top speed are all well below 50th percentile among defensemen according to NHL EDGE puck and player tracking. He also needs to shoot the puck more. He averages less than one shot per game, but has a career-best four goals this season on 40 shots, giving him a 10 percent shooting percentage.

Potential Suitors

Boston Bruins: Carrier is an easy upgrade on their third pair who won’t break the bank.
Dallas Stars: The Stars continue to peruse the market for depth defensemen.
Edmonton Oilers: They already made a trade with Nashville last year for a blueliner.
Florida Panthers: The Cats could use one more right-shooting defenseman to spell Dmitry Kulikov.
Tampa Bay Lightning: The Bolts are in the market for two defensemen after Mikhail Sergachev’s gruesome injury.
Toronto Maple Leafs: Carrier could be the type of fit to re-sign in Toronto.
Vegas Golden Knights: Vegas did pretty well with another Carrier in the Expansion Draft.
Vancouver Canucks: How much does Carrier help the Canucks?

Comparable Trade Returns

March 21, 2022
To Edmonton: Brett Kulak (50% retained)
To Montréal: William Lagesson, 2022 2nd Rd Pick, 2024 7th Rd Pick

March 20, 2022
To Nashville: Jeremy Lauzon
To Seattle: 2022 2nd Rd Pick

There’s plenty of trade deadline evidence to point to say with confidence that Carrier can bring back a second-round pick. The Kulak trade is a pretty decent comp, even though Kulak is a left-shooting defenseman, because the 7th round pick and William Lagesson were to help make the money work – to have the Canadiens retain half of Kulak’s deal.

With the Preds likely moving Tyson Barrie and potentially entertaining offers on Dante Fabbro, one thing GM Barry Trotz will have to ask himself is whether moving Carrier is worth the squeeze. Is it better to just re-sign him?

Even if it is for a second-round pick, the Canadiens drafting Lane Hutson at No. 62 overall with the pick from the Kulak trade should be reason enough to want to pull the trigger. It’s a good bet you’ll see Hutson roaming the Habs’ back end this season – and for the next decade to come – as a truly special prospect.

Summary

Carrier is a no-maintenance addition to any playoff-bound team. What he lacks in sizzle, Carrier more than makes up for in substance, and his acquisition cost shouldn’t be over the top in relation to the security he could provide.

Daily Faceoff analyst Jon Goyens contributed to this report. Find him on Twitter: @gourmet_hockey

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