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.

Mikko Rantanen is not off to a good start with the Hurricanes after being shockingly dealt by the Avalanche in January. His fit through nine games has been awkward enough to inspire another round of Rantanen trade rumors ahead of the NHL trade deadline.

On Whalers night at Lenovo Center, Mikko Rantanen slipped into a different sweater and turned in his first multi-point game with the Canes.

According to Daily Faceoff's Frank Seravalli, it looks like Carolina is leaning toward keeping Rantanen in tow through the end of the season whether or not he commits to signing a contract extension before the March 7 trade deadline.

Mikko Rantanen had a multi-point night on Thursday, showing signs of life after joining the Carolina Hurricanes. However, his long-term future with the team remains uncertain.

TSN: It’s still not known if Mikko Rantanen will want to partake in contract extension talks with the Carolina Hurricanes. Chris Johnston said that Rantanen’s camp are expected in the next few days to let the Hurricanes know how they’d like to proceed with things.