Carolina Hurricanes Trade Former First-Rounder To Columbus Blue Jackets

The Carolina Hurricanes have traded Jake Bean to the Columbus Blue Jackets for the 44th pick of the 2021 NHL Entry Draft. Of course, the Blue Jackets just traded Seth Jones, so it makes sense that they wanted to bring in another defenseman.

The #Canes have acquired the 44th pick in this year's draft for D Jake Bean pic.twitter.com/akKEsm0Mdy
— Carolina Hurricanes (@Canes) July 24, 2021

The Hurricanes drafted Bean in the first round of the 2016 NHL Entry Draft. Due to their immense depth on the backend, he had a lot of trouble cementing himself in their lineup. It took him until this season to play with any true regularity. In 42 games, the 23-year-old scored a goal and produced 12 total points. It was a solid rookie showing for him, but one has to wonder if he can provide more on a new team.

He should be able to make the Blue Jackets moving forward and will have plenty of opportunities to succeed. He will slot nicely on their power play and could even find himself as a future member of their second-pair. This is the type of move that could very well help Bean take that next step.

We will see who the Hurricanes take today with this pick from the Blue Jackets.