James Wisniewski found himself in unfamiliar territory this offseason, a defenseman without a home and unsure of his next move.
The NHL veteran was acquired by the Carolina Hurricanes from Anaheim prior to the 2015-16 season in exchange for goaltender Anton Khudobin. Wisniewski played all of 47 seconds with the Hurricanes on Opening Night before tearing the ACL in his left knee on his first (and only) shift.
Wisniewski never played again for the Hurricanes. His contract was bought out by Carolina the day before the start of this summer’s free agency. Once free agency began, teams were unwilling to risk signing an aging defenseman coming off a major knee injury to a new contract.