Ethan Bear has been traded to the Carolina Hurricanes for Warren Foegele

According to Elliotte Friedman, Bear has been traded to the Carolina Hurricanes in exchange for forward Warren Foegele.

With Tyson Barrie back on a multi-year contract, it became pretty realistic that Ethan Bear was going to be on the way out. The rumour that @Cody Ceci could be coming to Edmonton, a Bear deal had become inevitable.

Barrie will likely play alongside @Darnell Nurse, as the pair found good chemistry last season, while young, puck-moving defender @Evan Bouchard seems poised to kick off his first full season in the league on the team’s third pairing. That would leave the right side of Edmonton’s second pair, the hole left by @Adam Larsson, would have either been left for Bear or for another shutdown defender.

Bear was originally drafted by the Oilers in the fifth round of the 2015 draft from the Seattle Thunderbirds. After two more seasons in the WHL, Bear had a strong rookie season in the AHL and earned an 18-game cup of coffee with the Oilers. The following season, he spent the entire year in the minors, never once earning a call-up to the big leagues.

That following summer, Bear dedicated himself to his off-season training and cracked Edmonton’s blueline out of camp. The team was dealing with an injury to Larsson and Bear stepped up in a huge way. He spent most of the season playing in the top-four with Nurse and was very good, scoring 21 points over 71 games while logging 21:58 per night.

Bear’s 2021 season was a struggle due largely to a concussion he suffered in early February after being struck in the head by a puck. He played in 43 games, scoring eight points and logging 17:58. His role alongside Nurse on the team’s top pairing was filled by Barrie.

In return, the Oilers are getting @Warren Foegele, a hard-working, middle-six winger with excellent wheels who forechecks well and can kill penalties. He perfectly fits the profile of the type of forward that Dave Tippett likes.

Foegele scored 10 goals and 20 points in 53 games for Carolina in 2021 with a 25-to-21 on-ice goal differential. Foegele spent most of his time playing on a defensively oriented line centred by @Jordan Staal with either @Jordan Martinook or @Brock McGinn on his right. With @Zach Hyman in the mix and @Ryan Nugent-Hopkins also on the left side, Foegele is a nice addition to Edmonton’s third line.

Foegele is coming off of a one-year contract in which he was paid $2,150,000. He’s currently a restricted free agent. Bear’s cap hit was $2,000,000 and he’s set to become an RFA next summer.