If the Avalanche had opened up a good old-fashioned bidding war on Mikko Rantanen, here are teams that would have been the best fit.

The Hurricanes wasted no time making their major cup-chasing move. Despite the NHL Trade deadline being over a month away, Carolina added the most-significant firepower imaginable by acquiring Mikko Rantanen from the Colorado Avalanche in a complicated three-way trade involving the Chicago Blackhawks.

New Hurricanes star winger Mikko Rantanen was reportedly blindsided by his trade from the Avalanche on Friday.

Who won Friday night's blockbuster that saw Mikko Rantanen go from the Colorado Avalanche to the Carolina Hurricanes?

Facing the prospect of Colorado’s star winger Mikko Rantanen becoming an unrestricted free agent after this season, general manager Chris MacFarland felt the timing was right to deal him away and bolster the Avalanche’s roster for the future.

Rantanen said he thought talks with the Avs had been productive before the shocking trade to the Canes: "I didn’t know we were in a rush."

Mikko Rantanen skated to center ice at UBS Arena and a familiar sound emanated from his teammates near the bench. “Moooose.” Rantanen scooped up the puck on his stick, smoothly moved toward the goaltender and then snapped a shot off the crossbar and into the net.

I didn’t think this would need to be updated so quickly. But when a historic mid-season trade between two contenders (and Chicago) breaks on a Friday night, things change.

The Colorado Avalanche made the blockbuster trade on Friday sending Stanley Cup champion Mikko Rantanen to the Carolina Hurricanes for Martin Necas and Jack Drury.

Former Avalanche winger Mikko Rantanen took to Instagram to share his gratitude to the franchise after being traded to the Hurricanes.