RALEIGH, NC—Jim Rutherford, President and General Manager of the National Hockey League’s Carolina Hurricanes, today announced that the team has traded defenseman Niclas Wallin to the San Jose Sharks. Along with Wallin, the Hurricanes send their own fifth-round pick in the 2010 NHL Entry Draft to San Jose for Buffalo’s second-round pick in the 2010 draft.

“We thank Nic for his time in Carolina,” said Rutherford. “He has been a key part of the Hurricanes for the past nine seasons, and we wish him and his family well.”

The Hurricanes drafted Wallin (6’3”, 220 lbs.) as a 25-year-old in 2000, and he has spent his entire nine-season NHL career with Carolina. The Boden, Sweden, native ranks third among defensemen in franchise history with 517 regular-season games played, and second to only Glen Wesley (729) in that category since the team’s relocation to North Carolina. Wallin, 34, has totaled 69 regular-season points (18g, 51a) to rank him eighth all-time in scoring among defensemen in a Hurricanes uniform. He ranks second among all Carolina players with 69 playoff games played, and scored three overtime game-winning goals while helping the Hurricanes to the Stanley Cup Finals in 2002, the Stanley Cup championship in 2006 and the Eastern Conference Finals in 2009.