Jim Rutherford, the President and General Manager of the Carolina Hurricanes, told WRAL in an exclusive interview Monday afternoon that team defense will be the focus of what he feels will be a "busy week."

"Our biggest goal is to rebuild our defense, really change our defense and make it a lot younger," Rutherford said. "With [Glen] Wesley and [Bret] Hedican leaving...we'll be active. We won't be into the big name guys, the big money guys, but we're going to make some changes on Tuesday through free agency and also maybe make a trade."

Rutherford says the Canes have been working to improve their back line for some time, but that defense is one of the harder positions for a team to find quality players.

"It's a tough market for defensemen because probably two-thirds of the league are looking for defensemen."

Players like Wesley and Hedican provided an experienced presence at the blue line, and Rutherford expects the Canes to go in a similar, though slightly younger, direction.

"We're not looking for the 20 year-old to jump in and be really inexperienced, we're looking for the guys with a little NHL experience that are ready to take their game to the next level."

It sounds like the changes are happening sooner, rather than later, for a Canes team that desperately needs to re-energize their back line.

"We might have two or three new defensemen by Wednesday."

Carolina currently has just four defensemen under contract for next season.