Red & Black Hockey
Entries with the tag: Carolina+Hurricanes
McBain has huge debut week
by David Lee on 03/21/10 at 12:46 PM ET
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Rookie defenseman Jamie McBain wasn’t expected to play on the Hurricanes this season. The Canes dismantled their blueline, then suffered a second bout of injuries, and this has bumped him not only up to the big team, but to the top pairing. Three games in, he’s doing a brilliant job of adjusting. All he’s done is put up four points in three games, including an assist on the game-winning goal on Thursday, and a buzzer-beating game-winning goal last night.
The 22-year old was the Hurricanes first selection in the 2006 Entry Draft. They didn’t have a first round selection, and took McBain in the second round with the 63rd overall selection. The product of the US National Developmental program spent three seasons with the University of Wisconsin before signing an entry level contract last spring. In the 2008-09 season, he led the Badgers with 37 (7/30) points, was the Western Collegiate Hockey Association player of the year, and was a Hobey Baker finalist.
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Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes, Jamie+McBain,
Canes win big game in OT
by David Lee on 03/18/10 at 10:40 PM ET
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On Thursday night, the Hurricanes hosted the Washington Capitals in a game that had very very little playoff implications. Someone forgot to tell the home team, and they emerged with a 4-3 overtime win.
Former Cane Joe (s)Corvo scored twice for the Caps in the middle stanza while Eric Staal got one for the Canes.
Brett Carson and Chad LaRose scored for the Canes in the third and Eric Fehr forced overtime.
Ray Whitney scored with a shot “from the ladies’ tees” in the final minute of overtime to give Justin Peters another huge win in his young NHL goaltending career.
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Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes, Joe+Corvo, Justin+Peters, Ray+Whitney, Washington+Capitals,
Canes lose critical matchup against Bs
by David Lee on 03/16/10 at 09:29 PM ET
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In order to keep their ridiculously slim playoff hopes alive, the Hurricanes knew that they would have to beat the Bruins in regulation on Tuesday night. Instead, they lost in regulation 5-2 and now find themselves ten points back of the eighth place Bruins. There were four points in the balance, and anything other than a regulation win would be bad. This is not a death blow, but the fat lady is warming up in the wings. With thirteen games left, it’s just too much ground to cover.
The game was over before it even started. Patrice Bergeron scored just 23 seconds in on the first shot of the game. This isn’t the way of a team trying to make the playoffs. This is something else.
Five different Bruins scored one goal and Tukka Rask made 30 saves to get the win. On the other side of the ledger, Erik Cole scored two goals and Manny Legace stopped 32 of 37 shots in loss. There wasn’t much to cheer about for Canes fans and this loss has to deflate the hopes of even the most unrealistically optimistic fan.
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Tags: Boston+Bruins, Carolina+Hurricanes, Erik+Cole, Tukka+Rask,
Coyotes take a bite out of Canes’ hopes
by David Lee on 03/13/10 at 10:31 PM ET
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On Saturday, the Phoenix Coyotes shut out the Carolina Hurricanes 4-0. In the process, they did great damage to Carolina’s quixotic pursuit of the eighth and final playoff position in the East. Martin Hanzal and Lee Stempniak had two goals apiece while Ilya Bryzgalov shut the door 29 times against Canes shooters. The Hurricanes’ eight game home winning streak comes to a screeching halt and the hill to climb becomes that much steeper. Montréal helped the Canes by beating eighth place Boston 3-2, but none of that matters because the Canes failed to help themselves. The gap between the Canes and eighth place remains eight points.
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Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes, Ilya+Bryzgalov, Lee+Stempniak, Martin+Hanzal, Phoenix+Coyotes,
Samson in for Sutter today
by David Lee on 03/13/10 at 12:10 PM ET
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Hurricanes coach Paul Maurice has announced that Brandon Sutter will not be able to play tonight against the visiting NHL Phoenix Coyotes. Sutter suffered a “lower body injury” Thursday night against the Penguins, and didn’t feel right today in the morning skate. Not that it matters, but depending on whose account you believe, Sutter was injured (1) in a collision with Bill Guerin; (b) after getting legs tangled with Kris Letang; (iii) after being checked by Evgeny Malkin; or (D) when he got a skate in a rut and lost an edge.
Coaches were hopeful that he would return to the lineup for tonight’s home game, but it’s not going to happen. Jerome Samson has been recalled from the Rats to fill the roster spot. In one previous recall, Samson (Sam-SAWN) had one assist and four PIMs in five games. He is, by miles, the stats leader in Albany with 62 (32/30) points in 65 games. The native Quebeccer wears the extremely unusual number 67 for the Canes and 17 for the Rats.
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Tags: Brandon+Sutter, Carolina+Hurricanes, Jerome+Samson, Justin+Peters, Phoenix+Coyotes,
Big but inconsequential win for the Canes
by David Lee on 03/11/10 at 11:42 PM ET
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On Thursday night, the Penguins and their mob of fans invaded Raleigh. They used blitzkrieg tactics to take a 2-0 lead just five and a half minutes into the game, and it looked like they would have their way with the host Hurricanes. However, the Hurricanes fought back and ultimately emerged with a 4-3 overtime win. The sea of powder blue sweater-clad fans, who were boisterous during the game, left in silence while the Hurricanes fans reclaimed their own barn.
Justin Peters, who faced 40 shots in the game, looked shaky at times. In the end, though, he earned his fourth win in five tries thanks to some outstanding work in the third frame.
Brian Pothier, who was part of the return on the Joe Corvo trade, scored his first Hurricanes goal to win the game very early in the overtime period.
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Tags: Brian+Pothier., Carolina+Hurricanes, Eric+Staal, Jordan+Staal, Justin+Peters, Pittsburgh+Penguins, Ray+Whitney, Zach+Boychuk,
Canes lose tough one
by David Lee on 03/10/10 at 10:19 PM ET
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When the day started, Carolina was nine points out of eighth place, desperately clinging onto the hope of making a run to the playoffs. They were about to finish a three game road trip through the Southeast division and they seriously needed a win against the best team in the league. They ended up with a 4-3 overtime loss, which would be a good outcome most nights, but when every game is a “must win”, it’s a little heartbreaking.
I know, as I knew in November, that this team isn’t going to make the playoffs. However, they’ve played very well since the new year and actually made the impossible seem possible.
They also learned early in the morning that Erik Cole was suffering from flu-like symptoms and would be unavailable tonight. In other seasons, that would be devastating news, but to be brutally honest, I’ve actually forgotten that he’s even on the team this season.
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Tags: Brandon+Sutter, Carolina+Hurricanes, Erik+Cole, Oskar+Osala, Washington+Capitals,
Legace shuts out Atlanta
by David Lee on 03/08/10 at 09:57 PM ET
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Back in early October, if someone had told me that the Hurricanes wouldn’t pitch a shutout until March 7, I would have laughed. If someone had told me that Manny Legace would be the one to do it, I would have hit them. Thanks to poor play early in the season, a bout of injuries to Cam Ward and a dismissal of Michael Leighton, Manny Legace has pretty much found himself in the starting goalie’s chair in Carolina. And he got the team’s first shutout of the season on Sunday, a 4-0 win over the Thrashers.
On Thursday, Legace defeated the Senators 4-1, and this had quite a bit of significance for him. It was the first time he’d ever defeated the Senators and it means that he has at least one victory against all 30 active teams.
I’ve said a number of times, and I’ll say again: I hope some other team is taking note and I really hope that Manny gets a contract when he becomes a free agent on July 1. He deserves it very much, but it looks like the Canes won’t have any room for him on the big roster. Justin Peters has pretty much played himself into a situation where it’s his position (backup to Cam) to lose. He’s much younger and much cheaper. It sucks for Manny, but this team needs to get younger.
Peters, who has played very well in four starts, got his first NHL loss on Saturday, a 4-1 loss at Florida.
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Tags: Atlanta+Thrashers, Carolina+Hurricanes, Justin+Peters, Manny+Legace, Pittsburgh+Penguins, Washington+Capitals.,
Red-hot Canes win seventh straight.
by David Lee on 03/04/10 at 10:07 PM ET
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On Thursday night, the new-look Carolina Hurricanes took to the ice with a very different team, but the result was the same. A win. They defeated Matt Cullen and the visiting Ottawa Senators 4-1 to earn their seventh straight win. Remarkably, they remain in the playoff hunt, and they’ve turned from the league’s worst team to the league’s hottest team.
Manny Legace made 25 saves and was the game’s first star. Newly recalled Zach Boychuk pitched in two assists. The newly acquired Brian Pothier dished out three hits and five blocked shots. The Canes got goals from Tom Kostopoulos, Rod Brind’Amour, Chad LaRose and an empty netter from Brandon Sutter. Matt Cullen notched his first goal as a Sen.
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Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes, Chad+LaRose, Manny+Legace, Ottawa+Senators, Zach+Boychuk,
Canes make lots of deals, but not “the big one”
by David Lee on 03/03/10 at 08:14 PM ET
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On the trading deadline day, Carolina Hurricanes GM Jim Rutherford was very busy. He made five transactions, which sent a total of six players out of Raleigh. In return, the Canes organ-eye-zation is getting four players and five picks. Just one of the four players is NHL ready, but they’ll be picking up a third round, fourth round, sixth round and seventh round pick in this summer’s draft, plus a second round pick in 2011. There are two very important things going on with these trades that will help Carolina immensely. First, they’re going to immediately save money, getting some of these contracts off the books. And they instantly get much younger. Five Canes players who were traded are over the age of thirty, and they only gave away one prospect. In return, they’re getting one NHL player, three prospects, and the picks.
Among the bevy of trades, Ray Whitney remains a Hurricane. He was considered to be a highly sought after player in the trade market, but nobody was able to make an attractive enough offer. I’ll try to make quick analysis of each of the trades. I realize that I might be among the minority in Caniac Nation, but I really like what Jim Rutherford did today.
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Tags: Aaron+Ward, Anaheim+Ducks, Andrew+Alberts, Carolina+Hurricanes, Colorado+Avalanche, Joe+Corvo, Scott+Walker, Stephane+Yelle, trade+deadline, Vancouver+Canucks, Washington+Capitals,
Canes roar into March
by David Lee on 03/03/10 at 01:35 AM ET
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The Hurricanes sent a total of four players from three different nations to the Olympic games this February, and all four players returned with hardware. They are one of three NHL teams that had players from each of the three medal-winning countries. Joni Pitk#&228;nen and Tuomo Ruutu won bronze for Finland. Tim Gleason won silver for the USA, and Eric Staal won gold for Canada. Staal became just the 23rd player in history to win an IIHF World Championship, an Olympic gold medal and a Stanley Cup.
These players spent two weeks playing against each other, and they returned to being teammates without missing a beat. The Canes headed into the break as the hottest team in the league, and they continued their ways on Tuesday with a 5-1 win over the lowly Maple Leafs.
Justin Peters, in just his third NHL start, got his third win against a team that has clearly given up. He got the game’s first star and continues to prove himself to be a very capable NHL goaltender. Also in the game, Chad LaRose returned from injury to score a shorthanded goal and pitch in two assists. Not bad. Second star for him. Jussi Jokinen, who was left off the Finnish national team, scored the game-winning goal.
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Tags: Brandon+Sutter, Carolina+Hurricanes, Chad+LaRose, Jussi+Jokinen, Justin+Peters, Toronto+Maple+Leafs,
Canes finish February on fire
by David Lee on 02/13/10 at 09:25 PM ET
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On Saturday, the Hurricanes defeated the Devils 5-2 to complete a sizzling hot month of February. They have now won five in a row to go 5-2 in February. They also went 9-5 in January and are easily one of the hottest teams in the East. Unlike a lot of teams, they’ll lament the Olympic break. While it’s still astronomically improbable, there’s still a slim chance that these boys can qualify for postseason play.
Justin Peters got his second NHL start on the second Saturday in a row, and he got his second win. Ray Whitney (who might still be traded away at the trading deadline) and Jussi Jokinen each scored twice while Zach Boychuk got his first NHL goal. Martin Brodeur was chased from the nets early in the third with the score 4-0.
It looks a little bit like other teams are refusing to take the Hurricanes seriously, but the boys are having fun, and they’re refusing to give up. As a fan, it’s amazing to watch, even if it’s a little bit frustrating.
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Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes, Jussi+Jokinen, Justin+Peters, New+Jersey+Devils, Ray+Whitney, Zach+Boychuk,
technical issues at casa de RBH
by David Lee on 02/09/10 at 09:15 PM ET
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I apologise about the infrequency of and the quality of posts around here lately. I’ve gotten a lot of use out of a Sony Vaio desktop that was top of the line when I bought it during the Clinton administration, but it just can’t cut it anymore. I’m lucky when I can make it connect to the internet long enough to write anything at all, and I have to hold my breath anytime I open more than one tab, so it’s been hard.
I’m trying to rectify this situation and at the same time finally enter the wireless age, but I’ve had some nightmarish issues with my shopping. Hopefully I’ll get it all sorted out in the next few days.
Anyway, the developments are that Nic Wallin was finally traded to San Jose in exchange for Buffalo’s second round pick in the 2010 draft. On Wednesday, the Hurricanes will announce that they’re moving their American League affiliate to Charlotte. This’ll be great for the fans, but a bit rough for the other teams in the AHL’s Eastern Conference. Traveling between cities has usually been done by bus, but back-to-backs with any of the games in Charlotte will necessitate air travel and added expenses. More on this later.
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Tags: Albany+River+Rats, American+Hockey+League, Carolina+Hurricanes, Charlotte,
Strong netminding from rookie Justin Peters gives Canes win over Isles
by David Lee on 02/07/10 at 01:32 PM ET
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In a season where not much has gone right, the Canes can be happy that they’ve played very well in the 2010 portion of this season. They can also be happy that with a 2-0-2 record against the Islanders, they earned six of eight points in that season series. It’s not much, but it’s something.
They can also be happy that young goaltender Justin Peters, who made his NHL debut on Saturday, has a bright future ahead of him. He made 34 saves to earn his first big league win. He looked confident in nets, even if he looked shaky in the post-game interview. Cam Ward is out with a back injury, and although we don’t know the specifics, I’d be surprised if he comes back before the Olympic break. Peters might get one of the three starts before the break, and possibly more after the break. Depending on Cam’s exam on Monday, and depending on the Hurricanes’ desire to put him back out there, it might be next season before Ward suits back up. Either way, the Canes are going to have to find a way to get Cam Ward more rest than he’s been getting over the past three seasons.
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Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes, Jussi+Jokinen, Justin+Peters, New+York+Islanders,
Miller has bad night as Canes squeak by Sabres
by David Lee on 02/06/10 at 12:57 AM ET
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The Hurricanes started this week with a four game win streak and were about to embark on a four game road trip. The Oilers and Flames showed the Canes what the Alberta Advantage is, then the boys flew across the continent to New York for a back-to-back at Buffalo and Long Island.
Cam Ward was added to the list of injured players and Manny Legace got the start in nets. He picked up a 4-3 win against Ryan Miller, who did not perform well. He allowed a couple of uncharacteristically soft goals including the game winner from Jussi Jokinen. One that he saw all the way, but didn’t stop. No traffic, no screen, no re-direction. Nothing. Hopefully it was just a hiccup and not a sign of things to come for Ryan Miller. I say this with reference to his role on team USA for the upcoming Olympic games.
Eric Staal continued his pace, picking up a goal and an assist to stretch his points scoring streak to 11 games. He’s recorded 14 (10/4) points in nine games since being named captain of the team.
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Tags: Buffalo+Sabres, Carolina+Hurricanes, Eric+Staal, Manny+Legace, Ryan+Miller,
Canes recall Goertzen, Corvo deemed “probable” for Wednesday.
by David Lee on 02/02/10 at 08:59 PM ET
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On Monday night, the banged-up Hurricanes lost 4-2 to the banged-up Oilers. The Hurricanes, though, played the game with only 17 skaters. The injury to Sharpie left the team with only 11 healthy forwards and six healthy defensemen. I’m not sure why, but the team didn’t recall a Rat to fill the roster on Monday.
For Wednesday’s game, the team has dipped into the Albany reserve. Zach Boychuk? No. Jerome Samson? No. Drayson Bowman? No. How ‘bout Chris Terry? Nope. They went with Steven Goertzen. Who?
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Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes, injuries, Joe+Corvo, Steven+Goertzen,
As Canes get healthy, they suffer another injury
by David Lee on 02/01/10 at 06:22 PM ET
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Tonight’s matchup between the Edmonton Oilers and the Carolina Hurricanes is not only two of the worst teams in the league, and not only a rematch of the 2006 Stanley Cup Finals. It’s a game between two of the most banged-up teams in the league. The Oilers have lost 306 man-games to injury (which is most in the league) while the Hurricanes have lost 217 man-games (third in the league).
Carolina has started to get some of their regulars back Before they can talk about Joe Corvo, Erik Cole, Tuomo Ruutu or Scott Walker coming back, they’ve unfortunately had to add a player (back) to the injured list. Chad ”Sharpie” LaRose suffered an “upper body injury” in the Hawks game and is not on the four-game road trip.
The team has not announced any call-ups from Albany, and they have not been using any healthy scratches, so I have no idea what the game plan is for tonight.
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Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes, Chad+LaRose, Edmonton+Oilers, injuries,
Canes hot streak continues
by David Lee on 01/30/10 at 09:32 PM ET
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On a rare snowy day in Raleigh, the Hurricanes welcomed one of the best teams in the league in the Chicago Blackhawks. Andrew Ladd and a few other Hawks had a slumber party at Eric Staal’s house, but the Canes weren’t as kind to the visitors once they got inside the RBC Center. Carolina stretched their winning streak to four games with a 4-2 victory. With tonight’s result, the Blackhawks have not won in North Carolina since a 4-1 victory on January 14, 1998. Jeff Hackett was the goalie for the Hawks that night.
A big storm came through on Friday night, dumping at least eight inches of snow on most of North Carolina. Everything was business as usual at the RBC Center, though. NC State played a basketball game and the Canes game went on without a hitch. The crowd was a sparse 7000, but those who drove through the ice and snow were treated to a great game.
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Tags: Cam+Ward, Carolina+Hurricanes, Chicago+Blackhawks,
Bubble teams fail to show up against Canes
by David Lee on 01/27/10 at 10:33 PM ET
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For the second straight game on Wednesday, the Hurricanes faced a team on the Eastern Conference playoff bubble. For the second game in a row, that bubble team took the Canes too lightly. And for the second straight game, the Hurricanes emerged with a 5-1 win.
On Sunday, it was the Bruins who came to the RBC Center but were not ready to play. Like the Canes, they are a team with four regulars out of the lineup, but their effort was horrible. Carolina played well, but it should also be noted that Boston stank. They skated for about five minutes of the first period, then fell completely apart.
On Wednesday, the Rangers stunk up their own barn with a sad performance which will temporarily knock them out of the top eight.
Eric Staal netted another two goals tonight, bringing him to 17 on the season and seven in four games since being anointed captain. Despite his detractors in Caniac Nation, he’s on fire and looking more like the Staal of 2005/06.
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Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes, Eric+Staal, New+York+Rangers,
Staal captaincy gets off to roaring start
by David Lee on 01/21/10 at 09:58 PM ET
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Carolina made a captaincy change on Wednesday, removing the -in waiting part of Eric Staal’s title and officially giving him the C. On Thursday, things went very well for him in his first game as the Cap. He scored a goal in each period. Carolina beat the Thrashers 5-2, and Staal’s empty netter in the closing minute capped off his tenth career hat trick.
His big night also makes him one of the hottest players of late. In his last ten games, he’s accrued 17 (7/10) points. Now that he’s got 13 goals, it seems like he has a chance to reach the 30 goal plateau for the fifth consecutive season.
Staal has some detractors, but I love the captaincy shift and I really like him as a player. I don’t understand how fans can find much to dislike about a guy who has played at exactly a point-a-night for the last five seasons. Sure, he’s streaky. Sure, he always starts slow. Sure, his defensive skills are still a work in progress. He’s still a premier player who is really good in the clutch. And now that he’s officially the captain, I think we’ll see more of that “put the team on his shoulder and take over the game” stuff. I know it’s just one game, but he sure did that tonight.
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Tags: Atlanta+Thrashers, Cam+Ward, Carolina+Hurricanes, Eric+Staal,
Staal takes over for Brind’Amour; more changes likely
by David Lee on 01/20/10 at 05:19 PM ET
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For the last couple of weeks, I’ve been trying to work out a post about Rod Brind’Amour’s declining ice time and declining purpose on the Hurricanes. I would have titled the post “The Old Man and the C”, but today’s developments made it all old news. On Wednesday afternoon, the Hurricanes announced that Eric Staal has become the newest captain of the Hurricanes, effective immediately. Rod Brind’Amour, who has worn the C since 2005, will wear an A for the rest of this season.
This is a move that everyone knew would come some day, and most of us assumed that it would be at some point this summer. The timing is a little strange, but Jim Rutherford has indicated that he’s been talking with Brind’Amour over the last few weeks and months about this. Before the official announcement, Rutherford gave Brindy veto power on the issue, and the 39-year old gracefully accepted the change.
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Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes, Eric+Staal, Rod+Brind'Amour,
Canes set season mark
by David Lee on 01/12/10 at 10:56 PM ET
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On Tuesday night, the Hurricanes did something they haven’t done since last season: they won a third consecutive game. Despite being outshot by a wide margin, Carolina doubled up the host Toronto Maple Leafs to the tune of 4-2. With the regulation win, the Canes move to within four points of fourteenth place in the East. There’s still a chance, albeit a very slim one, that the Canes could make the playoffs. At the very least, they have an excellent chance of finishing higher than 30th in the league.
With some stout goaltending by Cam Ward, some solid minutes from the “Rat Pack”, another strong outing by Eric Staal and some good special teams work, the Canes have their longest winning streak of the season. They’ve won three in a row and four of their last five. And the word on the street is that Chad LaRose could return to the lineup in Detroit on Thursday. And that Erik Cole is right behind him in the recovery room.
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Tags: Brandon+Sutter, Cam+Ward, Carolina+Hurricanes, Eric+Staal, Toronto+Maple+Leafs,
Tuomo Ruutu to miss several games
by David Lee on 01/09/10 at 01:15 PM ET
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Tuomo Ruutu injured his right hand in a fight with Colorado’s Darcy Tucker on Friday night, and the first “official” news is that he’ll be out of the lineup for a couple of weeks. So far, there are no further details about the extent of his “upper body” (right hand) injury. This means that Carolina is now simultaneously missing six of its top nine forwards and one of its top four defenseman.
Some of the previously injured players are starting to skate in no-contact drills, but none is ready to return. Eric Staal is attending a funeral today, and it’s extremely unlikely that he’ll be back for Sunday afternoon’s game. They will need to call up yet another River Rat. There will be almost as many Rats in the room as Canes. At this point, the fans should be wearing Rats gear in the stands of the RBC Center.
My guess is that Drayson Bowman will be the newest callup. We’ll probably find out sometime today.
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Tags: Albany+River+Rats, Carolina+Hurricanes, injuries, Tuomo+Ruutu,
Canes beat Avs, lose Ruutu
by David Lee on 01/08/10 at 11:37 PM ET
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This season has been a house of horrors for the Canes. Not only have they been losing a lot of games, but they’ve been losing a lot of players too. For Friday night’s game against the Avalanche, six skaters were from the American League. For Sunday’s game against the Senators, we’ll need to make that seven.
Back in late October, the Canes traveled to Denver where they lost a rollercoaster game to the Avs. In that game, Tuomo Ruutu was given a boarding major, game misconduct and a two game suspension for running Darcy Tucker from behind. Ruutu was taken to task for this, and he won the battle but lost the war.
Carolina won the game 2-1, just barely finding a way to deny Cam Ward his first shutout of the season. There were some really good things in this game. Losing Tuomo Ruutu to injury is not one of them. The Hurricanes will now have to make another call down to Albany, where the cupboard is beginning to run bare.
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Tags: Albany+River+Rats, Carolina+Hurricanes, Colorado+Avalanche, injuries, Tuomo+Ruutu,
The future is now for Canes
by David Lee on 01/06/10 at 09:26 PM ET
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The Hurricanes have been dealing with a lot of injuries this season, and while they are far from the top of the list in terms of man-games lost, the injuries to key players are really starting to mount. More than any season except maybe 2002-03, they’ve had to rely on players from the American League to fill the roster. For a few weeks, they’ve been playing with no less than five players from the AHL, and with the Staal situation, they’ll start tomorrow’s game with six skaters who started this season in the American Hockey League.
And don’t forget that Manny Legace didn’t even have a pro contract when this season started.
Like Hudsucker Industries, “The Future is Now” for the Carolina Hurricanes. They’re getting a very good look at the kids who will be the future of this team.
While it isn’t official, and no call-up has been made, this depth chart from the team’s official page suggests that Jerome Samson (pronounced Sam-SAWN) will indeed be the latest Rat call.
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Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes, Eric+Staal, injuries, Jerome+Samson,
Whitney lifts Canes past Blueshirts in OT
by David Lee on 01/02/10 at 04:02 PM ET
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The Rangers and Hurricanes played for the third time this season on Saturday afternoon. Both previous meetings were in Raleigh, both were low-scoring, the Canes scored first in both, and the Rangers won Both. 3-1 on December 21, 2-1 on December 31. This game almost followed the same formula as the Canes scored first, and it was low scoring. Carolina emerged with the 2-1 win in their first game of the 2010 portion of the schedule.
Carolina has earned five of eight available points in their last four games, and have won two straight road games. Still, though, they’ve only won three road games all season. It’s silly to complain after a win, but Carolina only managed to get 19 shots on goal, and that’s not going to be enough to win the game most nights. They will need to continue working on shooting the puck and getting it through the defense.
Both goaltenders were great, but only one could win, and it was Cam Ward.
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Tags: Cam+Ward, Carolina+Hurricanes, Marian+Gaborik, New+York+Rangers, Ray+Whitney,
Boychuk, Tlusty recalled
by David Lee on 01/02/10 at 12:47 PM ET
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The Hurricanes have placed Scott Walker on injured reserve and have said that Sergei Samsonov will not play against the Rangers on Saturday. Both have an “upper body injury”. In their stead, Ji ří Tlustý and Zach Boychuk have been called up from Albany. Still no sign of Jerome Samson.
The early indication is that Paul Maurice will trot out a third line of all American Leaguers. The “Rat Line” will be Tlusty, Pat Dwyer and Boychuk. Boychuk, who is second (to Samson) on the Rats in scoring with 24 (11/13) points had the game winner against former Hurricane John “Crackers” Graham and the Adirondack Phantoms on New Year’s Eve.
Boychuk has one assist in two games with the Canes. Tlustý has one goal in four NHL games (two of which were with the Leafs). Dwyer has played 16 games and has potted two goals for the big team.
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Tags: Albany+River+Rats, Carolina+Hurricanes, Jiri+Tlusty, Pat+Dwyer, Zach+Boychuk,
despite bad season, Staal makes team Canada
by David Lee on 12/30/09 at 07:07 PM ET
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Eric Staal has played in two long playoff seasons. He has won the Stanley Cup once. He is one of only six players to have scored thirty or more goals in each season from 2005/06 to 2008/09. When Steve Yzerman announced Team Canada’s roster on Wednesday, Staal learned that he will represent his country in the Olympics for the first time. He was on the taxi squad in 2006 and was never called upon.
He’s off to a slow start this season. Even slower than usual. He played at less than 100% for several games and missed ten games with injuries, but since returning, he’s been in great form. He might just now be hitting his full stride this season, and the timing couldn’t be much better for team Canada. Although he’s a natural center, he’s been playing a little bit at right wing (which is where Team Canada will need him), and he’s been doing quite well.
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Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes, Eric+Staal,
Canes rout Caps. New “big line” discovered
by David Lee on 12/29/09 at 05:03 PM ET
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On Monday night, the Hurricanes went to face the best team in the East on hostile ground. Not only were the Caps the best team in the Eastern conference, but they were until last night undefeated in SE divisional play. Perhaps they saw the Hurricanes coming and decided to take the night off. Perhaps they were shelled by the team trading away its captain. Perhaps something else. Carolina did not look like the worst team in the league, and they spanked the Caps 6-3.
In the third period of Saturday’s game against the Flyers, the Carolina coaching staff gambled on on reconstructing a top line of all centers. They put Jussi Jokinen, Matt Cullen and Eric Staal together. It was a chance, and it worked beautifully in that game and even better Monday night against the Capitals. Saturday night, they combined for six points in just one period of play. Monday night, they combined for ten points. It’s way too early to know for sure, but it looks like this new top line is a great idea.
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Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes, Eric+Staal, Jussi+Jokinen, Matt+Cullen, Washington+Capitals,
Ovechkin v Gleason III
by David Lee on 12/28/09 at 11:01 AM ET
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Tonight will be the third of six meetings between the Washington Capitals and the Carolina Hurrianes. In each of the previous two meetings, Alexander Ovechkin has found a way to injure Hurricanes defenseman Tim Gleason. Tonight, the crafty Russian will have another chance.
On November 30, in Raleigh, Ovechkin showed a bit of his reckless side when he instigated a knee-on-knee hit on Gleason that resulted in a bigger injury for the hitter than the hittee. Gleason missed one shift, while Ovechkin was ejected and handed a two-game suspension.
On December 11, in DC, Gleason suffered a nasty cut on the mouth after an Ovechkin slapshot caromed off Gleason’s stick and right into his face. Obviously, AO didn’t do this on purpose, but it was kind of strange. The injury kept Gleason out of the game for one period and he returned to score a dramatic shorthanded goal that forced overtime. He would later miss a few games with concussion-like symptoms.
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Tags: Alexander+Ovechkin, Carolina+Hurricanes, Tim+Gleason, Washington+Capitals,
Canes bounce back against Cats
by David Lee on 12/20/09 at 10:56 AM ET
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In the back end of a back-to-back home-and-home against Florida, the Hurricanes won 3-2. They have now won five of the last six home games. Four of their next five games will be in the RBC Center, and all will be against Eastern Conference teams. This will give the boys a chance to start their long climb back into the playoff hunt. At this point, though, they’d be happy just to get to 14th in the East.
Over the summer, the RBC Center got new endwalls and new glass. The boards are much more lively than they ever were in the past, and this contributed to one goal for each team.
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Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes, Florida+Panthers, Pat+Dwyer,
Canes fall to Cats in front end of home-and-home
by David Lee on 12/19/09 at 12:43 PM ET
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On Friday, while most of North Carolina was getting pounded with a rare autumn snowstorm, the Hurricanes were getting pounded down in Florida. They lost 6-3 to the Panthers in the front end of a home-and-home that will resume tonight in Raleigh.
Carolina struck first, but then gave up six unanswered goals including two in a a 37 second span in the third period. This is the theme of this miserable season. Giving up goals in quick succession. Although it was too little and too late, Scott Walker and Eric Staal scored late markers to make the game look closer than it really was.
Carolina has been playing with half of their regular blueliners on the injury list. The “Rat pack” has been great at times, but pretty bad at times. The good news is that Tim Gleason is expected to return to the lineup tonight after missing the last two games with lingering problems from the Ovechkin puck to the face last Friday.
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Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes, Florida+Panthers,
Canes down Stars. It’s all about the Finns
by David Lee on 12/16/09 at 11:24 PM ET
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On Wednesday, rumors spread that Carolina will be opening the 2010-11 season with two games in Finland. Maybe all that excitement about the Finnish trip had something to do with it, and maybe it was just some sort of synchronicity, but Carolina’s three native Finns played very well in Carolina’s 5-3 victory over the visiting Dallas Stars. At the end of it all, Tuomo Ruutu got his first career hat trick, even if Ray Whitney almost messed it up.
Nothing has been announced, and nothing will be announced for another couple of months, but there’s some very strong suggestion that Carolina will be one of the teams starting their season in Europe next season, and everything is pointing towards Finland. With Carolina’s three Finns, the games would be certain to draw huge crowds. According to what I’ve heard, although the teams lose home games, the league gives them financial benefits from the Europe games. Season ticket holders would lose one game, but they obviously wouldn’t have to pay for it. The Finns get to play at home. Everybody wins.
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Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes, Dallas+Stars, Eric+Staal, Finland, Joni+Pitkanen, Jussi+Jokinen, Tuomo+Ruutu,
Leighton assigned to Albany
by David Lee on 12/12/09 at 02:00 PM ET
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On Saturday, the Hurricanes sent Michael Leighton to the River Rats. The 28-year old backup was placed on and cleared waivers this week. Because he is on a one-way contract, this assignment does not save the Hurricanes any money, nor does it change the salary cap hit.
Leighton has worked hard to get a break in the NHL, but the honest truth is that he’s not an NHL goalie. And he might never be. He hasn’t learned to utilize his size and he gets out of position too much. Also, he isn’t a strong enough skater to recover when he finds himself out of position. All of that aside, he wasn’t getting enough playing time to develop or maintain NHL skills. It’s a little bit sad that Michael was essentially discarded, but it just didn’t make hockey sense to keep him on the big team. Manny Legace is on a two-way contract and would save the organ-eye-zation some money if he were to be assigned, but Legace gives the team a better chance.
Bad break for Leights, but Manny Legace deserves this.
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Tags: Albany+River+Rats, Carolina+Hurricanes, Manny+Legace, Michael+Leighton,
the character of Tim Gleason
by David Lee on 12/12/09 at 01:23 PM ET
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Hockey players are known for playing through injuries that other athletes wouldn’t. Is it toughness? Stupidity? Steadfastness? Sisu? I don’t know. But what Tim Gleason did last night was simply badassed. After taking a puck to the kisser and suffering a nasty cut, he came back all stitched up and scored an even nastier shorthanded goal:
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Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes, Tim+Gleason,
Battered Canes fall in OT at Washington
by David Lee on 12/11/09 at 09:38 PM ET
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On Friday, the Hurricanes announced that both Erik Cole and Chad LaRose would be placed on the injured reserve list. Jiří Tlustý and Pat Dwyer were called up from Albany to fill the forward lines. Cole has an “upper body injury” and will be out for two to three weeks. Sharpie has a “lower body injury” and will be out for three to four weeks.
It didn’t take long for the Czech to make his mark. Just 2:01 into the game, on his first shift as a Hurricane, Tlustý gave the visitors a 1-0 lead. Carolina built a 2-0 lead in the first period, watched it evaporate in the second, then traded goals in the third. Regulation ended in a 3-3 deadlock and Mike Green gave the Caps the win at 1:16 of the extra frame.
For the second game in a row, Carolina lost, but played well. There’s no column in the standings for “well played loss”, but there is one for “overtime loss”, so Carolina gets a much needed standings point.
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Tags: Alex+Semin, Carolina+Hurricanes, Jiri+Tlusty, Tim+Gleason, Washington+Capitals,
Devils outlast Canes
by David Lee on 12/09/09 at 09:33 PM ET
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Martin Brodeur had a chance on Wednesday to set a new NHL record for career shutouts. For about 26 minutes of gametime, it looked like it might happen. In the end, though, he earned a 4-2 win and the Devils protected their lead atop the Atlantic division.
Cam Ward was playing for the first time in 32 days, and he looked pretty sharp. He gave up two goals in the first period that were not at all his fault, and one in the second. Late in the second, when the Canes were surging, Ward was really sharp. In the third, the puck was in the other end for most of the period, and he really didn’t have to work much. It was a good first game back for him, and it was a good game overall for the Canes, even if they came out on the wrong end of it.
Andy Greene was the star of the night with two goals including the game winner. On the Canes side of things, Joni Pitkä was quite good, picking up two assists.
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Tags: Andy+Greene, Cam+Ward, Carolina+Hurricanes, Joni+Pitkanen, Martin+Brodeur, New+Jersey+Devils,
With the Captain benched, Carolina gets first road win
by David Lee on 12/07/09 at 10:16 PM ET
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On Monday, there was a lot of contention amongst Hurricanes fans when rumors started to circulate that Rod Brind’Amour would be a healthy scratch for the Pens game. While some refused to believe it and some chose to have their feelings by it, the rumor had truth to it. Carolina’s 78 year-old Captain was exiled to the press box as a healthy scratch. The coaching staff finally decided that his five minutes of ice time should go to someone else.
On some teams, this might have made waves in the room, but it didn’t seem to upset the group in white tonight. When the final horn sounded, Carolina got its first road win of the season on their penultimate visit to the Mellon Arena.
Manny Legace managed not to get injured tonight, which disproves my theory about his health in the first seven days of December. Or at least it stops a bizarre trend. One other bizarre trend continued, and it was that Eric Staal registered zero goals and two assists for the third straight game.
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Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes, Eric+Staal, Manny+Legace, Marc-Andre+Fleury, Pittsburgh+Penguins, road+win,
Cole gets hat trick as Canes snap five game skid
by David Lee on 12/05/09 at 04:08 PM ET
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Erik Cole potted three goals this afternoon as the Hurricanes beat the visiting Canucks 5-3. Ray Whitney contributed a goal and two assists and Eric Staal had two helpers of his own. Matt Cullen couldn’t stretch his goal streak to four games, but with one assist, he extended his points streak to five games.
Manny Legace let in a soft goal in the first, then two great Canucks goals in the third made things a bit tense, but in the end the Canes prevailed.
Carolina remains in the NHL’s cellar, 12 points out of eighth in the East. They are about to embark on a four game road trip, and the road hasn’t been kind. They are 0-10-3 away from the RBC Center.
Cam Ward is hoping to return next week, possibly as early as Monday at Pittsburgh. The timing could be perfect, for a number of reasons…
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Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes, Erik+Cole, Manny+Legace, Vancouver+Canucks,
Leafs and Canes swap former first rounders.
by David Lee on 12/04/09 at 07:59 PM ET
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On Thursday, The Hurricanes acquired 2006 first rounder Jiří Tlustý from the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for the rights to Philippe Paradis, who was selected with the 27th overall pick in the 2009 draft.
Tlustý, who got famous for “accidentally” posting nude pictures of himself on the internet a couple of seasons ago, has spent the last three seasons going up and down between the Marlies and the big club in Toronto. The 6’ left winger has played in 74 career NHL games and has registered 20 (10/10) points. He’s obviously much further along developmentally than Paradis, who is still toiling away in the QMJHL.
Jim Rutherford has said that he thinks Tlustý could play in the top six next season. I don’t see this as a reality, but one thing that might help is that there’s some contracts expiring in July. I think some of the older veterans will end up elsewhere .
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Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes, Jiri+Tlusty, Toronto+Maple+Leafs, trade,
Another third period implosion.
by David Lee on 11/28/09 at 10:05 PM ET
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On Saturday night, the Hurricanes stuck with their game plan from the previous game, and the result obviously wasn’t good. Carolina had a tenuous 1-0 lead going into the third period, but Ryan Miller was playing an absolutely other-worldly game. Something didn’t feel right about it, and it didn’t take long for the third to be all Sabres.
Matt Cullen converted a horrible turnover by Tyler Myers into a goal early in the first, but after that it was all about #30. He made save after remarkable save to keep it 1-0. And for the first two periods, Michael Leighton was on point at the other end of the ice. There was no scoring in the second period, as both netminders were up to the task. For the second time in as many nights, though, the Canes surrendered five goals in the final frame.
For a Sabre-centric view of the game, I recommend BFLOblog. I’m not really equipped to look at this game in a level-headed manner, but after the jump, there’s some angry commentary.
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Tags: Buffalo+Sabres, Carolina+Hurricanes,
Canes find new way to lose
by David Lee on 11/27/09 at 11:28 PM ET
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Carolina held a 4-1 lead entering the third period against the Thrashers on Friday night. I thought to myself, “even these Canes can’t screw this up”. I thought wrong. Two goals in 49 seconds (for the 12th time this season) made it uncomfortably close. At that point, the whole thing blew up. Carolina lost the confidence they had, the defensemen went AWOL and the whole thing went from sweet to bitter almost instantly. In the end, it was Atlanta who iced it with an empty net goal to end an extraordinarily improbable comeback and a 6-4 win for the Thrash. What seemed like two sure points became nothing.
By now, I’ve been to a couple hundred Hurricanes games, and I’ve been a season ticket holder in some capacity for seven seasons now. I’ve supported them through the leanest of the lean seasons and obviously the best season in 2005-06. I have never seen anything like the total collapse that I witnessed tonight. I don’t even know what to say.
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Tags: Atlanta+Thrashers, Carolina+Hurricanes,
Legace and the Finns win again.
by David Lee on 11/21/09 at 09:57 PM ET
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Carolina extended their streak of earning points to five games with an impressive 3-1 win over the visiting Bolts. It was only the second regulation win of the season for Carolina and it snapped a streak of four straight overtime games and three straight shootouts.
Brandon Sutter had a four game point streak snapped, but still played a good game. Jussi Jokinen extended his points streak to four games with the game-winning goal. In the past four games he has three goals and an assist.
Manny Legace played with confidence, played well, and had the guys in front of him play well. It was probably the most complete game this team has played all season.
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Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes, Chad+LaRose, Jussi+Jokinen, Manny+Legace, Tampa+Bay+Lightning, Tuomo+Ruutu,
Ruutu, Cole and the Canes snatch victory from the jaws of defeat
by David Lee on 11/19/09 at 09:56 PM ET
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On Thursday night, the Hurricanes hosted the Maple Leafs with a good chance to stretch their points streak to four games. Although things didn’t go well early on, they battled back. Although they gave up a would-be game winning goal with 30 seconds remaining in the third, they never gave up. Erik Cole scored with two seconds remaining, and then the Finns took care of business in the shootout. Carolina emerged with a gutsy 6-5 win and they have crawled out of the Eastern conference cellar. Baby steps.
The Canes spotted the Leafs one goal, allwing Matt Stajan to score on the Leafs second shot of the game at 1:01 of the first. Lee Stempniak added one at 14:21 and Mikail Grabovski another at 18:26. Things, seemingly, were about to fall apart. However, as they have done repeatedly this month, they refused to let a two or three goal deficit cancel their will to compete. Instead of folding like a rented futon, they displayed a little sisu and fought back. And won.
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Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes, Erik+Cole, sisu, Tim+Gleason, Toronto+Maple+Leafs, Tuomo+Ruutu,
Canes, having cap issues, place Ward on LTIR
by David Lee on 11/19/09 at 08:31 AM ET
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Although the Hurricanes are far from the most injured team in the NHL (Carolina has 57 man-games lost compared to 109 for the Canucks), they are starting to run into some cap issues. Carolina started the season a little over their own budget, but with plenty of room under the cap. That’s no longer the case.
To ease the strain, Carolina has placed Cam Ward on the Long Term Injured Reserve and has recalled Justin Peters from Albany. This allows a portion of Ward’s salary to be withheld from the cap hit. Presumably, this has been done retroactive to November 8.
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Tags: Cam+Ward, Carolina+Hurricanes, injuries, Manny+Legace, salary+cap,
Habs top Canes in shootout thriller, Leighton hurt
by David Lee on 11/17/09 at 10:29 PM ET
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On Tuesday, the Hurricanes earned one standings point and lost another goaltender. Carolina had a one goal lead late in the third period, but Manny Legace gave up a bad goal to Sergei Kostitsyn which sent the game into overtime. In the overtime period, Carolina had a man advantage for the final two minutes of play, but failed to cash in on the four-on-three advantage.
The shootout went six rounds, with Maxim Lapierre getting the goal and Carey Price making an improbable skate save on Matt Cullen.
Carolina has earned points in three straight games, and Brandon Sutter scored again. These are good things. But the rather bad news is that Michael Leighton suffered an apparent groin injury in the second period.
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Tags: Brandon+Sutter, Carolina+Hurricanes, injuries, Manny+Legace, Michael+Leighton, Montreal+Canadiens,
Canes embark on roadtrip with dads
by David Lee on 11/17/09 at 12:02 AM ET
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When the Hurricanes travel to Montréal on Tuesday, it’ll be part of their annual roadtrip with the dads. A lot of teams around the league do this where once a season, the fathers (or some other family member) join their son (or nephew or whatever) on the road. They room together, and all the dads bond with each other, and they have a lot of fun.
Earlier today, I pointed out the obvious that Brent Sutter won’t be joining Brandon on this trip since the Flames have a home game against the Avs. While Henry Staal is the second most famous of the dads, Bob Brind’Amour is the star of the show. Everyone loves Bob. Although Fox Sports Carolinas isn’t covering this game, John Forslund and Tripp Tracy will still argue about which one of them gets to go to the senior prom with Rod’s dad.
Still, this isn’t fun and games for everyone. While this is a really fun time for everyone else, it’s going to be a somber time for Jussi Jokinen, whose father passed away in March.
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Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes,
The streak is over!
by David Lee on 11/15/09 at 06:04 PM ET
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On Sunday, the Hurricanes finally ended their horrific 14-game winless streak. It wasn’t the prettiest win in the world, but since there’s no column in the standings for “ugly win”, we’ll chalk it up in the “W” column. Twice, the Canes had three goal leads in the second period. With 6:15 to play in the second, the Canes had a 4-1 lead, but the next eight minutes of gameplay were a train wreck. Fortunately, the Canes emerged out of the shootout with a win, and a tremendous weight was lifted off of the RBC Center. The kind of weight that’s lifted only when one’s career depends on it.
The weight was lifted off the players, the fans, the PA announcer, the hot dog vendors, the organist, and just about anybody who has any connection to this team. The celebration on the ice and in the stands was sort of like the ones we’ve seen after winning playoff series, and at this point, it feels about the same.
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Tags: Brandon+Sutter, Carolina+Hurricanes, Michael+Leighton, Minnesota+Wild, Ray+Whitney, Tuomo+Ruutu,
Canes streak continues
by David Lee on 11/14/09 at 08:46 PM ET
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On Friday night, the Hurricanes dropped their 14th consecutive game, even if they managed to force overtime. Since October 9, they have gone 0-10-4. However, the news isn’t all bad.
On Wednesday, the Canes overcame a two goal deficit only to lose 5-2. On Friday, they overcame a horrible first period in which they fell behind 3-0. Tim Gleason took a really dumb double minor early in the game which ended up spotting the Islanders two goals, but it was his goal late in the third that forced overtime. The Canes were 14 seconds away from going to shootout when defenseman Bryan Rodney, recently called up from Albany, committed a bad turnover deep in the Canes zone. This led directly to the winning goal and although the Canes looked like they would end the horrible streak, they added one more tick mark to the locker room wall.
The good news is that some of the forwards are starting to play well. With five (3/2) points in his last seven games, Brandon Sutter has looked like a Sutter, and Tuomo Ruutu is starting to assert himself. And for only the second time in this dry spell, the Canes scored more than two goals. That’s a start.
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Tags: Brandon+Sutter, Carolina+Hurricanes, losing+streak, Manny+Legace., Minnesota+Wild, New+York+Islanders, Tuomo+Ruutu,
The Legace hazard (or: It’s just Manny being Manny)
by David Lee on 11/09/09 at 09:45 PM ET
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On Monday morning, the Hurricanes announced what everyone knew was coming. They have signed 36-year old veteran goaltender Manny Legace to a one-year two-way contract. He will be paid the league minimum of $500k at the NHL level and $105k at the AHL level. The one-time Stanley Cup winner was last seen in Atlanta’s system on a tryout contract with the Chicago Wolves of the AHL. This, of course, came on the heels of Cam Ward suffering a deep laceration on his left thigh on Saturday. Ward has been ruled out for at least four weeks. The signing was pretty much an emergency situation, and given the price tag, I don’t think they could have done any better.
While some people are making light of the fact that Legace was drafted by (but never played for) the Whale, there’s a far more alarming thing about Legace that should concern all of us. There’s a really bizarre trend with his health. Specifically, he’s never been able to stay healthy in December
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Tags: Carolina+Hurricanes, injuries, Manny+Legace,
