2010-11 Carolina Hurricanes Season Preview
by Bob Wage on Sep 20, 2010 7:00 AM EDT
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PrintNow that training camp is open and the preseason is upon us, SB Nation NHL will be featuring daily season previews for each NHL team, along with five burning questions for each club. Today is the day selected for the Hurricanes.
We will handle the preview here. SBN will be posting the five questions, later in the day.
2009-10 Recap:
Last season was one which started off with lofty expectations, then quickly turned to bitter disappointment, but eventually ended up with bright hope for the future. It was a season of injuries. Eric Staal, Cam Ward, Erik Cole, Chad LaRose, Tim Gleason, Joe Corvo, Tuomo Ruutu, and Joni Pitkanen each missed significant time due to a variety of ailments.
While every team in the NHL has their fair share of maladies, most teams can not afford to lose so many top players and still expect to be competitive. This team was no exception.
The Hurricanes lost early and often as they dug themselves a hole they could not crawl out of, even though they played as well as anyone in the league down the stretch.
The team played their way out of the playoffs during the first two months of the season with a dreadful October and November performance which included a 14 game winless streak, (0-11-3), tying a franchise record. But from mid-January on, the team played on a pace which would have put them at fourth place in the East.
The franchise lost its Cup Captain and on-ice warrior, Rod Brind`Amour. Several other familiar faces who were fan favorites and steady performers over the years, moved on. Last season, Carolina started a brand new era with new leadership and a fresh perspective which has carried on to the current training camp.
Offseason Moves:
To view this in better perspective, we should go back to the trade deadline last season. Gone are Matt Cullen, Stephane Yelle, Scott Walker, Aaron Ward, Andrew Alberts, and Niclas Wallin. Joe Corvo was also traded at the deadline but was re-signed for two years this summer.
Rod Brind`Amour retired and is now the Director of Forward Development. Ray Whitney decided to hold out for a better payday and eventually signed in Phoenix. All in all, the Hurricanes are now missing eight roster players with whom they started the ill-fated 09-10 season.
The team acquired Bobby Sanguinetti, Jon Matsumoto, and Riley Nash in various trades during the draft. They also made a trade for Jared Staal, who has already shown signs of improvement this summer.
Their only free agent acquisition, (other than Corvo) was the recently signed Patrick O`Sullivan, a forward who was traded by Edmonton for Jim Vandermeer, but then was eventually bought out by the Coyotes.
Three Strengths:
1. Depth. The Hurricanes now have more depth than ever before and fans of the Charlotte Checkers are going to be in for a treat. The franchise is loaded with quality young players and there is simply not enough room for them all in Raleigh. Now with the addition of O`Sullivan and emergence of Jeff Skinner, two forwards are probably going to end up in the AHL when they could have easily been playing in the NHL. The good news is that when\if the injury bug bites, there will be players ready, willing, and able to step in.
2. Goaltending. Cam Ward has the ability to be "world class" in net and after enduring a disappointing season of injuries last year, he will be more motivated than ever to excel this season.
3. Offensive Defensemen. Even though last season's group was more physical, they were slow and lumbering at times in the back end. This season's blueline has more speed and can attack in the offensive zone nonstop. They also have plenty of skill and talent to man the point on the powerplay, which should be a huge improvement in that category from last season.
Three Weaknesses:
1. Physicality. Will the Hurricanes be tough enough, gritty enough, and physical enough to do what needs to be done to win games? Will the defensemen be big enough to clear the crease when they need to? Will the forwards be able to get to the "dirty" areas of the ice? The club lost a lot of grit, especially in the back end, and it will be interesting to see who will provide that in the new group.
2. Playmaking. The team has plenty of shooters and scorers, but few skaters who can set up a play and be depended upon to consistently get assists. This group will most likely replace Ray Whitney's goals, but who will pick up his assists?
3. Face offs. The Hurricanes lost Rod Brind`Amour, who used to take every important face off for the team. Last season Brandon Sutter was at 49%, Eric Staal at 42%, and Patrick Dwyer at 35%. Jussi Jokinen won 52% of his chances in the circle, but he's expected to play at wing this year. Who will step up and win some face offs for the team this season?
Depth Chart:
Forwards:
Staal-Jokinen-Ruutu
Sutter-Samsonov-LaRose
(Skinner)-(O'Sullivan)-Cole
(Dwyer)-Kostopoulos-(Boychuk)
Some of the wingers are likely to be moved around all over that board.
(Players in parenthesis are most likely to be challenged for that position. Jiri Tlusty has been nursing a knee injury and is expected to be able to play soon).
Other forwards in the mix: Tlusty, Zac Dalpe, Drayson Bowman, Riley Nash, Jon Matsumoto, Jared Staal, Matt Kennedy, Oskar Osala, and Jerome Samson.
Defense:
Corvo-Gleason
Pitkanen-Babchuk
McBain- (Harrison)
Sanguinetti-Carson
Borer-Rodney
Goalie:
Ward
Peters
Prediction:
The Hurricanes could finish anywhere between 2nd and 5th in the Southeast. It's highly unlikely they can contend with Washington for the division title, but if the key players on the team can stay healthy, the club should be in the mix for the playoffs.
But this group is also just one or two key injuries away from disaster because the youth of the team can not be counted on to carry it the bulk of the season. (Key players to watch out for: Cam Ward, Eric Staal, Joni Pitkanen, and Tim Gleason. If one of those players is out for a significant period of time, it's big trouble in little Carolina.)
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Yes Bob
All you said is 100% true. yet the unknowns plus the quality of those “young guns” who are showing that they do have what it takes to make the big club…but we shall see what we shall see !! in the mean time myvote was and remains Not sure…yet !! as this fan while ‘excited" doesn’t have enough information…Yet !!!
And if it Aint Hockey,It Aint Nothin !!
That Checkers 3rd Sweater ROCKS !!!
Wow, more first place votes than fourth? Confident bunch here.
I voted fourth….but I would’ve voted for “Anywhere not 1st” if it was an option.
Yeah, that’s weird. I voted fourth. I really like what Tampa and Atlanta have done. I’m fairly sure 2-4 in the SE will be pretty close, so it could go any way there.
by red army line on Sep 20, 2010 10:36 AM EDT up reply actions
Voted 3rd, I think Tampa will finally put it together this season. You could also put depth as a weakness, we have a lot of bodies that fill well on the 3rd & 4th line but if Staal goes out or one of our other top 6 forwards we’re going to have a tough time replacing those points. It’s a little tough to tell how we’re going to stack up against the other SE teams, I don’t think Florida will be very good but who knows with Atlanta, they have a very good roster on paper.
It’s hard to tell without seeing play on the ice. I believe chemistry among the players is a huge component and itf the chemistry is there along with the effort then any such team can overcome any superior talent on paper they may face. I like what I have heard so far and if it holds true then I think this team will surprise a lot of people.
Is it October yet?
im just curious as to why you listed so much depth at forward and defense, but didn’t give mike murphy a chance to come up at some point. i think murphy will easily win the starting job in charlotte, and could potentially earn himself a backup spot with the canes as the season progresses, especially if there is an unfortunate injury.
Skinner in the AHL?
I was under the impression that he wasn’t old enough to be assigned to the Checkers and that if he didn’t make the NHL squad he’d be sent back to the juniors. I’m not very educated on AHL policy, is this true?
I do believe that’s the case. IIRC, he can only be assigned to Charlotte if he a) is old enough (he’s not) b) goes on a conditioning stint after spending some time with the Canes (and even then there is a game limit I believe) or c) after his junior team’s season is over.
"What Carolina really has going for them is Brandon Sutter. When that kid first showed up, he looked like a skinny little thing that wouldn’t last two weeks. But he’s turned into a real star."
by caniacgirl on Sep 20, 2010 11:29 AM EDT via mobile up reply actions
for all the talk about the youth and inexperience of the team, there’s only one potential player without any NHL experience listed. Personally, I think there’s a pretty good balance of youth and vets with none of the vets old to the point of possibly being ineffective. If it works out as planned, all 4 lines and 3 pairings can control the play. As far as physicality goes, the D is big enough to push people around if they choose to, although it may not fit their style of play.
...additionally
Our defense has not gotten the kind of positive criticism it deserves. compared to last year (the whole year) this group looks far better, and deeper!! That, in conjuction with a healthy Ward, should make a huge difference in keeping us in games. Also, our shootout choices appear to
be better this year…Skinner, Dalpe, O’sullivan added to Jussi and Ruttu… not too shabby, methinks!!!!
Forward Lines
Bob,
I realize it is hard/impossible to predict the future, but I personally would be disappointed and surprised if the second line were Samsonov/Sutter/LaRose. In fact, I would guess that is perhaps the only line combination we won’t see in the pre-season and on opening night.
I also doubt Boychuk is relegated to the fourth line; although that is more of a possibility that putting Samsonov & LaRose together on the second line. I suspect most Caniacs believe there will likely be some form of musical chairs with the younger forwards.
My guess for opening night forward lines is:
O’Sullivan/Staal/Jokinen
LaRose/Sutter/Ruutu
Boychuk/Skinner/Cole
Samsonov (if healthy)/Dwyer or Dalpe/Kostopoulos
You can bet Mo’s going to put defensively responsible wingers on Sutter’s flanks for our checking line, and that whoever it is will have to have a few hundred NHL games under their belt, so as to have some idea of individual tendencies of those they are assigned to defend.
Tlusty and LaRose were my choices, except for the fact that Tlusty is a no-go as the season begins. Not sure Samsonov is the answer, but neither is Boychuk.
Actually we don’t have a good candidate for this slot with Tlusty out, so Samsonov might be as good as any.
However, I had Samsonov flanking the rookie third line center, whoever that is, with Cole (or LaRose, if not used in the checking role) as the other half of the two veteran wingers that center tryout spot will need.
Here we are now...entertain us.
Will you explain to me exactly what a checking line’s main objective is? Does every team try to have a checking line or is this sometimes just a luxery?
Is it October yet?
by hotchipsnsalsa on Sep 20, 2010 3:29 PM EDT up reply actions
Checking lines
The “checking line” is the group of forwards that a coach ideally wants on the ice when the opposition’s top offensive line is out on the ice, so an easier matchup to get at home, with last line change privileges, than on the road.
Some teams may go strength-on-strength, top line against top line, and may have to when last change isn’t theirs, or want to if they have excellent two-way forwards for the entire top line, but that’s rare.
Usually a team has two top offensive lines and then runs the checking line from the third line (think “BBC” line from earlier in Canes history with Brind’Amour, Battaglia, and Cole).
However, for the Canes, our best two-way center happens to also be our second-best offensive center, so we run the checking line from the second line spot and will presumably use our third line as a scoring line, which I think we can very successfully do.
That’s why I say look for very defensively responsible and experienced wingers on Sutter’s wings (once we get out of preseason experiments, that is), as this is the bunch that will be trying to stop the Crosby’s / Kolvachuck’s / Ovechkin’s of the world.
Not only do they need to be sharp defensively, but need lots of NHL games under their belt so as to know what these top offensive players like to do on the ice, and the subtle countering moves that can be used against them.
Here we are now...entertain us.
I want to see Samsonov with Skinner
Watching how skittish Samsonov is (he plays like someone who drank too much coffee), I think he would make a great wing with Skinner. I have a feeling that pair could be interesting.
Bob, great article – but I didn’t see Babchuk under additions this year.
I would be surprised if O’Sullivan was on our top line to begin the season. Don’t get me wrong, he has skill; but no other team wanted this guy and we’re going to start him on on 1st line? I also feel that putting Dalpe or Skinner on the 4th line would be counter-productive.
Triple Gold Juice - It's Potent and Guaranteed to Help You Score!
Voted 3rd
If the Lightning can get some sort of solid goaltending then I think they can surprise a lot of people and finish around 5-7 in the Eastern Conference. They certainly have the firepower with Stamkos, St. Louis and Lecavalier. It would be nice if we can sneak in the playoffs and give our division three teams in the playoffs for a change.
Yeah, well, you know, that's just like, uh, your opinion, man.
slightly OT – Will any of the preseason games be televised? If memory serves me right (and it rarely does) the answer is no.
Correct?
"The increase in pain is way beyond what you would expect a person to play with," said coach Paul Maurice. "Unfortunately it’s even beyond what Tim Gleason can play with, because he can play with just about anything."
Not as far as I know. Sometimes the team will broadcast the JT feed, but I haven’t heard anything about that this year. Chuck is normally there, but I remember there being technical issues with his broadcast last year so even that’s spotty.
"What Carolina really has going for them is Brandon Sutter. When that kid first showed up, he looked like a skinny little thing that wouldn’t last two weeks. But he’s turned into a real star."
Looking forward o the season. I voted for second place simply because if the young talent can get us on the scoreboard early and often we will have the chance to put teams away early. I still think our D will be good this year. Without anchor a ward in the back end, I think the D will be quicker to respond to odd man rushes coming our way. My only concern is harrison. Personally I’d rather see Brett Carson fill that role.
I just hope this youth movement works out. And apologies in advanced for doing this (again), but the Canes always seem to mirror what the Carolina Panthers do. The Panthers are in a youth/rebuilding mode now, and it isn’t serving them to well. I think the Canes will do better because these young guys do have some veteran leadership on the team to help in their transition to the NHL, unlike the lowly Panthers have in the NFL.
I think second is a lofty goal; third is probably more likely, though I am not sure who would place ahead of us at two in that scenario. Go Canes in any case.
Member of Canes Country and the Cat Scratch Reader
I said 3rd, but
I think they’ve got a shot at the playoffs. Tampa improved this off-season and they can’t be overlooked. Florida will likely be last, and despite the many Chicago imports, Atlanta’s goaltending and lack of an offensive star is not positive for them.
I think Carolina’s chances at the playoffs are better than Atlanta, Florida, Islanders, Toronto, and possibly better than Ottawa, or the Rangers. If Price flops as #1 or if Fleury has another bad season with no wingers for the star pivots in Pittsburgh, they could fall too. The east will be interesting, that’s for sure.
www.prosportsblogging.com
by Great Ice-Pectations on Sep 20, 2010 4:32 PM EDT reply actions
PRESEASON RADIO?
Anyone know if WRAL is doing preseason canes games on radio?
thanks in advance if anyone can help me out!
by Cincinnati Reds on Sep 20, 2010 4:35 PM EDT reply actions
QUESTION.
if the conference held tomorrow is indeed to announce a contract for Skinner- is Skinner officially on the team and not going back to Kitchener??
by RU4RU on Sep 20, 2010 6:23 PM EDT via mobile reply actions
no, most entry level contracts require the player to make the team. He will get his signing bonus no matter what, but if he goes back to Kitchener he does not earn NHL money the rest of the season and the Canes keep the 3 years on his contract.
Editing Manager of CanesCountry.com
Bob, doesn’t signing the contract start the period running toward Skinner’s RFA status or am I mistaken again?
I think and hope that Matsumoto will be the camp's biggest surprise
Barry Melrose Rocks: Hockey and mullets. What else is there?
Unfortunately not much is said about him because the Canes have such a wealth of home-grown talent that we have been talking about forever and everyone is excited to see what they can finally do.
I think similar to Sanguinetti, Matsumoto was stuck behind extremely high-end talent at Center (Richards, Carter, Giroux, etc.) on his former team. He never really got a fair chance there, but given a shot here who knows his ceiling. At the very least he is another young, AHL All-Star added to an already great team in the Checkers. The Canes may have brought in a lot of this talent to ensure the Checkers have a very good first year in Charlotte. Prove to the fans the new team is still the best show in town.
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