Lightning at Hurricanes: Carolina looking for first SE Division Win
by Carolyn Christians on Nov 1, 2011 12:51 PM EDT
in Carolina Hurricanes Game Day Previews
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The Tampa Bay Lightning (5-4-2) are back at the RBC Center tonight for the second time in the 2011-12 season, as the Carolina Hurricanes (4-4-3) start November ready to convert home ice advantage into wins. The Hurricanes have yet to beat a divisional foe in three games so far, beginning with the opener vs the Bolts on October 7th when the home team was embarrassed by a score of 5-1 before losing in overtime to the Capitals the following night.
In the Southeast Division, the Capitals are currently in first place with 14 points, but the Florida Panthers (13 points), Lightning (12 pts) and Hurricanes (11 pts) are all in the mix. The Caps (7-2-0) have played two less games than the others.
After Brian Boucher suffered his third loss of the season Saturday night, Coach Paul Maurice will return to goalie Cam Ward tonight. The Bolts will stick with 42-year-old backstop Dwayne Roloson, who got his season back on course Saturday with a 1-0 shutout of the Winnipeg Jets Saturday night.
Though rookie winger Zac Dalpe has returned to practicing with the rest of the team, he is still on the injured reserve with a "lower body concern", and therefore Zach Boychuk remains in the lineup. From the morning skate, the lines and pairings remain the same as we've seen the last couple games, with Tlusty on Staal's wing:
For the defense, Derek Joslin will sit out (and has yet to play this season). No changes in the pairings:
Eric Staal will be sporting a black eye but no visor despite the high stick to the face from the Chicago game Friday night. Staal continues to build on his faceoff percentages while his plus/minus stat spirals lower. In the last 3 games the Canes were 1-1-1, though Staal was notably strong in the circle winning 43 of 68 faceoffs (63.2%).
Neither Staal nor Jeff Skinner have registered a point in the last two games. Jiri Tlusty, Jussi Jokinen and Chad LaRose all have point streaks over the same two-game span.
Defensive much?
After a tremendous game vs the Blackhawks Friday where the shutdown defensive pairing of Allen and Gleason gave up no scoring chances (made more remarkable that each chipped in key assists), they were not so good the next night vs the Flyers. Gleason gave away the puck away with sloppy passing a couple times leading to a goal against and a penalty.
With the spotlight heavy on Staal's struggles thus far, Gleason may be the X-factor in determining the Hurricanes success till Staal gets back on track offensively. With the hot shot scoring talents Tampa Bay brings every time we see them here in Raleigh, how well Gleason and Allen are able to minimize their chances could be a key to the Canes getting the win.
As a reminder of how much the defensive lineup has changed since that first game, back on October 7th the D-pairings went out as: Joni Pitkanen - Tim Gleason, Tomas Kaberle - Justin Faulk, Bryan Allen - Jay Harrison. Dave Lewis has made substantial adjustments since: McBain is back in the line up, Kaberle was reduced to 3rd pairing and PP minutes, and Allen is now getting to the top assignments. This is not even close to the same defensive corps that gave up 5 goals to the Lightning the last time.
Local links
From practice today
- Paul Maurice after practice Tuesday [Audio: 5:16]
- Dwyer, Canes ready for skill competition - Canes Now
- McBain Has Brought 'Intensity' After Being Healthy Extra - MIchael Smith, Tracking the Storm Humbled by being a healthy extra in the first three games of the season, Jamie McBain has put his best game forward since then.
Previously
- Hurricanes' power play needs a jolt - Chip Alexander, NewsObserver.com "Before our last four or five games I really liked the way our power play looked," Maurice said Sunday. "I'm not overly excited the last four or five games. We've had some chances but we've slowed down on it. On everything we do, we're not moving at the pace as we originally started."
- Canes' Staal takes stick to face, still won't wear visor - NewsObserver.com When Eric Staal took a stick in the face Friday against the Chicago Blackhawks, the Carolina Hurricanes captain suffered a chipped tooth and a cut on the bridge of his nose. The blade came close to hitting him in his right eye.
Lightning notes
Early season troubles with the Lightning prompted suggestions of a success hangover following their Cinderella run to the Eastern Conference Finals last year. After taking out the Canes in their season opener last month, they lost 5 in a row before finding a way to win, which included turning to back up Mathieu Garon for four consecutive games.
The struggles of the aging Roloson may not have been the only issue out of the gate, but certainly contributed to the Bolts poor start. That's why Roloson's shutout Saturday is such a significant building block to the Bolts making a return to the playoffs this season. After giving up 17 goals in three games, Roli got a 10-day break, and now has yet to yield one goal in the last two appearances, totaling 86+ minutes of shutout hockey.
Speaking of trends, the Lightning haven't lost in the RBC Center in their last three visits, winning every game by 2 goals or more.
Other news on the Bolts line-up includes the ongoing problems of Mattias Ohlund who is out with bad knees, which has led to suggestions GM Steve Yzerman is in the market for a strong NHL defenseman to get them through.
Big winger Ryan Malone is questionable for tonight as well. UPDATE as of 3:15pm: LW Ryan Malone says he's "good to go" against the Hurricanes (St Petersburg Times)
Tampa Bay links
- Bolts' Lecavalier, free of injuries, distractions, off to strong start | TBO.com
- Boucher: It's tough task to juggle lineup | TBO.com Shuffling the lineup is not a practice Lightning coach Guy Boucher enjoys. But through the first month of the season it has been a constant for the second-year coach as Tampa Bay continues to carry 14 forwards on the active roster.
- For more online coverage the great folks at SBN's Raw Charge are always there to help.
From the Media notes
- CAR career point-per-game players vs. TB: Jeff Skinner - seven points (4g, 3a) in seven games; Eric Staal - 53 pts (29g, 24a) in 48 games.
- Cam Ward is 16-12-2, with a 2.99 GAA in 31 career appearances against Tampa Bay. Brian Boucher is 7-6-1, with a 2.76 GAA in 15 career appearances against the Lightning.
- TB career point-per-game players vs. CAR: Vincent Lecavalier - 73 pts (31g, 42a) in 73 games; Martin St. Louis - 71 pts (35g, 36a) in 63 career games.
- Dwayne Roloson is 6-6-0 with a 2.68 GAA in 14 career games against Carolina. Mathieu Garon: 2-2-0, 3.14 GAA in 4 games.
Evening schedule
The game starts at 7pm, and we'll have our Canes Country open gamethread posted by 6:30. Bob Wage and Brian LeBlanc will be up in the pressbox, while Jamie Kellner will be capturing the images down low.
The game will be broadcast on television by FSCarolinas (still on DirectTV thanks to an 11th hour deal announced last night) and on the radio or streaming at 99.9 the Fan.
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I hate St. Louis
Ever since the game where he wouldn’t take off his helmet during the national anthem. Whether or not you are from the US, we still respect the Canadian anthem (or any anthem played) by taking off our hats and players their helmets. I think he’s just a complete jerkbag.
Ready for the Canes to win the Cup again! :)
what game was that? I’ve seen plenty of players jump off the blueline and start skating before the national anthem was over but I’ve never seen an NHL’er especially Marty St. Louis not take their helmet off during the national anthem.
I was there too. It was a couple of seasons ago. I do not like that guy. I call him the Crooked Micky Mouse.
"Forget about style; worry about results."
Bobby Orr
Sorry, from everything I’ve heard and read about St.Louis I have really tough time believing he didn’t take his helmet off to be disrespectful toward the US.
I recall that he put his helmet on and started skating while the anthem’s last notes were being sung. I don’t recall him leaving it on for the duration of the anthem.
Let's get some.............
Ok playtime is over, time to take the toys out of the sandbox and let the big kids in. We are close to something great…for once it seems we have a little talent, and a lot of heart. We just need a couple of winks from the hockey gods and we are leading our division.
The measure of who we are is what we do with what we have.
Vince Lombardi
Well
We can beat this team depending on which Cens team shows up: Chicago Canes vs Winnipeg Canes… Boston Canes vs Philly Canes…
Tough call. Hope it’s good Canes.
Agreed, it’s tough to get excited not knowing what team will show up, they seem to be playing slightly better for Ward than Bouch.
Very true – I ‘m not sure anyone has pointed out that all 3 of Boucher’s starts have been in the 2nd half of back-to-backs with travel against rested teams playing at home – nothing could be worse in terms of external factors affecting playing conditions.
Twitter @HMof2
by Carolyn Christians on Nov 1, 2011 2:11 PM EDT up reply actions
Isn’t that what Boucher was brought in for? I would much rather have Boucher’s confidance broken than Cams.
by hotchipsnsalsa on Nov 1, 2011 2:37 PM EDT up reply actions
I was actually going to write about this element of the Canes schedule that is much tougher on them in the fall than next spring. They have one of the worst seasons in the League in this regard.
When they’re home on the back end of a back-to-back, that will at least give them some advantage between the crowd and last change.
To your point, at least they came back to tie in the game vs the Caps.
They started out fine in WPG and PHI, but collapsed (in a very ugly way) late. Was that simply them mailing it in or running out of gas against a team that seized momentum? I agree they need to give a full 60 minutes in all situations, but when we’re looking at Boucher’s stats, this is something everyone needs to factor in.
Twitter @HMof2
by Carolyn Christians on Nov 1, 2011 2:56 PM EDT up reply actions
WPG & Philly – they gave up, I think that was pretty obvious. They’re a pretty young team, so I don’t think they don’t run out of gas (at this juncture they better not be), it looks more like losing the will to compete. I’ve watched a lot of games over the past week and the teams that are getting it done are mainly having it come from their leaders. I’m usually a Staal defender, but those 2 losses he looked especially invisible – like he was going through the motions. He’s got to be the guy that throws the team on his back when they’re down a couple of goals and dig the team out of the hole. He needs to start scoring some goals and quit pouting because he’s been given sh*tty linemates to work with.
Staal is a very solid player but I don’t think he can throw a team on his back. He’s our star player but he’s not the likes of Ovie or Crosby who can carry a team. He’s very much a great skating, north -south, great wrist shot kind a guy. He can be very effective if someone creates for him. I think we sometimes ask from him more than he can deliver. I don’t want to say he is overrated, because with the right chemistry he can throw down some great numbers. But he can’t throw a team on his back every night, and he feels the pressure to do so, and I think that wears on him. Dragging LaRose along for that ride can’t be helping either!
Staal: An Excellent, Wonderful Player; Not Crosby, Not Ovechkin, Not Malkin, etc.
My take on Staal is that he is an excellent, wonderful player whom any team would want. He is not a generational talent like Crosby, Ovechkin, and Malkin. Staal has his moments of pouting and I challenge anybody to watch videos and say he has the same relentless attitude as either Ruutu or Skinner. On the other hand, he does have the ability in flashes to dominate games. Some fans demand of Staal that he be a prodigy; but that is not his skill level. On the other hand, he is the kind of player who can help prodigy players excel.
The Hurricanes desperately need a forward who is as good if not better in talent than Staal and Skinner. Dalpe is fantastic and outstanding. He is going to be a player that makes a huge impact on the team. Players like Staal, Ward, and Skinner have the ability to be impact players in the NHL at a very young age. Players such as Dalpe, Ruutu, Jokinen, for example, are incredibly talented; but need a little time to reach their game. When they do, they win games and championships. Rask is a player who may well be among the young players able to step into an NHL role much like Ryan Johansen.
The problem for the Hurricanes is that absent a grand slam home run pick like Skinner, a team has to be truly awful to be able to select a Nail Yakupov. The Hurricanes are too good to be that bad.
If Staal had a player like a Marc Savard ( pre- injury) on his line he’d score 40-50 goals a year. I ‘d love to see Staal slide to the wing and play with a creative natural centerman. We don’t have one ( yet) so Eric is the best bet down the middle. I hope I didn’t sound like I thought Staal was not an excellent player, because I think he is.
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times
What’s a fella to think?
From Michael Smith’s Gameday article on hurricanes.com.
The Canes started the season 0-2-1 without McBain in the lineup. Since then, they’ve gone 4-2-2, and he hasn’t looked back since.
From the NHL.com preview of tonight’s game
Since the modest win streak, Carolina has gone 1-2-2 and open a three-game homestand on Tuesday against the Lightning.
If the Canes lose tonight, it will be pretty scary to have 1 win in the last 6 games—it’s bad enough to have 1 win in 5 games. But if the Canes win tonight, they’ll be red hot since McBain got regular TOI. They’ll be 5-2-2, surely near the top of the league in the last 9 games. 12 points in 9 games is excellent—over 82 games, it would mean 109 points, just 3 points short of the best year in Canes’ history. And that 3-0 win over the Hawks 4 days ago was as good as the 5-1 loss to the Flyers 3 days ago was bad.
No wonder the opening paragraph of A Tale of Two Cities pretty much sums up the discussion on Canes Country so far this season.
Here's to another Cross Roads Game
It was only a few months ago that one win against Tampa Bay at home meant a huge hurdle was crossed for Eric Staal and his team. Alas, it was not to be. Tonight, is another cross roads moment for the Hurricanes. With a win, they jump into the playoff cut, albeit early in the season. With a loss, the Hurricanes risk falling into the land of the cellar dwellers at least for the time being. At least some commentators are already discussing the fact that #failforNail may become the mantra of some teams in throes of rebuilding. Nail Yakupov is one of the best young prospects to come along in quite some time. A team with Skinner, Staal, and Yakupov would have offensive firepower worthy of note. I don’t wish failure on the Hurricanes by any means. I only hope that if the team flounders, it does so in a way to yield a game changer forward. My guess is the Hurricanes are a #7 to #10 team in the Eastern Conference. All it takes is for Staal to get hot and Ward to get hot for the Hurricanes to have a stellar year. All it takes is for Staal to stay cold and for Ward to go even slightly cold and the Hurricanes could be facing another lean year. Such is life on the bubble, I guess.
I think Dave Lewis coming back probably had larger effect than just McBain joining the team. It has been an all around improvement.
I agree. But what happened in Philadelphia? (I missed the game.)
by curiouscanesfan on Nov 1, 2011 5:14 PM EDT up reply actions
Claude Giroux happened – the guy is ridiculous and completely underrated.
Actually, we got a little sloppy in the 3rd and gave Philly way too many grade A chances on Boucher. First game I felt like our D was regressing to looking like last year. Philly had the puck for what seemed like an eternity during stretches.
"I'm not going to waste my time with Tuukka Rask" - Cam Ward
TO be honest...
We were not firing on all cylinders in Philly. We made basic mental mistakes, Gleason had two whoppers… The team did not have near the hustle and spark of the previous night. Boucher let in a soft goal, and our will/effort dissolved and left….
Put Boychuk with Staal
How much longer is the experiment with LaRose going to last on Staal’s line. If you want to get Staal going, put Boychuk on his line. He played well on that line last season. Here is a guy who was thought to be another Ray Whitney type player. He is in his last year of his contract so why not put him with Staal to see what kind of player he can turn out to be. Who knows he may surprise a lot of people. We have only seen flashes of how good he really is when called up. I hate to put him in a package deal for a trade and then later see him light it up with another team. Boy that would really tick off JR.
by skinnerthewinner on Nov 1, 2011 4:29 PM EDT reply actions
I don’t know if Boychuk would get Staal going. I don’t entirely blame LaRose for Staal’s horrific start. But if LaRose is the best option at 1st line right wing, the Canes have had it. Forget Boychuk, Dalpe, Stewart, etc. Compare LaRose to 1st line right wings everywhere. Puck Daddy ranked Kessel the 22nd best right wing and Jagr 25th best going into this season. Where would LaRose rank on a list that starts with Corey Perry? Would LaRose rank among the top 120 right wings in the NHL?
Blame Mo or blame JR. Either way, the Canes 1st line is an embarrassment.
by curiouscanesfan on Nov 1, 2011 4:43 PM EDT up reply actions
Chad LaRose Right Wing Stats
Interesting observations. I just went to www.nhl.com and looked at the stats. LaRose is ranked 36th overall for points. He is ranked 82nd for shooting percentage and only players who haven’t scored goals are below him in that regard. The NHL has him ranked 52nd with 1 goal (but quite a number of right wings have 1 goal). He is ranked 36 for shots taken. He is ranked 46 with TOI at 16:04 minutes averaged per game. He is ranked 21st with shifts per game of 23.5. In short, Chad LaRose is on the ice a good bit of the time.
I don’t mind his getting lots of TOI as long as it’s not on a scoring line.
by curiouscanesfan on Nov 1, 2011 5:24 PM EDT up reply actions
LaRose has 6 points, Staal has 5 points
That said…how much longer is the experiment with Staal going to last on LaRose’s line? We need to let LaRose play with Boychuk, because Staal is just holding LaRose back from his full potential right now.
Breaking out the ol’ Staal jersey for tonight’s game. First time this season, let’s see if it brings my boy some luck and he gets a goal.
Some managers manage using the carrot, Mo manages by using "The Stick."
by PackPride17 on Nov 1, 2011 5:42 PM EDT via mobile reply actions
I have my Rosie sweater on
so that should NOT affect theout come either way…those who hate St.Louis remember hehas thehnger & the fire in his belly andwants another cup before he has toretire….and go out on top..so hate a guy who wants,works and gives his very best …I dare ya !!! nowot find my glass..hehehehe
9/11/01 - Never Forget !!
Long Live #63 The Condor
Go Canes & Checkers !!!
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