Prospect and Conditioning Camp Preview

The Carolina Hurricanes prospect and conditioning camp starts on Wednesday and four out of the ten players attending are invitees not affiliated with the club.    Every year we preview the boys coming to camp, so once again let's take a brief look at each of the athletes on the roster.

34 Philippe Paradis 6'1, 196 C, LW

Of course, Paradis was the first pick in this year's draft by the Hurricanes.  Last season, he scored 50 points in 66 games for the Shawinigan Cataractes of the QMJHL.  He will return to his junior team next season.

37 Zac Dalpe 6'1, 180 C, RW

Dalpe was the second choice of the Canes in last year's draft.  He attended conditioning camp last year and is coming back for round two.  He is attending Ohio State and has to pay his own way to camp so that he does not break NCAA rules.  Last season he had 13 goals and 12 assists as a freshman and will most likely be returning to the team again next season.

43 Brian Dumoulin 6'3, 197 D

Dumoulin was the second pick of the Canes in this year's draft.  He is also paying his own way to camp and is scheduled to play for Boston College next season.   The defenseman chipped in with 7 goals and 23 assists last year in the EJHL.

45 Matt Kennedy 6'2, 203 RW

Kennedy had 33 goals and 40 assists for the Guelph Storm last season.  He also served as team captain and has a reputation as being a tough guy.   The winger was another of the draft picks with size selected this year and he will be looked upon to contribute in Albany next season. 

46 Matt Pistilli 6'2, 219 RW

Pistilli, who was never drafted, was signed to a three year contract as a free agent earlier this year.  The right winger finished his junior career with 45 goals and 41 assists in 63 games and was a teammate of Paradis on Shawinigan this past season.   He also chipped in with 20 points in 21 playoff games.  This is another player who is expected to contribute in Albany this coming season.

70 Mike Murphy 5'11, 161 G

Murphy was drafted in the 6th round last season and has now won OHL goaltender of the year honors two years in a row.  Most likely he will be paired with Justin Peters next year in Albany, but could end up with the Everblades in Florida.  His record last season was 40-9-2. 

51 Kai Kantola 6'1, 190 C

Kantola is a local product attending camp as a "collegiate invitee".  At one time, it was thought that he might be the first player from the Triangle ever to be selected in the NHL draft.  He was very highly rated by several scouting services, but it was never meant to be.  He has played three years for Bowling Green and scored 12 goals and 6 assists in 36 games this past season.  While his parents were born in Finland, Kantola grew up playing hockey in the Raleigh area and was on the Junior Hurricanes.  He will be skating on very familiar ice at the Rec Zone and should feel right at home.  A couple of years ago, Luke DeCock wrote a nice article about him here.

55 Beau Schmitz 5'10 185 D

Schmitz is here on a free agent try out and plays for the Peter Karmanos owned Plymouth Whalers.  He scored six goals and had 31 assists in 66 games last season.  The American born skater played for the USA  National Team Development Program Under -17 Team.  For an interesting Q&A, check out this link.

56 Scott Pitt 6'0, 175 F

Pitt played for Mercyhurst College last season and is here as a "collegiate invitee".  He scored 15 goals and had 30 assists in 40 games.  For more information, check out his bio here.

68 Michael McKenzie 6'0 190 Forward

McKenzie attends St. Lawrence University and is here on a free agent try out.  Last season he had 16 goals and 18 assists in 38 games for the Saints and was their leading scorer.  Check out his bio page here.  If his face looks a bit familiar, it might be because he is the son of TSN's Bob McKenzie.