Storm Tracking: Hurricane Pounds Phoenix

It was a long, short week for the Carolina Hurricanes. They finished up the final 2 games of an extended road trip, in which they saw 7 cities in 12 games. The week started north of the border in Calgary, where the Canes and Flames played a low-scoring, grinding game. But thanks to Justin Peters and a 3rd period goal by Jeff Skinner, the Canes ended up getting a point in Cowtown. Then the team headed south to Phoenix, to face a pretty darn good Coyotes team. Carolina really put forth a solid 60 minute effort and was rewarded with a 3-1 victory. In the final seconds, things got a little chippy between the team and Eric Staal seemed to have enough. After Eric put in an empty net goal, he shoved Oliver Ekman-Larsson into the boards and even threw a couple of blows as the men fell to the ice. The scuffle seemed to start because of a slash by OEL or because of a hit that Justin Peters took a little bit earlier. Either way, the captain showed some fire that many have been wanting to see. Now the Canes are on a long break, preparing for a divisional matchup at home against the Washington Capitals. Here are the stats for the week of 12/11/13 through 12/17/13.

Canes Weekly Stats

Weekly Advanced Stats

Here is a little key to some of my abbreviations. F - For, A - Against, CF% - Corsi For Percentage, FF% - Fenwick For Percentage, SF% - Shots For Percentage, OZst% - Offensive Zone Start Percentage, NZst% - Neutral Zone Start Percentage and DZst% - Defensive Zone Start Percentage. If you would like more advanced statistics, this information was collected from www.extraskater.com.

Who's Hot

• Jeff Skinner - Skinner continued his goal scoring barrage this week, but more importantly, the goals he scored were huge in the standings. His goal in Calgary tied the game late and got the Canes 1 point on the road. And his acrobatic goal in the 3rd against the Coyotes was the game winner. Those 3 points helped the Canes hold on to their place in the Metropolitan Division and gave them a little breathing room while on their break. Skinner has been the definition of clutch lately with 2 game winners and 2 game tying goals this month. He had a team high 2 goals and 11 shots on goal for the week. He also led the team in All Situations Fenwick For and Shots For. His All Situation Fenwick For was over 5% higher than the next person on the team. Jeff has been very impressive offensively and continues to show some improvement in his own end of the ice.
• Justin Peters - For as much as Skinner helped the Canes get points in both games this week, Peters might have been even more important. He only allowed 3 goals on 68 shots for a 0.956 save percentage and 1.44 goals against average. For the year, Peters is in the top 10 in both categories for qualified goaltenders. I really don't believe anybody in this world would have thought that at the beginning of the season. Whether this is just a hot streak or the results of Peters offseason work, he has made huge strides and deserves the starting role right now. Obviously there are things he can still improve on, but when you outplay an Olympic hopeful like Mike Smith, you deserve credit. Peters isn't just helping the team tread water, he is helping them win games.
• Eric Staal - Eric often takes a lot of flak when the Canes don't do well, it's simply part of being the captain of the team. But Eric deserves some credit for the things he did this week. He led the team in points with 4 and factored in on every Hurricane goal. He was a team high +3, led the team in faceoff percentage and was tied for 2nd with 7 shots on goal. He also ranked in the top 5 of every possession category for the week. But what I consider the biggest thing he did was his scuffle at the end of the Phoenix game. Eric's leadership has been called into question many times and I believe this was a statement. He showed the fire and passion that many have wanted to see and showed you won't be allowed to get away with cheap shots against him or his team.

Who's Not

• Elias Lindholm - This rookie has talent, no denying that, but I'm really starting to question why Jim Rutherford burned a year of his entry-level contract. Lindholm again left a game due to injury and is now being loaned to Sweden. He either has never really recovered from his offseason shoulder injury or the kid isn't really physically ready for the NHL. We all see the skill, but how will this effect his development? Would it have been better to leave him in Sweden, letting him mature more physically and not using up a cheap entry-level year? I'm not sure how all of this is going to play out, but I'm not sure this situation was managed properly.
• Cam Ward - He didn't play this week and that might be saying something itself. The Canes $6 million dollar goalie is sitting on the bench while the 3rd string goalie helps this team earn points. I don't believe Cam will be traded this season, mainly due to his high salary, but he is certainly making the 3 goalie decision a difficult one. Cam has the worst numbers of all 3 goalies and his inconsistent play is extremely frustrating. We all know Ward can steal a game, he can play at a high level in pressure filled situations, but why can't he play more consistently? He needs work, so he can round into form, but with playoff positioning so tight, the Canes need points and Peters is giving the team a better chances at getting those points. When Cam does get his next opportunity, he needs to seize it and prove he is this team's #1.
• Jiri Tlusty - Tlusty has been struggling all year long, but I thought he was starting to come around the past couple of weeks. He was doing the little things, putting himself in better position. But this week was a step back in my opinion. He only generated 2 shots on goal, was not on the ice for any Hurricane goal and his position numbers were generally in the low 40's and high 30's. As more time goes by, it appears that last season was just a perfect storm for Jiri. He fed off Eric and Alexander Semin and without them, he is pretty much lost. I really thought he was a solid player, not as good as last year, but solid. Right now he is looking like a marginal 3rd liner. I wouldn't be surprised seeing him get moved, but at this point, the Canes aren't going to get a very good return for him.

Notable Weekly Team Stats

• Carolina's goal scoring dropped off this week, averaging only 2.00 goals per game. That ranked tied for 22nd in the league with the Sabres. The goals against though were quite good, coming in at 1.50 goals against per game. That was good enough for a 5th place tie with 3 other teams.
• 2 weeks in a row now that the Canes faceoffs were below 50%. The team's percentage was 48.3%, which had them at 22nd in the NHL. Eric led the team at 56.1%, followed by Manny at 50.0%, then Jordan at 44.4% and Nash at 40.0%.
• Here's a shock, the Canes PP was bad this week. They went 0 for 6 and tied with 8 other teams for the worst PP of the week.
• The Hurricanes finished the week in the bottom 10 in hits with 46, blocked shots with 27 and takeaways with 12. They did only play 2 games, so that has to be factored in to these low numbers.
• Carolina did end up tied for 2nd with only 13 giveaways. That is definitely their best showing of the year in this category. But only playing 2 games probably contributes to this as well.
• The Canes shots for and shots against were pretty even. They averaged 31.5 shots per game (12th) and gave up 34.0 shots against per game (26th).
• Carolina's 5 on 5 Corsit and Fenwick were around average for the week. The Corsi For percentage came in at 52.3%, the Fenwick For percentage was at 49.6%.
• Team Stat of the Week - PK - 100% - the team only had 3 opportunities to kill penalties, but they were perfect at it. The 100% success rate tied them with 3 other teams for 1st in the NHL. Going 3 for 3 on the PK might not be much to write home about, but only giving up 3 opportunities is pretty good in itself. The team will be challenged Friday night, going up against the #2 PP team in the league. If they can avoid going to the penalty box, they have a much better chance of coming away with a win.

Former Canes Weekly Stats

This will be the last Storm Tracking of the year. I will be heading out of the country this Friday and won't have much connection with the outside world. Storm Tracking will return on January 1, 2014. So to all that follow and contribute to Canes Country, I hope you and your family have a safe and happy holidays!