About Last Season: Victor Rask Performance Review and Grade

Victor Rask: 2017-18 By The Numbers

• Age: 25
• NHL Seasons: 4
• Scoring: 14 goals - 17 assists - 31 points
• Ice Time: 15:23 all situations, 13:05 ES, 2:07 PP, 0:01 PK
• 5 on 5 Stats: 51.6% CF, 49.6% GF
• Contract Status: Completed 2nd year of a 6 year, $4 million AAV contract

Making The Grade

Is there any player on the Hurricanes roster that was a bigger disappointment this year (that doesn't play goalie) than Victor Rask? His season was defined by struggling to score, inconsistencies, being stripped of the A he wore the previous year, and being benched for two games in November. The former second round pick who once showed so much promise has now become another player signed to a long term deal who is simply weighing the Hurricanes down.

Through the first 19 games of the season he scored only 5 points and Bill Peters laid the hammer down unlike anything we had seen during his tenure, aside from his infamous Eddie Lack situation. “We’re going to look at it some more and try and find a solution to that problem that we have” was what Peters said in announcing his decision to scratch Rask. Having gone eight straight games with no points, his benching was a clear message at the time that those results were not acceptable.

While he only sat for two games, Rask’s production never really got any better as the year went on. Many times he would make errant passes and be out of position defensively. Once pegged as a potential Brandon Sutter replacement with more scoring ability, Rask only saw a grand total of 55 seconds on the penalty kill all year. For a center signed to a long term contract, this simply wasn’t enough. Dropping from the potential number two center to the fourth line center, Rask has fallen a long way from where he was two years ago.

After missing the end of the year due to injury, Rask finished with 71 games played, a plus/minus of zero, and scoring a career low of 31 points. He was another average player on a team that needed players like him to be much more than average. With Elias Lindholm proving his worth at center, Jordan Staal already anchored there, Martin Necas on the way, and Sebastian Aho primed to move to the middle sooner rather than later, it is very difficult to see where Rask has a place in the Canes’ long-term plan. For a player with so much promise, the effort and production just are not there, and one has to believe Victor Rask is fairly high on the list of players who are replaceable after this past season.

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