hf101 Posted November 21, 2016 Share Posted November 21, 2016 Has anyone noticed the Hurricanes are playing some of their best hockey in years with their strength in their special teams play? They are currently on the rise winning their last 4 games over the Capitals, Sharks, Canadiens, and Jets. Who would have thought that the Canes would have the best PK in the league after 1/4 of the season at 91.3% and they are on a streak of 19 straight Penalty Kills. Currently, they only 3 points out of a potential Wild Card spot the Hurricanes are looking like a team on the rise. Will they be a contender this season? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TropicalFruitGirl26 Posted November 21, 2016 Share Posted November 21, 2016 Yup. Not only the special teams, but (get this), their #1 goalie, Cam Ward, has been......**gasp** HEALTHY! Imagine that...a good goalie, hampered by injuries every season, is finally healthy and available regularly....contributing to wins! I think its the same ol, same ol for this Carolina team: Keep healthy (especially in goaltending) and just play consistently and the wins come about more often. Cept this time, due to the previous losing seasons, they actually have much more young talent to work with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yave1964 Posted November 21, 2016 Share Posted November 21, 2016 The Canes were my adopted team last season, I picked them to hang around the fringe of the playoff hunt (they did) and imho Francis sold too early, a playoff spot was in their grasp. During this offseason they added Teravainen, brought in Aho from Europe, and continued to build a remarkable back end of kids such as Faulk, Hanifin, Pesce and Slavin. The underrated Hainsey is a penalty killer extraordinaire who brings stability to the kids. Stempniak provides veteran secondary scoring. Victor Rask is becoming a star, with Staal moving on he is the new face of the forwards, and Jordan Staal is out of his brothers shadow and is playing a great 200 foot game. IMHO it comes down to netminding and Ward/Lack do not have enough to make it happen. I see them falling just short again but this team has a bright future. Who knows, the Jackets and Canes could be the future of the division as teams such as the Rangers, Flyers and Pens are aging, the CBJ and the Canes are building. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buffalo Rick Posted November 21, 2016 Share Posted November 21, 2016 I think the Sabres have as good a shot as they do. The Blue Jackets have arrived. They are winning many games early and setting themselves up nicely. I see no keeping them out this year. The Hurricanes are very up and down. I am not sold on them. And I wish them no success after they robbed us of a Cup in 06 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
notfondajane Posted December 29, 2016 Share Posted December 29, 2016 On 11/21/2016 at 8:28 AM, TropicalFruitGirl26 said: Yup. Not only the special teams, but (get this), their #1 goalie, Cam Ward, has been......**gasp** HEALTHY! Imagine that...a good goalie, hampered by injuries every season, is finally healthy and available regularly....contributing to wins! I think its the same ol, same ol for this Carolina team: Keep healthy (especially in goaltending) and just play consistently and the wins come about more often. Cept this time, due to the previous losing seasons, they actually have much more young talent to work with. Should be a solid team if they keep drafting well! Does Charlotte play the same system or style of play as the Canes? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TropicalFruitGirl26 Posted December 29, 2016 Share Posted December 29, 2016 1 minute ago, notfondajane said: Should be a solid team if they keep drafting well! Does Charlotte play the same system or style of play as the Canes? Good question. One I don't have an answer to without doing some research. But, if any NHL team hopes to have success from their young players coming up, I would think the styles in the minors should mirror the NHL at least a bit. No sense having guys learn a particular way of playing, then tell them, "forget everything you've learned in the AHL" once they reach the NHL level. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
notfondajane Posted December 29, 2016 Share Posted December 29, 2016 17 hours ago, TropicalFruitGirl26 said: Good question. One I don't have an answer to without doing some research. But, if any NHL team hopes to have success from their young players coming up, I would think the styles in the minors should mirror the NHL at least a bit. No sense having guys learn a particular way of playing, then tell them, "forget everything you've learned in the AHL" once they reach the NHL level. It would make sense for an A.H.L. to mirror the N.H.L. team. I was thinking that the A.H.L team may have an ownership team that is independent of the N.H.L team. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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