The Carolina Hurricanes are the first Metropolitan team up in our Season Primer series.
Use the below Tabs to view Hurricanes info for this upcoming season, as well as some numbers from last year.
2013-14 record: 36-35-11, 83 points
Where they finished: 7th in the Metropolitan; 13th in the East; tied for 24th in the NHL
Player Salaries: $62,117,500 (21)
Cap Payroll: $63,740,000
Bonuses: $1,300,000
Retained Salary: $950,000
Bonus Overages: $60,000
Cap Space: $5,260,000
Forwards: $35,725,000 (11)
Defensemen: $18,455,000 (8)
Goalies: $8,550,000 (2)
Source: CapGeek.com
In: Ben Holmstrom C, Bill Peters Head Coach, Brad Malone LW/C, Drew MacIntyre G, Jay McClement C, Tim Gleason D
Out: Brett Sutter C/LW, Justin Peters G, Kirk Muller Head Coach, Manny Malhotra C/LW, Mark Flood D, Matt Corrente D, Mike Murphy G
2014-15 Team Outlook:
Last season was yet another disappointment for a Hurricanes team that has now missed the playoffs in an Eastern Conference leading five seasons in a row.
Even with the yearly failures of the core group (that is filled with big name players), once again this offseason no significant changes were made to the team on the ice, with only front office moves being made to try to spark the team.
General manager Jim Rutherford, who had held the position since 1994, stepped down and ultimately accepted a job with the Penguins as their new GM. Rutherford was replaced with longtime NHL’er and former Carolina captain, Ron Francis, who made his first big move, firing head coach Kirk Muller, only nine days later. Taking over for Muller is Bill Peters, a former assistant coach to Mike Babcock on the Detroit Red Wings.
The rest of the offseason was rather quiet for Carolina, signing only a few role players to round out the roster and replace other role players who were lost during free agency.
On paper the offense looks to be quite solid, however, it has proved in the past to be rather hit-or-miss from game-to-game. On the first-line will be Eric Staal in the middle, paired along with Alexander Semin and Jiri Tlusty on his wings. All three players had down years last season and will need to return to their past selves if Carolina is to have a chance at playoffs. On the second-line will likely be Jordan Staal at centre with Jeff Skinner and Elias Lindholm, Nathan Gerbe or Zach Boychuk on the wing. Boychuk, who is in his second stint with Carolina after being traded two years ago and signing back on last season, will be looking to turn his near point-per-game career at the AHL level into an NHL job this year. If Lindholm doesn’t crack the second line, he could end up centering or playing on the wing on the third line. He’s entering his second NHL season should be more than ready to take on a bigger role. Finishing out the third-line on the wings will be Patrick Dwyer and either Gerbe or Boychuk. On the fourth-line could be former Maple Leafs’ centre Jay McClement filling the centre spot that belonged to a similar player in Manny Malhotra last year, with possibly Boychuk and Riley Nash on the wings. Other forwards looking to make the team will be veterans Brad Malone, Ben Holmstrom, and Chris Terry, along with prospects Greg Nemisz, Victor Rask, and rookie Brock McGinn.
The only change to the defense that was made this season was bringing back Tim Gleason, who Carolina had traded to the Maple Leafs for John-Michael Liles last year. Gleason was bought out of the remaining two-years, $8 million by the Leafs and re-signed with Carolina on an inexpensive one-year, $1.2 million deal. The first-pairing will likely see Justin Faulk teamed up with Andrej Sekera, with the second-pairing being Liles and Ryan Murphy or Ron Hainsey. On the final pairing will be Gleason with Murphy/Hainsey or Jay Harrison. Murphy, who is an offensive specialist, will be looking to stick with the team, while Harrison is better served for a seventh defenseman role. Other defensemen who will be looking to make the Hurricanes’ roster are the big bodied Brett Bellemore, as well as rookie prospect Hayden Fleury.
In goal there are is one big question that needs answering, who is the starter? When you look in terms of reputation and the fact his cap hit is $6.3 million, you would assume it would be Cam Ward, but when you look at the statistical performances, the edge moves more towards Anton Khudobin. Over the last two years Ward has struggled with injuries, playing in only 47 of 130 games. Because of the injuries, Ward has also struggled on the ice as well, posting a 2.84 goals against average and a .908 save percentage through 17 games in 2012-13 and a 3.06 goals against average and a .898 save percentage through 30 games last season. Compare that to Khudobin’s performance last season, a 2.30 goals against average and a .926 save percentage in 36 games, and you really start to wonder if Carolina might be better off with the lesser known player. Ward will more than likely be given the reigns to start the season, he’s earned the benefit of the doubt with the level of play he has been able to maintain throughout his career, but his leash might not be very long. Behind Ward and Khudobin at the AHL level the Hurricanes brought in journeyman Drew MacIntyre to be the starter down there, something in which he’s excelled at throughout his career.
By not making significant changes to the same core that has missed the playoffs for five years in a row, it’s hard to envision a scenario where the Hurricanes make the playoffs this season. Any chance that they have rests on the shoulders of their forward core finally coming together. Helping their cause would be Ward returning to all-star form. It seems like a hefty task, one that they will probably fail at, and will instead be a team with plenty of skilled trade chips to start a re-tooling. Expect the Hurricanes to finish somewhere between the eighth seed and the thirteenth seed in the East, with the latter being more realistic.
Written by Greg Stamper, who can be found on twitter @g_stamp91.
The depth chart listed below was taken from NHL.com’s 30-in-30.
FORWARDS
Jiri Tlusty – Eric Staal – Alexander Semin
Jeff Skinner – Jordan Staal – Elias Lindholm
Nathan Gerbe – Jay McClement – Patrick Dwyer
Zach Boychuk – Riley Nash – Brad Malone
Chris Terry
DEFENSEMEN
Andrej Sekera – Justin Faulk
Ron Hainsey – Ryan Murphy
John-Michael Liles – Jay Harrison
Tim Gleason
GOALTENDERS
Cam Ward
Anton Khudobin
| Forwards | POS | HT | WT | DOB | BIRTH PLACE |
| Patrick Dwyer | R | 5′ 11″ | 175 | 22-Jun-83 | SPOKANE, WA, USA |
| Nathan Gerbe | L | 5′ 5″ | 178 | 24-Jul-87 | OXFORD, MI, USA |
| Elias Lindholm | C | 6′ 1″ | 192 | 2-Dec-94 | BODEN, SWE |
| Brad Malone | C | 6′ 2″ | 207 | 20-May-89 | MIRAMICHI, NB, CAN |
| Jay Mcclement | C | 6′ 1″ | 205 | 2-Mar-83 | KINGSTON, ON, CAN |
| Riley Nash | C | 6′ 1″ | 200 | 9-May-89 | CONSORT, AB, CAN |
| Alexander Semin | R | 6′ 2″ | 209 | 3-Mar-84 | KRASNOJARSK, RUS |
| Jeff Skinner | L | 5′ 11″ | 200 | 16-May-92 | TORONTO, ON, CAN |
| Eric Staal | C | 6′ 4″ | 205 | 29-Oct-84 | THUNDER BAY, ON, CAN |
| Jordan Staal | C | 6′ 4″ | 220 | 10-Sep-88 | THUNDER BAY, ON, CAN |
| Jiri Tlusty | L | 6′ 0″ | 209 | 16-Mar-88 | SLANY, CZE |
| Defense | HT | WT | AGE | DOB | BIRTH PLACE |
| Brett Bellemore | 6′ 4″ | 225 | 26 | 25-Jun-88 | WINDSOR, ON, CAN |
| Justin Faulk | 6′ 0″ | 215 | 22 | 20-Mar-92 | SOUTH ST.PAUL, MN, USA |
| Tim Gleason | 6′ 0″ | 217 | 31 | 29-Jan-83 | CLAWSON, MI, USA |
| Ron Hainsey | 6′ 3″ | 210 | 33 | 24-Mar-81 | BOLTON, CT, USA |
| Jay Harrison | 6′ 4″ | 220 | 31 | 3-Nov-82 | OSHAWA, ON, CAN |
| John-Michael Liles | 5′ 10″ | 185 | 33 | 25-Nov-80 | INDIANAPOLIS, IN, USA |
| Andrej Sekera | 6′ 0″ | 201 | 28 | 8-Jun-86 | BOJNICE, SVK |
| Goalies | HT | WT | AGE | DOB | BIRTH PLACE |
| Anton Khudobin | 5′ 11″ | 203 | 28 | 7-May-86 | UST-KAMENOGORSK, KAZ |
| Cam Ward | 6′ 1″ | 185 | 30 | 29-Feb-84 | SASKATOON, SK, CAN |
A look at the Carolina Hurricanes top prospects heading into this season. Each source may use different classifications as to if a player is deemed a prospect or has graduated on from a prospect.
| RK | NHL.com | ESPN Corey Pronman |
Dobber Prospects | Hockeys Future | The Hockey News | |
| 1 | Brock McGinn | Haydn Fleury | Haydn Fleury | Elias Lindholm | Haydn Fleury | |
| 2 | Haydn Fleury | Lucas Wallmark | Ryan Murphy | Haydn Fleury | Brock McGinn | |
| 3 | Phil Di Giuseppe | Sergey Tolchinsky | Sergey Tolchinsky | Ryan Murphy | Alex Nedeljkovic | |
| 4 | Victor Rask | Victor Rask | Victor Rask | Alex Nedeljkovic | Michael Jordan | |
| 5 | Jaccob Slavin | Clark Bishop | Phil Di Giuseppe | Brock McGinn | Victor Rask | |
| 6 | Brett Pesce | Alex Nedeljkovic | Brock McGinn | Victor Rask | Trevor Carrick | |
| 7 | Trevor Carrick | Jaccob Slavin | Warren Foegele | Daniel Altshuller | Phil Di Giuseppe | |
| 8 | Erik Karlsson | Brock McGinn | Brent Pedersen | Jaccob Slavin | Brett Pesce | |
| 9 | Alex Nedeljkovic | Phil Di Giuseppe | Erik Karlsson | Trevor Carrick | Sergey Tolchinsky | |
| 10 | Collin Olson | Trevor Carrick | Daniel Altshuller | Brett Pesce | Daniel Altshuller | |
* Dobber Prospects – Prospects based on relevance in a fantasy-hockey keeper league, not actual talent on the ice.
Carolina Hurricanes Draft History from the past five years
| 2014 Draft | ||||||
| Rd. | Draft # | Player | Pos. | Team | Ht. | Wt. |
| 1 | 7 | Haydn Fleury | D | Red Deer (WHL) | 6′ 2″ | 204 |
| 2 | 37 | Alex Nedeljkovic | G | Plymouth (OHL) | 6′ 0″ | 185 |
| 3 | 67 | Warren Foegele | LW | St. Andrews HS (ON) | 6′ 0″ | 178 |
| 4 | 96 | Josh Wesley | D | Plymouth (OHL) | 6′ 2″ | 194 |
| 4 | 97 | Lucas Wallmark | C | Lulea (SWE) | 6′ 0″ | 176 |
| 5 | 127 | Clark Bishop | C | Cape Breton (QMJHL) | 5′ 11″ | 182 |
| 7 | 187 | Kyle Jenkins | D | Sault Ste. Marie (OHL) | 6′ 0″ | 166 |
| 2013 Draft | ||||||
| 1 | 5 | Elias Lindholm | C/RW | Brynäs (SWE) | 6′ 0″ | 190 |
| 3 | 66 | Brett Pesce | D | New Hampshire (H-East) | 6′ 3″ | 170 |
| 5 | 126 | Brent Pedersen | LW | Kitchener (OHL ) | 6′ 2″ | 205 |
| 6 | 156 | Tyler Ganly | D | Sault Ste. Marie (OHL) | 6′ 1″ | 201 |
| 2012 Draft | ||||||
| 2 | 38 | Phillip DiGiuseppe | LW | Michigan (CCHA) | 5’11” | 175 |
| 2 | 47 | Brock McGinn | LW | Guelph (OHL) | 5’11” | 175 |
| 3 | 69 | Daniel Altshuller | G | Oshawa (OHL) | 6′ 3″ | 193 |
| 4 | 99 | Erik Karlsson | LW | Frolunda HC (Swe) | 5’11” | 165 |
| 4 | 115 | Trevor Carrick | D | Mississauga St. Michael’s (OHL) | 6′ 2″ | 172 |
| 4 | 120 | Jacob Slavin | D | Chicago (USHL) | 6′ 1″ | 170 |
| 5 | 129 | Bendan Woods | LW | U of Wisconsin | 6′ 2″ | 190 |
| 6 | 159 | Collin Olson | G | USA U-18 | 6′ 3″ | 197 |
| 7 | 189 | Brandan Collier | LW | Malden Catholic HS (MA) | 5′ 9″ | 168 |
| 2011 Draft | ||||||
| 1 | 12 | Ryan Murphy | D | Kitchener (OHL) | 5’10” | 165 |
| 2 | 42 | Victor Rask | C | Leksands (Swe) | 6′ 2″ | 194 |
| 3 | 73 | Keegan Lowe | D | Edmonton (WHL) | 6′ 0″ | 168 |
| 4 | 103 | Gregory Hofmann | C | Ambri Jr. ( SWISS-JR. ) | 6′ 0″ | 170 |
| 6 | 163 | Matt Mahalak | G | Plymouth (OHL) | 6′ 2″ | 183 |
| 7 | 193 | Brody Sutter | C | Lethbridge (WHL) | 6′ 4″ | 190 |
| 2010 Draft | ||||||
| 1 | 7 | Jeff Skinner | C | Kitchener (OHL) | 5’10” | 195 |
| 2 | 37 | Justin Faulk | D | USA U-18 | 5’11” | 185 |
| 2 | 53 | Mark Alt | D | Cretin-Derham | 6′ 2″ | 194 |
| 3 | 67 | Danny Biega | D | Harvard U. | 6′ 0″ | 191 |
| 3 | 85 | Austin Levi | D | Plymouth | 6′ 3″ | 192 |
| 4 | 105 | Justin Shugg | LW | Windsor | 5’11” | 184 |
| 6 | 167 | Tyler Stahl | D | Chilliwack | 6′ 1″ | 180 |
| 7 | 187 | Fredrik Anderson | G | Frederikshavn | 6′ 4″ | 220 |
| Player | GP | G | A | P | +/- | PIM | PP | SH | GW | S | S% |
| Eric Staal | 79 | 21 | 40 | 61 | -13 | 74 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 230 | 9.1 |
| Jeff Skinner | 71 | 33 | 21 | 54 | -14 | 22 | 11 | 0 | 6 | 274 | 12 |
| Andrej Sekera | 74 | 11 | 33 | 44 | 4 | 20 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 142 | 7.7 |
| Alexander Semin | 65 | 22 | 20 | 42 | 1 | 42 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 210 | 10.5 |
| Jordan Staal | 82 | 15 | 25 | 40 | 2 | 34 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 165 | 9.1 |
| Justin Faulk | 76 | 5 | 27 | 32 | -9 | 37 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 152 | 3.3 |
| Nathan Gerbe | 81 | 16 | 15 | 31 | -6 | 36 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 221 | 7.2 |
| Jiri Tlusty | 68 | 16 | 14 | 30 | 2 | 22 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 131 | 12.2 |
| Riley Nash | 73 | 10 | 14 | 24 | 0 | 29 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 86 | 11.6 |
| Patrick Dwyer | 75 | 8 | 14 | 22 | -2 | 14 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 134 | 6 |
| Elias Lindholm | 58 | 9 | 12 | 21 | -14 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 70 | 12.9 |
| Tuomo Ruutu | 57 | 5 | 11 | 16 | -19 | 34 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 79 | 6.3 |
| Ron Hainsey | 82 | 4 | 11 | 15 | -9 | 45 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 72 | 5.6 |
| Jay Harrison | 68 | 4 | 11 | 15 | -1 | 44 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 103 | 3.9 |
| Manny Malhotra | 69 | 7 | 6 | 13 | 0 | 18 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 53 | 13.2 |
| Drayson Bowman | 70 | 4 | 8 | 12 | -2 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 80 | 5 |
| Ryan Murphy | 48 | 2 | 10 | 12 | -9 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 81 | 2.5 |
| Andrei Loktionov | 20 | 3 | 7 | 10 | -4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 34 | 8.8 |
| Radek Dvorak | 60 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 3 | 41 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 52 | 7.7 |
| John-Michael Liles | 35 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 7 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 51 | 3.9 |
| Brett Bellemore | 64 | 2 | 6 | 8 | -1 | 45 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 54 | 3.7 |
| Mike Komisarek | 32 | 0 | 4 | 4 | -4 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 0 |
| Zach Boychuk | 11 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 6.7 |
| Brett Sutter | 17 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -4 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 16 | 6.3 |
| Chris Terry | 10 | 0 | 2 | 2 | -4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 0 |
| Tim Gleason | 17 | 0 | 1 | 1 | -7 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 0 |
| Kevin Westgarth | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| Aaron Palushaj | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Goalies | GPI | GS | MIN | GAA | W | L | OT | SO | SA | GA | SV% |
| Anton Khudobin | 36 | 34 | 2084 | 2.30 | 19 | 14 | 1 | 1 | 1076 | 80 | 0.926 |
| Cam Ward | 30 | 28 | 1645 | 3.06 | 10 | 12 | 6 | 0 | 824 | 84 | 0.898 |
| Justin Peters | 21 | 20 | 1225 | 2.50 | 7 | 9 | 4 | 1 | 626 | 51 | 0.919 |
Performance and Usage Charts for the Carolina Hurricanes from last season, from Extra Skater.
Media links were put together by Patrick Clarke, who can be found on twitter @PatrickClarke
Blogs
Triangle Sports Network (Independent)
- Website
- Google+
- Peter Koutroumpis, Owner/Managing Editor: @pksport on twitter
CanesCountry (SB Nation)
- Website
- YouTube
- Bob Wage, Managing Editor: @CanesCountry on twitter
- Brian LeBlanc, Editor: @bdleblanc on twitter
- Cory Lavalette, Editor & Hockey’s Future Writer: @corylav on twitter
- Jamie Kellner, Editor & Staff Photographer: @jbt_ltd on twitter SmugMug Photo Gallery Flickr Archive
Section328 (Independent)
- Website
- @section_328 on Twitter
- Mike Flanagan, Co-Founder: @mflanagan00 on Twitter
- Derek Rosseler, Co-Founder: @DRoessl on Twitter
Misc
- Hockey’s Future
- Mark Jones, Bleacher Report Columnist Articles @CanesReport on Twitter
- Cardiac Cane (Fanside) Website
MSM Coverage
News and Observer
- News Coverage
- Canes Now Blog
- Chip Alexander, Beat Writer: @ice_chip on twitter
- Luke DeCock, Columnist: @LukeDeCock on twitter
Misc
- Mike Maniscalco, Radio Pre/Post game host for WRALSports / 99.9FM Raleigh: WRALSportsFan archive @mikemaniscalco on twitter
- Joedy McCreary, AP Writer: @JoedyAP on twitter
- Seth Lasko, Covers Charlotte Checkers beat for Charlotte Observer Observer’s Hockey Insider blog @SethLakso on Twitter
Podcasts
Cheaters Never Win Podcast from Section 328
Canes Weekly Podcast
Organization
Carolina Hurricanes
- Website
- Canes Gameday Twitter
- Foursquare
- YouTube
- Google+
- Social Media Central (Orangization’s curated list)
- Canes PR Resources
Players & Prospects on Twitter and Instagram
- Patrick Dwyer: Twitter @pattydwyer39
- Justin Faulk: Twitter @justinfaulk27, Instagram @justinfaulk27
- Nathan Gerbe: Twitter @nathangerbe14 , Instagram @nathangerbe14
- Anton Khudobin: Instagram @akhudobin31
- John-Michael Liles: Twitter @hoosierjm26
- Elias Lindholm: Twitter @lindholmelias, Instagram @lindholmelias
- Ryan Murphy: Twitter @ryanmurphy24, Instagram @ryanmurphy24
- Riley Nash: Twitter @rileynash20, Instagram @rnash20
- Jeff Skinner: Twitter @JeffSkinner, Instagram @skinnerjeff
- Jiri Tlusty: Twitter @J_T_19
- Zach Boychuk: Twitter @ZachBoychuk, Instagram @zachboychuk
- Michal Jordan: Twitter @TheBigCzech23
- Keegan Lowe: Twitter @Klowe4
- Victor Rask: Twitter @VictorRask
- Beau Schmitz: Twitter @BeauS17
- Brody Sutter: Twitter @Sutts19
- Chris Terry: Twitter @christerry25
- Brendan Woods: Twitter @SkeeterWoods21
- Daniel Altshuller: Twitter @Altsy33
- Brendan Collier: Twitter @Brendosogood7
- Tyler Ganly: Twitter @tganly95
- Erik Karlsson: Twitter @erikkarlsson28
- Brock McGinn: Twitter @BrockMcGinn21
- Collin Olson: Twitter @C_Olson39
- Brett Pesce: Twitter @brettpesce22
- Jaccob Slavin: Twitter @Jslavin7
- Kellan Tochkin: Twitter @toch16
- Sergey Tolchinsky: Twitter @Tolchinsky10
- Haydn Fleury: Twitter @fleury96
- Alex Nedeljkovic: Twitter @Alex_Nedel39
- Warren Foegele: Twitter @FoegDaddy96
- Josh Wesley: Twitter @JoshyWeso
- Lucas Wallmark: Twitter @LWallmar
- Clark Bishop: Twitter @cbish11
- Kyle Jenkins: Twitter @kylejenkins51
Hurricanes Front Office on Twitter
- Peter Karmanos, Owner / CEO / Governor: @karmanosunplggd
- Ron Francis, Executive VP & GM: @RonFrancis10
Hurricanes Broadcasters on Twitter
- Chuck Kaiton, Radio PxP: @AndTheLetterK
- John Forslund, TV PxP: @JohnForslund
- Chantel McCabe, TV PreGame Host / Sideline Reporter: @NHLChantel
Hurricanes Communications and Marketing on Twitter
- Mike Sundheim, Vice President of Communications & Team Services: @MikeSundheim
- Kyle Hanlin, Senior Director of Communications & Team Services: @KyleHanlin
- Doug Warf, Vice President of Marketing / Exec. Director of Kids ‘N Community Foundation: @DougWarf
- Michael Smith, Web Producer: @MSmithCanes
- Amber Jaye, In Arena/CanesVision Host: @ImAmberJaye
Charlotte Checkers: AHL Affiliate
Checkers Staff on Twitter
- Michael Kahn, Owner / CEO / Governor: @_kahn on
- Tera Black, COO / Alternate Governor: @terablack
- Paul Branecky, Vice President of Communications: @PaulBranecky
- Amber Sersen, Manager of Community Relations and Fan Development: @AmberSersen
- Jason Shaya, Director of Broadcasting / Voice of the Checkers: @jason_shaya
Atlantic Division Season Primers: Bruins | Sabres | Red Wings | Panthers | Canadiens | Senators | Lightning | Maple Leafs
Metropolitan Division Season Primers: Hurricanes | Blue Jackets | Devils | Islanders | Rangers | Flyers | Penguins | Capitals