NHL FanHouse

The Value of a Shootout Specialist

Adam Gretz — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 15:30:00 EST

Filed under: Hurricanes, NHL Fans, NHL Coaching

The idea of 65 minutes of hockey (including overtime) being decided by what is essentially a skills competition is one of the most polarizing rule changes hockey has seen over the the past decade.

Love it or hate it, the shootout is a part of the NHL and it's not likely to be going away anytime soon. So, is it worth it for a team to carry a "shootout specialist," even if he has potentially no other value as an NHL player?

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Earlier this season, Carolina Hurricanes forward Jussi Jokinen became the first player in NHL history to score 25 career goals in the shootout, helping the 'Canes end a disastrous 14-game losing streak with a 4-3 win over the Minnesota Wild.

Acquired in a trade from Tampa Bay last season, Jokinen has scored nearly as many goals in shootouts (six) as he has during actual games with Carolina (seven). Throughout his five-year career his point production has been what you would expect from a fringe second- or third-liner: he averages about 14 goals and 46 points per 82 games played. Hardly an impact player, or a guy that would make general managers get into a bidding war for his services. But in the new NHL he certainly has some value beyond what he does during his typical 15 minutes of ice-time per game.

But how much value?

First, let's take a quick look at how many times per season an NHL team actually needs players to take part in a shootout. The chart below shows how many shootouts each team has been in, and averaged, between 2005-06 and 2008-09.

Shootout Totals By Team: 2005-06 to 2008-09
Team	SO	SO/Per Season
Anaheim Ducks	49	12.3
Atlanta Thrashers	44	11.0
Boston Bruins	46	11.5
Buffalo Sabres	50	12.5
Calgary Flames	28	7.0
Carolina Hurricanes	28	7.0
Chicago Blackhawks	41	10.3
Colorado Avalanche	41	10.3
Columbus Blue Jackets	45	11.3
Dallas Stars	46	11.5
Detroit Red Wings	37	9.3
Edmonton Oilers	51	12.8
Florida Panthers	41	10.3
Los Angeles Kings	38	9.5
Minnesota Wild	44	11.0
Montreal Canadiens	41	10.3
Nashville Predators	39	9.8
New Jersey Devils	51	12.8
New York Islanders	41	10.3
New York Rangers	58	14.5
Ottawa Senators	24	6.0
Philadelphia Flyers	26	6.5
Phoenix Coyotes	31	7.8
Pittsburgh Penguins	46	11.5
San Jose Sharks	35	7.0
St. Louis Blues	44	11.0
Tampa Bay Lightning	38	9.5
Toronto Maple Leafs	41	10.3
Vancouver Canucks	42	10.5
Washington Capitals	42	10.5
Totals/Averages	1,228	10.2

As you can see, teams average just over 10 shootouts per season, or one every eight games. Obviously, that number can vary from team to team and season to season; the 2007-08 Edmonton Oilers, for example, took part in a league-high 19 shootouts (winning an incredible 15 of them), while the 2008-09 Calgary Flames were involved in just five.

Here are the top five shooters in terms of shooting percentage (with a minimum 20 shots) since the shootout was implemented.

Top Shootout Performers: 2005-06 to 2008-09
Player	Shots	Goals	Shooting %
Wojtek Wolski	26	17	.654
Joe Pavelski	24	14	.583
Slava Kozlov	40	23	.575
Erik Christensen	31	17	.548
Jussi Jokinen	41	22	.537

Petteri Nummelin, previously of the Minnesota Wild, had the best shooting percentage with a minimum of 10 attempts, going 8-for-10 between 2006 and 2007 (and scored just five regulation goals in 78 games over that stretch).

Not exactly a list of the NHL's elite. But is it worth carrying a player like an Erik Christensen, an otherwise borderline NHL player, on your roster to do nothing but serve as an insurance policy in case your team is still tied after 65 minutes of hockey once every eight games?

I can hear the critics now: what does it say about the shootout that it makes a player like Christensen a potentially valuable asset? My only response to that would be; is he any less valuable to a team than say, a Riley Cote, Andrew Peters or Cam Janssen that logs four minutes of ice-time per game and provides nothing to a hockey team other than the ability drop the gloves and fight once a week?

Let's take a quick look at the shootout career of Christensen, a player that has suited up for three teams in the last three years. Of his 31 attempts with Pittsburgh, Atlanta and Anaheim, 17 have resulted in goals, which has led to a 15-2 record for his teams in those games (in the games where his attempts were stopped, they were 1-13).

That's not enough of an impact to turn a lottery team into a contender, but if it leads to an extra two or three wins over the course of a season, isn't it possible that it could be the difference between winning a division (and being a top-three seed) and entering the playoffs as a No. 5 or 6 seed? Or the difference between being the final team in the playoffs and the first team sitting at home in April and May? I'd have to say yes, especially when the NHL standings looked the way they did a year ago when 21 of the 30 teams were in serious contention for a playoff spot during the final week of the regular season.

There are not many players around the NHL that fit this profile. After you get past the top-five shooters shown above, the list contains the likes of Paul Kariya, Daniel Briere, Pavel Datsyuk. Mike Ribeiro, Zach Parise and Mikko Koivu, players that are already in high demand because they're excellent hockey players.

But in the rare example of a Christensen or a Jokinen -- players that have been available on waivers the past two years -- it might be worth considering them for a roster spot should you have the opportunity to claim them.

The Value of a Shootout Specialist originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Mon, 23 Nov 2009 15:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Leafs, Canes Play Game of the Night; Refs Miss Another Call

Adam Gretz — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 22:30:00 EST

Filed under: Hurricanes, Maple Leafs, NHL Videos

If you weren't expecting much from the Carolina Hurricanes and Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday night, you're forgiven.

After all, the two teams entered the game with a combined 22 points on the season (there were eight individual teams in action on Thursday that had more points than that) and were the bottom two clubs in the NHL standings. That didn't stop them from playing what turned out to be one hell of a hockey game, as the Hurricanes picked up a 6-5 shootout win.

Toronto jumped out to an early 3-0 lead, but allowed Carolina to get back into the game with a pair of late second period goals from Stephane Yelle and Matt Cullen, setting the stage for a wild third period.

After Alexei Ponikarovsky netted a power play goal at the 3:43 mark of the third period, giving the Leafs a 4-2 lead, Carolina's Tim Gleason cut the deficit in half with his third goal of the season.

And that's where things started to get interesting.

Just 40 seconds after Gleason's goal, Toronto's Ian White was issued a four-minute double-minor for high-sticking Tom Kostopoulos. There was just one little problem: White did no such thing. Kostopolous did, in fact, get whacked in the face by a stick, but the guilty party wasn't White, but Hurricanes forward Stephane Yelle.

And it was pretty obvious, too.

It's been that kind of week for NHL refs.

Naturally, the Hurricanes took advantage of their good fortune and evened the score with Gleason's second goal of the game (on the power play, of course) with just over eight minutes to play in regulation.

It appeared as if White was going to get the final laugh on the night, however, when he scored a go-ahead goal with just 30 seconds to play, giving the Leafs a 5-4 lead. It would be short-lived, as Carolina's Erik Cole beat the buzzer with his second goal of the year at the 19:57 mark of the period.

Tuomo Ruutu and Jussi Jokinen tallied goals in the shootout, giving the Hurricanes their fourth win of the season.

At the end of the night, the two teams combined for 11 goals, 77 shots, 40 penalty minutes, were credited with 70 hits and scored two goals in the final 30 seconds of regulation.

Leafs, Canes Play Game of the Night; Refs Miss Another Call originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Thu, 19 Nov 2009 22:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jim Rutherford Sees Better Things Ahead

Susan Slusser — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Hurricanes

So far, this season is a disaster for the Hurricanes, a projected contender that fell flat from the get-go, hit with injuries and bedeviled by underperformance.

Asked the reasons for his team's fizzle out of the gate, Carolina general manager Jim Rutherford told FanHouse, "I don't have enough fingers. It's been a little bit of everything."

Yet Carolina is showing some positive signs of late. The team snapped a franchise-record-tying 14-game winless streak last week, then followed that up by playing well in a shootout loss to Montreal. Coach Paul Maurice praised his squad after that game, and Rutherford agreed.

"The players played with confidence, and the team played with confidence," Rutherford said by phone. "We weren't waiting for things to happen. If the team continues to perform like that, I can see this thing starting to turn around."

"This group can get it done. That doesn't mean it's the group we'll stick with."
-- Jim Rutherford on the Hurricanes Making a MoveThis thing is a 3-12-5 record, and the Hurricanes' 11 points tie them at the bottom of the league with Toronto, which comes into Carolina Thursday night for a battle to avoid 30th place. The Hurricanes are last in the NHL in goals scored, yet they've allowed the second most goals, stunning considering Carolina was in the Eastern Conference finals just six months ago with essentially the same team.

Except that bunch hasn't been on the ice together much, with injuries to, among others, Joni Pitkanen, Erik Cole and Eric Staal taking a toll. Then, of course, there's the biggie: goalie Cam Ward is out until Dec. 5, at the earliest, after a severe leg laceration. Yes, all teams have injuries, but the Hurricanes' have been so extensive that fielding a complete roster has been a challenge and the salary cap is starting to become an issue.

"All teams deal with it," Rutherford said of Carolina's injury glut, "but our team wasn't able to deal with it very well."

Rutherford isn't going to point to the trainer's table as the primary reason for Carolina's struggles, at any rate. Before ever mentioning the players who have missed time, Rutherford brought up underperformance as an issue. He didn't name names, and with the Hurricanes neither scoring nor preventing goals, it's safe to say the blame is spread around pretty well. Even the injured players weren't lights out when they were able to suit up.

Nevertheless, during the 14-game winless streak, Rutherford said, the Hurricanes only played four really bad games. "There were five or six games we should have won," he said. "But that's the way it goes. Now we have to climb back out of it.

"I've never felt like there was not a good work ethic, though. It's just seemed like nothing went right."

Manny Legace has done what Rutherford expected since being picked up to fill in for Ward, and Rutherford said the good thing is that Legace has the ability to get hot and win a few games. As far as adding other pieces, though, the salary cap is going to make things tricky. That doesn't mean he's not on the phone trying to improve the club, but the possibilities are limited.

"This group can get it done," Rutherford said. "That doesn't mean it's the group we'll stick with."

Meanwhile, the most positive development during the bumpy beginning to 2009-2010 is the emergence of Brandon Sutter, called up to fill in but now looking like a fixture. Brent Sutter's son has five goals, tied for second most on the team, in 11 games, and the 20-year-old center has a plus-one rating, making him one of the few Hurricanes with a plus next to his name. Rutherford emphasized that every member of the team must play up to his potential, and that a handful are not doing so, but when it comes to Sutter, Rutherford has nothing but praise.

"We thought he'd play at least half a season at Albany, then we brought him in to help -- and Brandon has come in and been our best player," Rutherford said. "He always projected a player who could have an impact on the organization, but at this age, the offensive skills he's shown are something."

Jim Rutherford Sees Better Things Ahead originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Thu, 19 Nov 2009 11:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Plus/Minus: Mike Fisher Leads Senators to Fight-Filled Win

Adam Gretz — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST

Filed under: Capitals, Hurricanes, Sharks

We're trying something different to replace the old Newsmakers in the NHL posts. Hopefully you'll like it. Each weekday we'll take a look at one positive performance from the previous night (a plus), and one negative performance from the previous night (a minus). It's the plus/minus.Tell us what you think at nhlfanhouse@gmail.com.

More Coverage: Tuesday's NHL Scoreboard

Plus Of The Day: Mike Fisher, Ottawa Senators

Tuesday's Battle of Ontario between Toronto and Ottawa was one of those examples of going to a fight and having a hockey game break out. The two bitter rivals combined for four fights, an ejection and 60 penalty minutes in the Senators 3-2 win.

Leading the way for Ottawa was veteran center Mike Fisher, who scored a pair goals and was a plus-two with four shots on goal in nearly 22 minutes on the ice. He was also an impressive 12-for-18 in the faceoff circle, including a dominating 7-for-8 performance in the defensive zone. Mikhail Grabovski was 0-for-7 against him on the night, and 0-for-9 overall.

For Fisher, the first 18 games of this season represent quite a turnaround from his 2008-09 campaign where he scored just 13 goals -- his lowest total in four years -- in 78 games. He already has nine goals this year.

Minus Of The Day: Carolina's Power Play

After snapping a 14-game losing streak on Sunday, the Carolina Hurricanes dropped a 3-2 shootout decision in Montreal on Tuesday. It has to be a tough loss for the 'Canes to swallow, seeing as how they went 0-for-4 with the man-advantage, and came up empty on a 4-on-3 advantage to close out the final two minutes of the overtime period after Jaroslav Spacek was issued a four-minute double-minor for high sticking.

To be fair, of course, Montreal goaltender Carey Price deserves a large amount of credit for the outcome as Carolina did manage to fire seven shots at him in the extra period, including four on the power play.

Highlight Of The Day: Alex Ovechkin made his triumphant return to the Capitals lineup on Tuesday night and scored his 15th goal of the season in Washington's 4-2 win at the Garden. The game-winning tally, however, belonged to Matt Bradley, who earlier in the game had his face busted open in a fight with Rangers forward Aaron Voros. Nice way to come back.

Plus/Minus: Mike Fisher Leads Senators to Fight-Filled Win originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Wed, 18 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Plus/Minus: Ray Whitney Helps Hurricanes Snap 14-game Losing Streak

Adam Gretz — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST

Filed under: Hurricanes, Oilers, Thrashers

More Coverage: Sunday's NHL Scoreboard

Plus Of The Day: Ray Whitney, Carolina Hurricanes

It's been a miserable start to the season for the Carolina Hurricanes, losing their two best players (Eric Staal and Cam Ward) to injuries, and losing 16 of their first 18 games, including 14 in a row entering Sunday. That unthinkable skid finally came to an end with a 5-4 shootout win against Minnesota, and even that turned out to be a struggle, as the 'Canes saw a 4-1 second period lead disappear over the final 27 minutes of regulation.

Jussi Jokinen eventually scored the game-winner in the shootout, and also tallied his fourth goal of the season at the 2:45 mark of the first period.

Ray Whitney was the star of the day for Carolina, scoring a goal and adding two assists in over 20 minutes of ice-time. He's currently leading the the Hurricanes with 13 points in 17 games, while Sunday's contest marked just the second time this season they scored more than four goals in a game.

Had the shootout gone the other way, Minnesota defenseman Brent Burns would have been a candidate for this as he managed to finish Sunday's game with a plus-four rating on a day when his team gave up four goals, while rookie Robbie Earl scored the first two goals of his career for the Wild.

But, hey, when you snap a 14-game losing skid, you need all the positive attention you can get.

Minus Of The Day: Edmonton Oilers Special Teams

When you lose a game by one goal, there's probably a few situations you can look back at and say, "well, if we had just done this, it might have been a different game." For the Edmonton Oilers on Sunday, it comes down to their special teams. Edmonton's penalty kill surrendered a pair of power play goals (on just three attempts) in a 3-2 loss in Atlanta, and was held off the scoreboard on five power play attempts, registering just five shots on goal with the man advantage.

Highlight Of The Day: Every once in a while, Maxim Afinogenov puts all of his raw talent together and makes some eye popping plays. Here's one such example from Sunday's game against Edmonton as he scores a power play goal with just 22 seconds to play in the second period.

Plus/Minus: Ray Whitney Helps Hurricanes Snap 14-game Losing Streak originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Mon, 16 Nov 2009 08:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Pink Slip Index: Complications in Carolina

Kevin Schultz — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 12:00:00 EST

Filed under: Blues, Ducks, Flyers, Hurricanes, Lightning, Maple Leafs, Panthers, Wild, NHL Coaching

In the NHL, coach firings are as common as parking tickets in New York City. Throughout the NHL season I'll be taking a bi-weekly look at five coaches who are the most likely to get fired. Be advised your local coach may be axed at any moment. Consider this fair warning.

Things have changed quite a bit since our last look at coaches with warm cushions. For one, the Lightning are making me look bad at 3-1-3 since the last installment. The Leafs have won a few games and things have gone from bad to an Alexander Daigle brand of awful for the Hurricanes. We'll take a look at all of that and more after the jump.

Off the List (for now):
John Stevens, Philadelphia Flyers (Previous Rank: 4). The Flyers have won five in a row since we last checked in and are sixth in the conference. Nothing to worry about, John.

Peter DeBoer, Florida Panthers (5). The Cats got hammered twice over the weekend by the Caps but are still 4-2 since we last checked in. Basically, there are more folks in a lot more trouble than DeBoer.

Free Passes: Barry Trotz, Nashville Predators. Jacques Lemaire, New Jersey Devils (who will be listed here as long as Lou Lamoriello is in charge).

No. 6: Rick Tocchet, Tampa Bay Lightning (1). There was some disagreement in other parts of the blogosphere about Tocchet topping the last list. No matter if you agreed or disagreed, I think we can all say that the Lightning are playing some solid hockey at the moment. They're 5-1-3 in their last seven and Steven Stamkos is destroying defenders' lives with his play. This run has cooled off Tocchet's seat so much I was going to completely take him off the list. Then he went and called out Vinny Franchise and dropped him to the third line, blatantly pandering to me to keep him on the list. So here he is with his own special spot at six since he's either completely bat poop crazy or playing job roulette with Oren Koules.

Seat status: Confusing.

No. 5: Ron Wilson, Toronto Maple Leafs (2). Things have turned around for the Leafs since my last look at them. They've actually won a few games and could have a few more under their belt if they could just figure out how to work that darned overtime. They're 2-1-4 since we last checked in, and that includes a 5-1 spanking of Detroit on Saturday, which nobody saw coming. Things are looking up in Leaf Land but we're keeping Ron on the countdown since October was a complete and utter FAIL. You can't forget about something like that so quickly.

Seat status: A warm spring day.

No. 4: Randy Carlyle, Anaheim Ducks (3). This week, Carlyle cools off slightly and moves to the fourth position. I'm still a firm believer that he'll get a fair shake in Anaheim and likely will last the season barring a major turn of events. However, the Ducks got the dubious honor of giving the winless Leafs their first victory -- on home ice, no less! -- but have showed a very mild resiliency going 3-2-1 since we last checked in on them. Carlyle cools off as the Ducks break even and we put some more volatile candidates in front of him.

Seat status: One of those hot summer nights where you wake up sticky because the AC is broken.

No. 3: Todd Richards, Minnesota Wild (NR). The Wild struggled early this season and I gave Richards a pass in the first edition of PSI since he's a first-year coach. That usually provides a little Teflon with which to deflect criticism. However, Richards makes our list this time since the Wild have continued to stumble. The more they stumble, the less of an excuse "brand new head coach" becomes. They're 7-10-1 on the year, second to last in the Western Conference, and are owners of an awful 2-8-1 road record. I fully expect the brass in Minnesota to give Richards some time but this being the NHL and all, hey, you never know.

Seat status: Lukewarm.

No. 2: Paul Maurice, Carolina Hurricanes (NR). The Hurricanes finished sixth in the East last year and made it all the way to the conference finals before getting swept by the eventual Stanley Cup champs. Injuries can be to blame, as Eric Staal and Joni Pitkanen are hurt and Eric Cole has missed time. Losing Cam Ward last Saturday was a death blow to a team already in last place. But with the Kings extending the Canes' winless streak to 13 and Carolina winning two of 17 overall, it would appear as though Maurice is as good as gone. This team has been outscored 30-10 in their last seven games -- all regulation losses. And if you can't even make it to overtime in Gary Bettman's Everybody Gets a Point Most of the Time League, you're really doing something wrong.

So it seems like Maurice is an open and shut case to go, right? Well, not exactly.

As Bob Harwood over at Canes Country points out, the Canes have put themselves in a bind not only with players but with the coaching staff, too.

"[Canes GM Jim Rutherford] has severely limited himself on what he can do regarding the coaching staff because of his recent three year signing of head coach Paul Maurice. If he were to fire Maurice, he would officially have two ex-coaches on the payroll because the team is still paying Peter Laviolette."

Yeah, so under most any other set of circumstances Maurice is a sitting duck. Now that he's at the helm of a failing team that gave him an extension over the summer and is already paying one guy to not coach them? That's a big bullet for one GM to bite. Maurice is second on our countdown because his seat is unquestionably hot. But, as the evidence points out, he's probably not going anywhere soon.

Seat status: Molten lava. But the extension and Laviolette deal means the Canes will likely have to bite the bullet.

No. 1: Andy Murray, St. Louis Blues (NR). When the Blues went 9-1-1 to sneak into the playoffs last year, there were some rumblings that run may have saved Murray's job. The team was promptly swept by the Canucks and many of its young stars have struggled during the early going this season -- and are killing my keeper league fantasy team -- despite a kind of deceiving 6-7-4 record. TJ Oshie has six points in 13 games, Patrick Berglund has four in 16 and David Backes has three in 17. But maybe after a 6-1 rout of Vancouver on Tuesday things are turning around. We'll see.

Seat status: Southern style chili cheese dog.

Right now, Murray tops our list since he doesn't have a complicated situation like Maurice, a "rookie" excuse like Richards, a Stanley Cup ring with the team like Carlyle or a recent hot streak like the rest. So if anyone is getting axed in the next week or two, it's this guy. Unless Lou Lamoriello gets up on the wrong side of the bed one day, but I digress.

Pink Slip Index: Complications in Carolina originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Fri, 13 Nov 2009 12:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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2-on-1: Turning Around the Hurricanes

Bruce Ciskie — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Hurricanes, Eastern, NHL Coaching

Every Monday during the season two of our hockey writers will debate one topic. It's the 2-on-1. This week, Bruce Ciskie and Christopher Botta talk about the sudden struggles of last year's playoff darlings, the Carolina Hurricanes.

More Coverage: Carolina Signs Legace to Fill Void in Net

Bruce Ciskie: We know it's early. Yes, the Hurricanes have 66 games left. However, to say they're struggling is simply a gross understatement. Carolina is in trouble here, and it's not that much like last year, when a mediocre team changed coaches and caught fire.

This isn't a mediocre team in any way right now. They're bad. Last in the East in goals scored, last in the NHL in goals allowed. They've won precisely zero of their last 12 games.

I'm struggling, Chris, to find any reason to think Carolina can turn this one around. It's not that they've dug themselves too deep of a hole. It's that they have looked so bad in doing it.

"One thing to look out for: GM Jim Rutherford will not quit on the season. He will make a trade, maybe even the first semi-big trade in the league before American Thanksgiving. Contrary to the cliche, sometimes you do have to make a trade for the sake of making a trade."
--Christopher Botta Christopher Botta: I hear ya, Bruce. The only reason I can't count them out is because there are more than 60 games left in the regular season and chances are just about every team in the East may still be able to sniff the seventh and eighth seeds in the East at the start of the Olympic break.

Three weeks ago, well before the 'Canes became a 2-11 embarrassment, our FanHouse editor assigned me to Newark for the Carolina-New Jersey rematch. On the train, I called one of my hockey gurus -- big-time Canadian influencer with a finger on the pulse of the NHL. This guy is right far more often than he is wrong.

I ran my take by him, that Carolina was just a half-step below the the perceived cream of the East -- Pittsburgh, Washington, maybe Philadelphia. I was looking at writing a column about how they're one of the league's unheralded very good teams. My guy stopped me in my tracks. "They have no secondary scoring," he said. "I'm not talking about a little secondary scoring. I mean zilch. They're in big trouble." Okay ...

Sure enough, the Hurricanes had nothing against New Jersey. Lost 2-1. I focused on Cam Ward instead. Says a lot about how bad this team is that they have this record and it's with getting quality goaltending almost every night from Ward.

Do you figure there's no way they'll get back to .500, Bruce? How about if they shake it up and give the head coaching reins to Ron Francis?

Ciskie: In today's NHL, it's really hard to make up for a lack of secondary scoring. As I type, Eric Staal has five points in 13 games. He could have gotten five points in half that time last year without even trying. Now, everyone knows he's the only threat.

Jussi Jokinen is not a consistent 30-goal threat. Erik Cole certainly isn't. Guys like Rod Brind'Amour and Ray Whitney are on their last legs, and shouldn't be expected to contribute any notable scoring totals. Matt Cullen and Tuomo Ruutu are nice players, but they're grinders.

There are pieces in place on defense with guys like Joe Corvo and Joni Pitkanen, but neither has done anything so far.

You might be right that a coaching shakeup could work. It's worked for this franchise in the past. However it leads me to wonder how many more times a team can tune out coaches during a season before the obstacles to a recovery become too great.

The bottom line is that you can blame Paul Maurice all you want (generally speaking, Chris, not saying you're blaming the coach), but this team's major offseason acquisitions were Aaron Ward and Tom Kostopoulos. That's asking for trouble.

Botta: No, you won't hear me blame Paul Maurice. I'm a fan. Maurice, like Tom Renney, falls into that category of good teachers, good coaches and good men who look bad when their GMs fail and their players bail. And it's all because they don't put on a big show behind the bench. The only good thing is Maurice was given a three-year contract, so when the inevitable happens he'll be well taken care of. I suspect he'll stay with Carolina this time in player personnel.

One thing to look out for: GM Jim Rutherford will not quit on the season. He will make a trade, maybe even the first semi-big trade in the league before American Thanksgiving. Contrary to the cliche, sometimes you do have to make a trade for the sake of making a trade. I doubt Rutherford will mortgage a first round draft pick, but he'll make a two-for-two trade that might not seem like much. Sometimes getting rid of two players and bringing in fresh faces shakes up the room and leads to winning streaks.

Any theories on what's up with Eric Staal? Is this about the lack of much of a supporting cast, or is a big part of this on him?

Ciskie: Honestly, I haven't seen enough of the Hurricanes to break down Staal's game, but I will say this:

This team played a lot of extra hockey last season. I'm not about excuses, but Carolina had to win emotional seven-game series just for the right to get a mudhole stomped in them by Pittsburgh. Along the way, Staal played insane minutes, was out there for virtually every high-pressure situation, and played at an extremely high level. Throw in there the pressure of trying to cement a spot on the Canadian team for the Olympics, and you're putting a lot on the plate of a player who is still pretty young (25).

Oh, and he's not really getting any help. So, yeah.

I agree that Rutherford will do something. He signed Jokinen off the scrap heap last year, and that worked pretty well. The theory about shaking up the room is a strong one, and it's about time for Rutherford to follow through on something if it's at all possible for him to do so.

Botta: Rutherford will. Start the rumor mill!

So in summary, we believe the Hurricanes need a trade and will make a trade, Paul Maurice could also pay the price (but get paid) and Carolina needs to put two or three wins together soon to be in the playoff conversation in March.

Do we even want to get into what a freefall could do for attendance in Raleigh? Nah.

Let's end on a happy note. Favorite Hurricane/Whaler of all time? I'm going with Ray Neufeld. Do you know what 27 goals and 40 assists would get you today? Four mill a year.

Ciskie: Kevin Dineen, no question. I don't even have to think about that one.

As for the Hurricanes, we agree on pretty much everything. I respect Rutherford's work a lot, so I have faith he'll figure out a way to turn this thing around. I'm just not sure it can be done in a way that gets this team into serious playoff contention.

2-on-1: Turning Around the Hurricanes originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Mon, 09 Nov 2009 13:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Canes Sign Manny Legace to Fill Net

Kevin Schultz — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 11:07:00 EST

Filed under: Hurricanes, NHL Free Agency, NHL Injuries

When Cam Ward went down with a grisly injury on Saturday night a bad season got much, much worse for the Carolina Hurricanes. Their star netminder got cut by a skate early in the first period and had to be taken to the hospital. As of Sunday night Ward was still in a Columbus hospital and the team expects that he will miss at least 3-4 weeks.

With the goaltending duties left to former sixth round pick and journeyman backup Michael Leighton, GM Jim Rutherford moved quickly to get some goaltending help. For now, that help comes in the form of 36-year-old veteran Manny Legace.

Today, the Hurricanes signed Legace to a one-year, two-way contract worth $500,000. The last time Legace was in the news was when he tripped over a carpet laid out for Sarah Palin last October. Legace was playing with the Blues at the time and missed five games with a hip injury as a result. He suffered a concussion later in the season and was never really the same. He cleared waivers and played the second half of the season in Peoria with the Blues' AHL affiliate. Legace was not re-signed when his contract expired over the summer.

For now, the Hurricanes have a temporary fix in goal without having to give up any assets and avoid having to play a journeyman backup with a career .897 save percentage. But it remains to be seen which version of Legace the Canes will have in net. Two years ago, Legace was solid for the Blues with a 2.41 GAA and .911 save percentage. Last year, those numbers ballooned to 3.18 and .885 when he lost his way.

Canes Sign Manny Legace to Fill Net originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Mon, 09 Nov 2009 11:07:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Cam Ward Taken to Hospital Following Cut on Leg

Adam Gretz — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 22:30:00 EST

Filed under: Blue Jackets, Hurricanes, NHL Injuries, NHL Videos

Scary moment in Columbus on Saturday night as Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Cam Ward had to leave the game early in the first period and be taken to a hospital after receiving cut on his leg following a collision with the skate blade of Blue Jackets forward Rick Nash.

Ward was down for quite a while, and as he slowly made his way to the bench blood could be seen on the ice. Video after the jump (and it's not as graphic as you might think. It's hard to even see what happened).

According to Hurricanes head coach Paul Maurice following the game, Ward's injury is "significant." Obviously the first thing that comes to mind when talking about players being injured by skate blades are the horrific accidents involving former Buffalo Sabres goalie Clint Malarchuk and former Florida Panthers forward Richard Zednik.

Hopefully for Ward's sake, his injury isn't anywhere near as serious.

As for the game itself, the Hurricanes dropped their 12th in a row, 3-2, and fall to 2-11-3 overall. They currently have a league-worst seven points in the standings.

Cam Ward Taken to Hospital Following Cut on Leg originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Sat, 07 Nov 2009 22:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Carolina's Nightmare Start Continues

Adam Gretz — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 09:00:00 EST

Filed under: Hurricanes, Sharks

Newsmakers in the NHL: During the regular season it's our weekday look at the previous night's action and some of the story lines taking place around the league. Have a tip or something you want linked? Send it in to nhlfanhouse@gmail.com.

Sharks 5, Hurricanes 1: Six months ago, the Carolina Hurricanes were in the Eastern Conference Final, just four wins away from playing for the right to claim Lord Stanley's Cup. Granted, they were swept in four straight games by the team that eventually won it all, but the point remains, they were one of the final four teams playing in the NHL. Fast forward to early November, and the 'Canes find themselves near the bottom of the standings, having now lost nine straight games, including Sunday's 5-1 drubbing at home against San Jose.

Through the first 13 games of this season, only one team -- Toronto -- has fewer points than Carolina's seven, while no team has scored fewer than its 28 goals. The 'Canes are also tied with Toronto for the most goals allowed with 50. Over their past three losses, they've been outscored by a lopsided 16-4 margin.

On an individual level, Eric Staal, who left Sunday's loss with an injury, has just five points (three goals, two assists), while Cam Ward, the franchise goaltender, has been mediocre at best between the pipes.

If you're a 'Canes fan, I guess the optimistic viewpoint is that there's still 69 games to play in the regular season (and that's a lot of hockey) and it's pretty hard to imagine that Staal and Ward, the two players that make this team go, are going to continue to be this bad. Still, as far as bad starts go, it's hard to picture one worse than this.

Sunday's Other Games

Marian Gaborik returned to the lineup for the Rangers and scored the only goal (his 11th of the season) in a 1-0 win over Boston. Henrik Lundqvist stopped all 29 shots he faced for his first shutout of the season. [Box Score, Recap]

The Blue Jackets defeated Washington in overtime. The Capitals played most of the game without the services of Alex Ovechkin. [Box Score, Ovechkin Hurt]

Andrew Raycroft steps up and gets the shutout in Vancouver's 3-0 win over Colorado. [Box Score, Recap]

Loose Pucks

-- The top five goalie masks in the NHL. Of the top two, my personal preference would be Josh Harding's, but still some solid choices. This is important because ... [The Program]

-- ... this past weekend was the anniversary of Jacques Plante becoming the first goaltender to protect his face/head with a mask. [Puck Daddy]

-- And one more on goalie masks, this from Bruce M at the Copper & Blue. [The Copper & Blue]

Video Of The Day

Awesome sequence in the Carolina vs. San Jose game, as Evgeni Nabokov makes a huge save at one end of the ice, which leads to a two-on-one rush for the Sharks that is finished with Marc-Edouard Vlasic's second goal of the season.

Monday's Key Games

Islanders vs. Oilers: This would have been an outstanding matchup 24 years ago. The New York Islanders have won three in a row, and they look to add to their streak when Dustin Penner and the Edmonton Oilers come to town.

Lightning vs. Flyers: The Flyers are just 3-4-1 over their past eight games, but are coming off a 6-1 dismantling of Carolina over the weekend. They host Steven Stamkos and the Tampa Bay Lightning who have earned a point in four straight contests.

Coyotes vs. Kings: Two teams off to their best starts in quite some team face off in Phoenix. It's already the third meeting of the season between these two squads, with each team winning one.

Carolina's Nightmare Start Continues originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Mon, 02 Nov 2009 09:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Tuomo Ruutu Suspended 3 Games for Hit on Darcy Tucker

Adam Gretz — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 13:10:00 EST

Filed under: Avalanche, Hurricanes, NHL Injuries, NHL Videos, NHL Discipline

The NHL acted fast in determining a punishment for Carolina Hurricanes forward Tuomo Ruutu, suspending him three games for his hit on Colorado's Darcy Tucker Friday night.

Just a little over five minutes into the second period, Ruutu hit Tucker from behind into the boards, knocking him unconscious on the ice. Tucker was eventually taken off on a stretcher and, according to the team, suffered a concussion. He remained in the hospital overnight and is expected to be released on Saturday, according to TSN.

Ruutu was issued a five-minute major for boarding and given a game misconduct following the hit.

The Avalanche responded with a goal on the ensuing power play before winning the game, 5-4, and continuing their impressive early season performance that currently has them atop the Western Conference with a 7-1-1 record.

Tuomo Ruutu Suspended 3 Games for Hit on Darcy Tucker originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Sat, 24 Oct 2009 13:10:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Darcy Tucker Removed on Stretcher After Hit From Tuomo Ruutu

Tom Mantzouranis — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 22:49:00 EST

Filed under: Avalanche, Hurricanes, NHL Injuries

Avalanche forward Darcy Tucker was immobilized and taken away on a stretcher after he was checked into the boards by Carolina forward Tuomo Ruutu.

The hit came just over five minutes into the second period in Friday night's game in Colorado. Tucker had turned away from Ruutu to play the puck, and Ruutu drove Tucker into the glass from behind. The game was tied 2-2 at the time.

Video of the hit after the jump.

UPDATE: Tuomo Ruutu Suspended for 3 Games

After falling to his back, the gritty forward was motionless as doctors attended to him. He was able to move his right arm as he was taken off the ice. The team has announced that he has regained full consciousness and is fully alert, though he suffered a concussion and needed stitches.

Ruutu was assessed a major penalty for boarding and a game misconduct. Colorado was able to take advantage, with Milan Hejduk breaking the tie on the ensuing power play. The Avalanche scored right after the penalty expired, as well, before Carolina was able to draw back within a goal, 4-3, to end the second period. After a couple more goals, Colorado held on to win 5-4.

Tucker had the worst season of his career in 2008, but has been a microcosm of the Avalanche team this year, exceeding expectations. Healthy and seemingly refreshed, he's been able to play the type of blue-collar game that made him a fan favorite in his time with the Maple Leafs. With six points in nine games for the first-place Avalanche, the timing of the hit and any ensuing injuries is awful.

Darcy Tucker Removed on Stretcher After Hit From Tuomo Ruutu originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Fri, 23 Oct 2009 22:49:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Fight of the Week: Pairing Off

Bruce Ciskie — Fri, 23 Oct 2009 15:00:00 EST

Filed under: Avalanche, Flames, Hurricanes, Islanders, Oilers, Wild, NHL Fights, NHL Videos

Every Friday, FanHouse sifts through the rubble and picks the best NHL fight, with the help of HockeyFights.com.

Sometimes, one fight just isn't good enough. Such was the case in Calgary recently, as the Flames and Canucks met for one of six matchups between the division rivals this season. It took just 2:32 for two fights to break out. Even though there were two good scraps going on at once, there was a clear winner for our Fight of the Week honors.

Beatdown of the Week: David Koci vs. Derek Boogaard

Boogaard missed the first few games of the season, and he hasn't had many opportunities to drop the gloves. In fact, this fight with Koci was his first of the season. Needless to say, the Wild fan favorite didn't look very rusty, as he quickly and decisively polished off Koci.

Runner Up: Rick Rypien vs. Zack Stortini

If we measured the quality of a fight simply by counting the number of punches thrown, this one would be a solid candidate for the best fight of the season. However, the problem is that Rypien appeared to throw the vast majority of the punches, and Stortini struggled to get any shots in.

Runner Up: Scott Walker vs. Brendan Witt

Walker is a proven tough guy in this league, and this looked like a bit of a mismatch when it started. The heavily-tattooed Witt held his own, however, and helped turn this into a very entertaining fight. In the end, though, it's hard to argue against this being anything but a decisive win for Walker.

Fight(s) of the Week: Darcy Hordichuk vs. Brian McGrattan/Tanner Glass vs. Brandon Prust

The Prust/Glass fight was pretty solid, but it doesn't hold a candle to McGrattan battling Hordichuk. The two exchanged some solid blows right up to the end, which came when McGrattan absolutely leveled Hordichuk with a right. Prust and Glass got off to a fast start, but it quickly turned into a wrestling match on ice. The linesmen broke it up when they were up against the glass for too long.

Fight of the Week: Pairing Off originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Fri, 23 Oct 2009 15:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Islanders Notch First Win in Shootout

Christopher Botta — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 23:25:00 EST

Filed under: Hurricanes, Islanders

UNIONDALE, N.Y. -- The New York Islanders joined the ranks of the NHL's teams with victories this season when they went 3-for-3 in the shootout to defeat the Carolina Hurricanes 4-3 on Monday night at Nassau Coliseum.

"It's a relief," said Islanders coach Scott Gordon.

The 0-6-1 Maple Leafs are now the league's only winless team. Toronto's next game is Saturday in Vancouver. The Islanders (1-3-3) play Thursday in Montreal.

Jeff Tambellini, Frans Nielsen and John Tavares scored the three shootout goals for the Islanders against Hurricanes netminder Cam Ward. Dwayne Roloson allowed one to Jussi Jokinen but stopped Sergei Samsonov. Up 2-1 in the shootout, Tavares's goal sealed the second point for the Islanders.

"I wanted to make sure I sold the fake," said Tavares, "and got the puck up and under the crossbar."

The Islanders' first win of the season was not without drama. Leading 3-1 midway through the third period, the Islanders appeared to be riding all the momentum after killing a penalty to Andy Sutton, who looked for revenge after Carolina's Andrew Alberts hit Tavares with an unpenalized late hit. Instead the Islanders' penchant for blowing third period leads continued when Eric Staal scored at 14:01 and Jokinen followed up at 15:03 to tie the game.

"A perfect way to end the game would have been at 3-1," said Sutton. "But I thought we kept our composure and finished the game strong. We've worked hard since the start of the season and have had our share of bad luck. We'll take a win any way we can, and we'll enjoy it and see if we can string a few together."

The Islanders were led in regulation by their high-skilled youngsters like Tavares and Kyle Okposo, but also by gritty and clutch performances by several of their grinders and by Sutton. The 6-6 Sutton, encouraged by head coach Scott Gordon to skate and move the puck despite his reputation as a stay-at-homer, collected a goal and assist.

Sutton's assist came on a first period goal by Matt Moulson, who said the big defenseman "looked like Paul Coffey" on the play. The Islanders took a 3-1 lead on a pair of goals less than a minute apart in the to middle of the second period by fourth-line right wing Tim Jackman (off a nice feed from checking center Nate Thompson) and Sutton, who was fed by unheralded young defenseman Jack Hillen.

With play-making center Frans Nielsen off injured reserve and making his season debut, Gordon was able to roll four effective lines. Still, the Islanders were not able to hold the two-goal lead late in the third period.

"We didn't quit," said Gordon. "The bench was lively. It was more like, 'Let's go get this.' "

Perhaps they just wanted to put the puck on their franchise phenom's stick in the shootout with the game on the line.
"It's great to be part of my first win in the NHL, but it's really special for everybody," said Tavares. "Everyone has given all they have to the team and we've just come up short. Now that we finally have our first win, we have to get on a roll and get into the Eastern Conference picture."

Islanders Notch First Win in Shootout originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Wed, 21 Oct 2009 23:25:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Cam Ward: The Best Goalie Hardly Anyone Knows

Christopher Botta — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 12:30:00 EST

Filed under: Hurricanes, FanHouse Exclusive

The Carolina Hurricanes will only go as far as Cam Ward takes them, so it's a good thing Ward has emerged as one of the top goaltenders in the National Hockey League.

"He's our guy," said Carolina coach Paul Maurice, who did not want to rank his goaltender but said, "He gives us a chance to win as frequently as any goalie in the league."

The Hurricanes' most recent game was the latest proof. In a 2-0 loss in New Jersey on Saturday, Ward made a half-dozen dazzling stops over the first two periods. Among the best: stacking the pads on Jamie Langenbrunner, alone in front after a centering pass from Zach Parise, with 16 seconds left in the first period. A sliding save on Nicklas Bergfors mid-first. A Hasek-ian sprawl and shaft poke check (yes, that's correct) on Travis Zajac in the final seconds of the second period to keep the game scoreless.

As Ward made the highlight-reel stop on Zajac, a press box scout said, "That's the Tommy Barrasso influence."
Told about the remark, the 25-year-old Ward laughed in recognition. Barrasso, a No. 1 goalie for most of his 18-year NHL career, is now an assistant coach with the Hurricanes. "Tom has encouraged me to challenge more, to be more aggressive," Ward said in a cell phone conversation before his team charter left for New York and a game against the Islanders on Wednesday. "Probably the biggest impact he's made on me is with my work habits. Even in practice, I don't want any pucks to get behind me."

Ward plays like he practices. Although he led the Hurricanes to the Stanley Cup in 2006 as a rookie, the 25th overall pick in the 2002 draft continues to improve. Last season the Alberta native set personal bests with a 2.44 GAA and .916 save percentage. He was rewarded in September with a six-year contract extension worth $37.8 million.

While Ward does not receive much national intention, he is among the favorites for selection to Team Canada for the Winter Olympics in February. If he makes it, there's a good chance he'll be teammates with Martin Brodeur, who shut out Ward's Hurricanes on Saturday night in Newark. After the game, it was almost startling to hear the 37-year-old Brodeur, who passes out compliments to opponents as often as he backs up Yann Danis, show so much respect toward Ward. "Cam is such a good goalie," said Brodeur. "Any time you play against the best you have to raise your game."

"That's very flattering to hear, coming from Martin," Ward said three days later. "I mean, right back at him. It's amazing when you hear some people start to write him off year after year. I don't see it. I certainly didn't see it when he shut us out on Saturday. He's as good as ever."

For Carolina to have any chance of keeping up with the class of the East like Washington and Pittsburgh, they'll need Ward at his best. Actually, the Hurricanes are counting on it. "Cam's even-keeled, confident, reliable," said Maurice, who adds that his goalie is so low-maintenance that their conversations rarely go much deeper than "hello" while getting coffee in the locker room. "Cam's as capable as any goalie of coming up with that game-changing, spectacular save. It says a lot that our defense loves playing in front of him. I think that's because he's in control at all times."

His calm demeanor was on stage while backstopping Carolina to the Stanley Cup at the age of 22. Management is not worried about Ward burning out in the game's most psychologically-taxing position because they know his outlook each day at the rink.

Since the beginning of his youth hockey days, Ward was encouraged by his father to enjoy the challenge of netminding instead of being burdened by it. With his dad's words in mind, Ward writes "Have Fun" on all of his sticks.

"From peewee to juniors, the Stanley Cup Final and wherever the game takes me," said Ward, "I've always taken Dad's words to heart."

They have served him well.

Cam Ward: The Best Goalie Hardly Anyone Knows originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Wed, 21 Oct 2009 12:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Like Cream Rising, Brodeur Stops Canes

Christopher Botta — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 23:11:00 EST

Filed under: Devils, Hurricanes

NEWARK, N.J. -- For Martin Brodeur, the first victory of the year on home ice never gets old.

When the horn blared after the Devils' 2-0 victory over Carolina on Saturday night, the 37-year-old future first ballot Hall of Fame goaltender raised his stick high and grinned like it was his first NHL win instead of his 561st.

"I always celebrate," Brodeur said after his 26-save shutout of Carolina for the Devils' first win at the Prudential Centre after three unsuccessful attempts. "Getting the first home win is important. It took too long this time, but we have to get our home-ice advantage back. This was a start."

Like everything at this early point in the Devils' 4-3-0 season, little came easily.

In a goaltending duel between potential Canadian Olympic teammates Brodeur and Cam Ward, a scoreless tie was broken by the Devils 26 seconds into the third period. After a poke check by Ward, the puck caromed off captain Jamie Langenbrunner and into the Carolina net for the game-winner. Other than Langenbrunner's upper body goal (an empty-netter by Zach Parise with 40 seconds left clinched the game), the offensively-challenged Devils worked hard but could not get anything past Ward.

Brodeur, who is now just one regular season shutout shy of Terry Sawchuk's NHL record of 103, knew it was going to come down to him vs. Ward.

"When we scored the first goal, I was thinking that might be it, that might be all the production I'm going to get tonight," Brodeur said with a slight laugh. "Cam is such a good goalie. I'm always impressed by him. Any time you play against one of the best, you have to raise your game."

Devils head coach Jacques Lemaire said it was an easy decision to come back with Brodeur after his team lost 4-2 to Atlanta on home ice on Friday night. The coach pointed out that his team does not play again until Thursday against the Rangers in Madison Square Garden. When Brodeur made a sliding save on a 2-on-1 early in the game, Lemaire said, "It was all downhill. That's how we know him. That's the type of game he can play."

While he stuck with Brodeur, Lemaire made many adjustments to his lineup. The biggest was breaking up New Jersey's No. 1 line of Travis Zajac centering Parise and Langenbrunner, a line Lemaire said in the preseason he was likely to stick with most of the year. The returning head coach placed Dainius Zubrus between his top wings and Zajac between skilled youngsters Matt Halischuk and Niclas Bergfors. He was happy with the results.

"I feel much better with what we have right now," said Lemaire, who discussed the changes with his players before the game. For his part, Parise understood the change. "It's not like we were scoring four or five goals a game," he said.

For the third game in a row and fourth in five, the Devils made a game tougher with the self-inflicted wound of a too many men on the ice penalty. "I think we're practicing our penalty kill," Lemaire joked.

When you win, mistakes can be laughed off -- especially when it's your first victory at home and the players have a day off before three days of practices.

"Yeah, we needed this," said Brodeur. "You don't want to have four days without games after you've lost two in a row at home. (Former coach) Pat Burns was the first guy to come in here and preach about winning at home. He said there were a lot of advantages -- you can match lines, you're coming to the games from your own homes, you play in front of your own fans. Pat always said you have to win these home games because you never know what the road might bring."

ETC: Saturday night was the first meeting between the two teams since "The Shock at the Rock," when Carolina scored twice in the final minutes of Game 7 to win an opening round playoff series over New Jersey last season.

The Devils scratched D Cory Murphy, LW Andrew Peters and RW Ilkka Pikkarainen. The Hurricanes scratched D Jay Harrison and are without RW Erik Cole (broken bone in leg -- expected back in a month). D Joni Pitkanen returned after missing five games with a lower body injury.

After the game, Lemaire raved about the play of rookie left wing Niclas Bergfors. "I liked him from day one," said the coach. "I think he is a player. Him and Matt (Halischuk), they never stop."

According to a published report, Devils all-time leading scorer Patrik Elias is slated to return to the lineup on Nov. 4, a home game against Washington. Elias underwent groin surgery on Sept. 15.

Hurricanes C Eric Staal played in his 343rd consecutive regular season game. To tie the franchise record of 419 set by now-Phoenix coach Dave Tippett, Staal would have to play in every game this season and the opener in 2010-11. The 24-year-old Staal is one of just six NHL players with 30 or more goals in each of the last four seasons, joining Dany Heatley, Jarome Iginla, Ilya Kovalchuk, Alexander Ovechkin and Henrik Zetterberg.

Like Cream Rising, Brodeur Stops Canes originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Sat, 17 Oct 2009 23:11:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Video: Cam Ward Robs Bill Guerin

Adam Gretz — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 21:50:00 EST

Filed under: Hurricanes, Penguins, NHL Videos

The Carolina Hurricanes rewarded Cam Ward with a six-year contract extension this past summer, and based on Wednesday's game against Pittsburgh, it was money well spent.

The Hurricanes overcame a 2-0 third period deficit to force overtime, and while Ray Whitney scored both goals in the rally, it was Ward that made it possible with his sprawling glove-save on Bill Guerin after some tic-tac-toe passing from Sidney Crosby and Chris Kunitz midway through the third period.

Video after the jump.

It doesn't get much better than that.

Carolina ultimately lost in a shootout, 3-2, but it still managed to pick up a point in the standings it otherwise wouldn't have received had it not been for Ward's stellar play in net. He also made another highlight reel glove save in overtime, robbing Evgeni Malkin on a wrist shot from the slot, and dueled Marc-Andre Fleury in a six-round shootout.

Kunitz, who still hasn't scored a goal in regulation in over 35 games, recorded the game-winner for the Penguins as they completed a perfect 4-0 road trip and improve to 6-1 on the season.

(glove tap to the HF boards for the video)

Video: Cam Ward Robs Bill Guerin originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Wed, 14 Oct 2009 21:50:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Fight of the Week: Long, Competitive Southeast Division Scrap

Bruce Ciskie — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 10:00:00 EST

Filed under: Bruins, Flames, Hurricanes, Kings, Lightning, Oilers, Sharks, Thrashers, NHL Fights, NHL Videos

Every Friday, FanHouse sifts through the rubble and picks the best NHL fight, with the help of HockeyFights.com.

Fighting will always be controversial. Many fans say that it's as much a part of hockey as the ice is. Others would rather it went away, even if they may secretly enjoy it. However, it seems that fighting is here to stay in the NHL. This week's card included a few heavyweight bouts, an unlikely matchup in Alberta, and a rather long, intense fight between division rivals.

Honorable Mention: Craig Conroy vs. Sam Gagner

Video can be found here. No, the Oilers haven't signed an enforcer named Sam Gagner. The young, dynamic center apparently thought it was his job to use his fists to ignite his team. CBC's Mark Lee was almost incredulous. The best part? Big Zach Stortini of Edmonton was a spectator.

Runner-Up: Jay Harrison vs. Milan Lucic

The video is here. Sometimes, a fight's quality is hurt because it doesn't last long enough. Harrison had good intentions here, but he was completely overmatched, and he ended up wearing the ol' crimson mask because of his decision to try to fight Lucic. Quality visual on this one, and great work by Lucic, but it was too much of a mismatch to climb atop the list for this week.

Runner-Up: Jody Shelley vs. Raitis Ivanans

Watch the video here. Shelley's teammate looked to throw an unnecessary hit on an icing play, and Ivanans did his job, going after the heavyweight and sticking up for a teammate. Good scrap between fighters who share space in the Pacific Division, so they're probably familiar with each other's work.

Fight of the Week: Zenon Konopka vs. Chris Thorburn

Konopka has never played more than 23 games in an NHL season. He was up against a slightly bigger and more experienced Thorburn in this fight from Saturday's Thrasher home opener. The two combined for one of the longer fights of the week, and there was some serious intensity from both sides.

Fight of the Week: Long, Competitive Southeast Division Scrap originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Fri, 09 Oct 2009 10:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Justin Pogge Goes to Anaheim; Hurricanes Sue Hip-Hop Artist

Adam Gretz — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 13:00:00 EST

Filed under: Hurricanes, Maple Leafs

Newsmakers in the NHL: During the regular season it's our daily look at the previous night's action. During the offseason, we'll look at some of the storylines and moves taking place around the league three times per week. Have a tip or something you want linked? Send it in to nhlfanhouse@gmail.com.

The Justin Pogge Experiment Ends In Toronto

Once the goaltender of the future in Toronto, Justin Pogge was traded to the Anaheim Ducks on Monday in exchange for a conditional draft pick in 2011. According to Curtis Zupke of the Orange County Register, the Ducks will be sending a sixth-round pick to Toronto for the 22-year-old netminder. If Pogge starts 30 games for Anaheim this season it becomes a third-round selection.

Pogge, a third-round pick in 2004, appeared in seven games for the Maple Leafs this past season and struggled mightily, giving up 27 goals on just 173 shots. A trade became likely when the Maple Leafs signed Swedish product Jonas Gustavsson (The Monster) earlier this offseason.

Hurricanes Sue Hip-Hop Artist

The Associated Press reported on Monday that the Carolina Hurricanes have sued a Raleigh hip-hop artist, Tyrone Banks, for violating team trademarks in a song. From the AP:

The federal lawsuit accuses Tyrone Banks of misusing trademarks by referring to the tune as "the official Carolina Hurricanes song" and wearing a Hurricanes jersey in promotional material. "We look at our name and our trademarks as our most valuable assets, and they need to be protected," said William Traurig, general counsel for the Hurricanes. Banks produced "Carolina Hurricanes" in 2007 and provided a copy of the song to the team, asking the Hurricanes play the music during games, according to court documents. The lawsuit said the Hurricanes did use the song during games and short segments of it appeared in a television ad and online video. Banks also received complimentary tickets to a game, when the Hurricanes played the song, highlighted Banks in the audience and displayed his name on the scoreboard. "Carolina Hurricanes. That's our team, say the name," the song's chorus repeats. But the Hurricanes say Banks is promoting sales of the song in a way that would incorrectly suggest an affiliation between him and the team.

Never been a huge fan of team theme songs. Brass Bonzana, of course, being the lone exception.

Loose Pucks

... Free agent forward Mike Grier signs with the Buffalo Sabres. [TSN]

... Litter Box Cats recalls the original EA Sports cover boy, Randy Moller. [Litter Box Cats]

... Blue Shirt Banter has some questions regarding Brandon Dubinsky. [Blue Shirt Banter]

Justin Pogge Goes to Anaheim; Hurricanes Sue Hip-Hop Artist originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Tue, 11 Aug 2009 13:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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NHL's Top 50: Eric Staal (No. 18)

Adam Gretz — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 09:00:00 EST

Filed under: Hurricanes, NHL Fans, NHL Videos

FanHouse's Adam Gretz takes a look at his top 50 players in the NHL. No. 18 is Carolina Hurricanes forward Eric Staal.

The return of Paul Maurice behind the Hurricanes' bench in December ignited a furious second-half rally that saw Carolina enter the postseason as one of the hottest teams in the NHL. The 'Canes upset the New Jersey Devils in in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinal, thanks in large part to an unexpected meltdown by Martin Brodeur and the Devils' defense in Game 7. In the second round, the Hurricanes again pulled off an upset, knocking off the No. 1 seed Boston Bruins. Leading the way was former No. 2 overall pick Eric Staal. He was a dominant force through the opening two rounds, scoring 10 goals in his first 14 playoff games.

The NHL's Top 50 Players: See the Entire List

The Numbers: Eric Staal
Eric Staal	Goals	Assists	Points	Pim
Career Totals	164	194	358	289
Average Per 82 Games	32.8	38.5	72.1	58.2

Draft Year: 2003

The first skater taken in the '03 draft after goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury went No. 1 overall. Six years later, he's been the most productive player in one of the best drafts in recent memory.

Why He's On My List

In his first five NHL seasons, Staal has already registered four 30-goal campaigns, and twice eclipsed the 40-goal plateau. During the 2008-09 season, he led the Hurricanes with 40 goals and 75 points, while also setting a franchise record with four hat tricks, including a four-goal performance in a 9-3 rout of the Tampa Bay Lightning on March 7, 2009. He was one of the main reasons (along with the play of goaltender Cam Ward) that the Hurricanes managed to knock off the top-seeded Boston Bruins (as well as the New Jersey Devils) to make a surprising run to the Eastern Conference Finals. In his two playoff appearances, he's been a point-per-game player, including a team-high 28 points in 25 games in 2005-06 when the Hurricanes won the first Stanley Cup in franchise history. A three-time All-Star that has missed just one game in his career (during his rookie season).

Obligatory YouTube Video

Eric Staal's day with the Stanley Cup.

NHL's Top 50: Eric Staal (No. 18) originally appeared on NHL FanHouse on Tue, 04 Aug 2009 09:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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