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The Carolina Hurricanes have posted a 2-9-3 record and haven’t won a game in almost a month. Remarkably, the ‘Canes have won only twice during this young season. And but for the lowly Toronto Maple Leafs, the ‘Canes would be the worst of the league. While no team has averaged fewer goals than Carolina, no team has allowed more goals than Toronto. While tonight’s game may lack a certain level of anticipation, this monotonous matchup may be just what Carolina needs to turn this season around.
Last year, the team exceeded expectations, and ‘Canes fans can debate if the long post-season run has had a negative effect on this season. This team is a long way from last year’s run to the Eastern Conference finals, and there is more amiss in Carolina than a few bad goals. Ward has not been horrible during the losing streak, putting up a 2.99 ERA and .899 save percentage. But only Nikolai Khabibulin (EDM) and Steve Mason (CBJ) have allowed more goals in October than Ward, and the overall defensive effort has been uninspiring. The team is a collective -98, and the blue liners have combined for -42. Through 14 games, the ‘Canes have given up 25 more goals than they have scored, and are absolutely last in the league with 28 goals. Special teams has been lackluster and the ‘Canes have been taking too many penalties. Opponents have had 74 power play opportunities (2nd worst in the league), which Carolina has killed at a mediocre rate of 81%. Poor defensive play, combined with an anemic offense, and the club has had little chance of winning on a nightly basis.
Given the ongoing losing streak, General Manager Jim Rutherford has begun to shake things up in the ‘Canes locker room. On Sunday, Rutherford, activated Erik Cole from the injured reserve, which should have a positive impact to the lineup. Cole is returning from his injury earlier than expected, and has not played through most of the losing streak. In addition, Rutherford dispatched defenseman Jay Harrison to Albany. Harrison was averaging 12 minutes through 10 games, and took 27 penalty minutes trying to keep up with the faster NHL pace. The club won’t miss his offensive contributions, but Harrison should be back in Carolina again this season. The team’s early season stumbles will also provide opportunities. As predicted in Tropical Storm Warning: Five Prospects for Hurricanes Fans to Watch This Season, Rutherford has promoted Brandon Sutter, and more recently, Zach Boychuk, to the big league club. There impact on the big club may be significant.
Tonight, Carolina will look to turn the season around by hosting the only club off to a worse start. Regardless of the outcome of tonight’s contest, the ‘Canes have a lot of work ahead. If Rutherford and Coach Paul Maurice cannot turn this club around soon, ‘Canes fans may be in for a long season at the RBC Center.
Dan Canavan is an attorney in Hartford, Connecticut. Dan regularly covers business and legal issues facing the hockey industry for ctsportslaw.com. He has appeared as an on-air guest with regard to the NHL and the Phoenix Coyotes bankruptcy proceedings on CBC Radio’s World Report. His analysis and commentary have also been published in various media outlets including The National Post, The Windsor Star, The Star Phoenix, The Montreal Gazette, The Edmonton Journal, The Ottawa Citizen, The Vancouver Sun, The Province, Faceoff.com, and the Sports Litigation Alert. You can follow Dan on Twitter at twitter.com/DanielRCanavan. Dan can be contacted directly at dcanavan@ctsportsgroup.com.
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