TEAM PREVIEWS: THE CAROLINA HURRICANES

Introduction:

So I was down in North Carolina a week ago and was privy to the following conversation between my brother and my sister in law:

Katy: "Guess who the Hurricanes invited to training camp."
John: "Not Jeff O'Neill?"
Katy: "Yes."
Both: "Ugh..."

It wasn't quite "Ugh" but that's the closest I can get to the sound defined as "The sound you make when you realize your team is inviting a washed up old star,who has failed everywhere he's been since your team and clearly has his best days behind him, to training camp just to sell a few more tickets." Its the sound Devils fans made when they signed Holik this year.

Hockey in the South is very much alive in North Carolina. This is a DEEP team provided they can stay healthy enough to keep Jeff O'Neill out of the lineup.

Key Departures:
Erik Cole

Cole was a fan favorite and was often a catalyst on this team. However he hadn't been the same since he literally broke his neck. Cole's entire game was based around being fearless and going into corners at high speeds. He couldn't do that anymore, even though he often still did. Cole is one injury away from the end of his career and was my niece's favorite player until he was traded. I'm glad she won't have to see that injury first hand.

New Faces:
Joni Pitkanen
Patrick Eaves
Tuomo Ruutu
Joe Corvo

Yes. I know that technically Pitkanen is the only "new" face on this list but Eaves, Corvo and Ruutu were all added late last season, and I think their impact on this team over a full season will be measurable, and thus deserve their own discussion here.

Pitkanen is a young, competent offensive defenseman. That's about all I'm prepared to say about him at this particular moment. He's another Philadelphia high first round draft pick, and the first two seasons after the lockout it was easy to see why. Pitkanen put up two "lights out" offensive, if defensively lacking, seasons before going to Edmonton and crashing. The good news is that Pitkanen is only 24 and has plenty of time to turn it around. He'll be under Corvo's tutelage here.

Eaves is sooooo good, at least he was a long time ago in a galaxy called Boston College. Eaves had 20 goals in his rookie season, which only lasted 58 games, on Ottawa before being wasted on the third line for the remainder of his stint with the Senators. I don't know that he'll receive much better treatment here, but he'll provide some good secondary scoring.

Ruutu is another one of those guys I've been waiting for a breakout season from for years! Ruutu was drafted in the first round in 2001 and has suffered numerous injuries between then and now. A bit of a lumbering power forward some had suggested that perhaps Ruutu was an example of the old NHL not quite translating to the New NHL... but then he scored 11 points in 17 games with Carolina.

Corvo was wasted on Ottawa, which is ironic because they could really use him this year. He had 21 points in 23 games with Carolina last year... yes that's called domination. 13 of those points came on the powerplay, nearly equalling his 15 point powerplay output from the 51 games he played with Ottawa last season. Corvo is exactly what the Canes were missing for most of the season, a d-man that can play the point. He gives them a new look. More on him below.

The Offense:

The problem with the Canes is not a lack of scoring, traditionally its been a lack of HEALTHY scoring. This means the line combinations are always a little screwy, so you should monitor them throughout the season. That said there are a few sure bets that you should target in your draft regardless of line combinations.

You Want to Draft:
Eric Staal
Ray Whitney
Justin Williams

There were about 8 Hurricanes who had a legitimate shot at surpassing 75 points last year if they stayed healthy, which should tell you something about this teams explosiveness. That said, only one of them actually did it; Big Eric Staal. Staal was a point a game, which while somewhat disappointing for him, is still very very good. Staal does everything well, except play defense, and should be drafted as such. When you are drafting Staal you are drafting a guaranteed 75 point scorer with an outside shot at 100.
FACT: Eric Staal's 28 points in the 2006 Stanley Cup playoffs lead the Hurricanes in scoring on their way to hoisting the coveted trophy. This was only his second full season in the NHL. Oh did I mention he's only 23?

Ray Whitney is consistently spectacular when he can stay healthy for a full season. Wizard was on his way to another great season last year but lost 16 games to injury. If he had stayed healthy he probably would have finished with around 70 points with over 30 of those coming on the man advantage. Good stuff for a left winger. Draft him as a 70 point player but expect to sub someone in for at least part of the season.
FACT: Ray Whitney has never appeared in 82 games and has only appeared in 81 four times in his 16 year career.

Justin Williams had his first real brush with injury last season when he tore both his MCL and his ACL as a result of a vicious hit. He came back in April but then missed the last two games of the season due to an unrelated back injury. With all this in mind maybe he should be on the, you want to keep an eye on list, but Williams is way too talented for that. If he stays healthy Williams will get you some penalty minutes as well. He doesn't do as much on the powerplay as I would like but he's still a very useful player.
FACT: Williams' two prior seasons saw outputs of 76 and 67 points with 30+ goals in both seasons.

You Want to Keep an Eye On:
Rod Brind'Amour
Sergei Samsonov
Tuomo Ruutu
Patrick Eaves

In Rod they trust. And they should. It looked like Brind'Amour was done prior to the lockout, putting up 38 points in 81 games. Then something miraculous happened. Rod got a year off, got to work through some nagging injuries and the ice freed up. Without the clutch and grab Rod dominated. He put up a 70 point season and then an 82 point season. He was on his way to another 70+ point year before he was finally hit with the injury bug, tearing his ACL. Brind'Amour put up 50 points in 59 games last season, but one has to wonder if at 38 he might finally be done. Watch him, draft him late if you want, he's worth a flyer. His health is incredibly crucial to this team. With him the team is three scoring lines deep, without him... well it gets a little dicey. It's Staal's team but Brindy is still the heart.
FACT: Brind'Amour's shooting percentage remains in the double digits and like all of his other stats has improved from its pre-lockout state.

32 points in 38 games. Thats what Sergei Samsonov did upon his arrival in Carolina. I can't explain it. After two great seasons with Thornton in Boston Sergei blew what appeared to be any number of "last chances" in Boston, Montreal, Edmonton and Chicago before he finally stopped spiraling and started scoring in Carolina. It remains to be seen what he can do over a full year, and you should feel no obligation to draft him but he is a great high risk/high reward candidate.
FACT: Sergei fits in in Carolina in at least one additional way... He hasn't played a full season since 2000-01.

I discussed Ruutu and Eaves above. What I said there holds true down here. If they can stay healthy and find themselves the right linemates (Staal or Brindy) and the rest of the team stays healthy I think they can have pretty big years. Thats a lot of ifs.
FACT: Want a reason to be nervous about Ruutu? He considered retirement in 2006 because he was unsatisfied with his own play.

The Defense:

You Want to Draft:
Joe Corvo

Corvo was almost a point a game after joining Carolina last year! That's ridiculous. Corvo will run the powerplay this year, a spot he'll receive some competition from Pitkanen for, and his numbers should be suitably impressive as a result. He'll get every chance to shine, and should have no problem putting up a 50 point season on this powerplay-centric team but there is at least one reason to be concerned...
FACT: Corvo's average Shooting Percentage is 6.4%... during his tenure with Carolina last season it was 12.4%. Expect him to come back to Earth a bit.

You Want to Watch:
Joni Pitkanen

Pitkanen has yet to live up to the promise of his 2005-06 campaign (46 points in 58 games) but there is no reason to believe that at 24 he never will. Draft him late or watch him early and see if the Carolina Reclamation Projects don't work their usual magic on him.
FACT: Pitkanen was ranked amongst the top 25 defensemen in scoring both of his first two season following the lockout. Last year was a bad year on a bad Edmonton team. He could be a late round steal or a waiver wire bust. I have faith in his talents and the Philadelphia talent scouts though.

The Powerplay:
Eric Staal
Ray Whitney
Justin Williams
Joni Pitkanen
Joe Corvo

If you weren't dead you saw time on the man advantage with this team last year. Hell I think I had two powerplay assists for them. As a result, its difficult to determine what a healthy Carolina powerplay would look like, but my speculation above should be a reasonably close approximation. Pitkanen and Corvo should be trading off time on a Brind'Amour/ Cullen/ Samsonov-centric second unit. Corvo adds a much needed dimension to this team with his ability to quarterback the powerplay. I expect slight improvements in every one's powerplay numbers this year as a result.

The Goalie(s):

Cam Ward is still the man in Carolina. His numbers were not spectacular last year (2.75, .904) or the year before that (2.93, .897) but he still had 37 and 30 wins and already has a Stanley Cup on his resume at the age of 24. He's an all right option as your second goalie and a fantastic option as your third (as you'll be able to spot start him in all those games he's going to play against Atlanta and Florida).
FACT: Ward robbed the Conn Smythe trophy from Eric Staal back in 2006 with an absolutely electric performance in the playoffs. At 24 you have to believe he'll eventually be able to recapture that magic.

The Verdict:

With three playoff caliber teams the Southeast is going to be very competitive this year. If everyone stays healthy though the Canes are the clear favorite to win the division. Draft Staal, Whitney and Corvo with confidence.