There is nothing more exciting in sports than the last minute or so in hockey when one team is behind a goal and they pull their goalie, leaving an open net, so they can put an extra attacker on the ice. There is not waiting on the final pitch or hit as in baseball, the two minute drive in football, or the last minute of a basketball game where it can take 20 minutes to play with all of the timeouts being called. In hockey it is six attackers facing five of the opposition and a goalie going after him as hard as they can. It is a constant battle for the puck, the opposition trying to pepper the Goalie with shots, putting men in front of him hoping to get a rebound or a tip, and put in the game tying goal. The defense is trying to gain control of the puck with an open net to shoot at and at least kill some time by firing it to the other end of the ice.
The Carolina Hurricanes had a 3-2 lead over the Columbus Blue Jackets going into the last minute yesterday. Both teams were battling for the puck, the Blue Jackets kept firing shots at Anton Khudobin and he made several good saves. The Hurricanes had a couple of breakout opportunites with the best being Nathan Gerbe. He had a wide open net but one of the Blue Jackets Defenseman intercepted his shot before it got to the crease. The Hurricanes held on for a 3-2 victory but the energy by both teams in the last minute was amazing.
Monday, March 16, 2015
Saturday, March 14, 2015
Analyzing The Carolina Hurricanes Trades
The Carolina Hurricanes General Manager Ron Francis made a flurry of deals before the March 2nd trade deadline and the Hurricanes netted several draft picks and only one NHL player. They traded three veteran players in moves that seemed designed to dump salary and stock pile draft picks. It also signified that the Hurricanes are throwing in the towel on this season and getting some playing time for some of the younger players and see if they are going to fit into the Carolina Hurricanes future plans.
The Hurricanes traded Defenseman Tim Gleason to the Washington Capitals first. Gleason provided an element of toughness for the Hurricanes this season and led the team with 133 hits at the time of the trade. In return the Hurricanes got Defenseman Jack Hillen and a 2015 Fourth Round Draft Pick. In Hillen, the Hurricanes got a younger version of Gleason with the same skill set but not quite as tough. He has not shown the same willingness to drop the gloves when he has to as Gleason has. According to hockeyfights.com, Gleason has dropped the gloves 50 times in his career compared to once for Hillen.
The Hurricanes also traded Defenseman Andrej Sekera to the Los Angeles Kings for a prospect Defenseman Roland McKeown and a conditional First Round draft pick in 2015 or 2016. McKeown was the 50th overall pick by the Kings in 2014 and currently Captains the Kingston Frontenacs of the Ontario Hockey League.
The last trade the Hurricanes made was trading Left Wing Jiri Tlusty to the Winnipeg Jets for two draft picks- A conditional Fifth or Sixth Round Pick in 2015 and a Third Round Pick in 2016.
The Hurricanes lost an element of physicality with the trade of Gleason and the Hurricanes are not a physical hockey team. Sekera was coming off a career year in 2013-14 when he scored a career high 44 points but he had struggled to find his game this season, scoring only 19 points in 57 games. Tlusty had appeared in parts of six seasons with the Hurricanes but was also having a tougher time fitting into Head Coach Bill Peters system.
The end result is that the Hurricanes traded three NHL veterans for one veteran, a prospect, and four draft picks. The plus/minus to these trades may not be known for several seasons as the Hurricanes are destines to miss the playoffs once again.
The Hurricanes traded Defenseman Tim Gleason to the Washington Capitals first. Gleason provided an element of toughness for the Hurricanes this season and led the team with 133 hits at the time of the trade. In return the Hurricanes got Defenseman Jack Hillen and a 2015 Fourth Round Draft Pick. In Hillen, the Hurricanes got a younger version of Gleason with the same skill set but not quite as tough. He has not shown the same willingness to drop the gloves when he has to as Gleason has. According to hockeyfights.com, Gleason has dropped the gloves 50 times in his career compared to once for Hillen.
The Hurricanes also traded Defenseman Andrej Sekera to the Los Angeles Kings for a prospect Defenseman Roland McKeown and a conditional First Round draft pick in 2015 or 2016. McKeown was the 50th overall pick by the Kings in 2014 and currently Captains the Kingston Frontenacs of the Ontario Hockey League.
The last trade the Hurricanes made was trading Left Wing Jiri Tlusty to the Winnipeg Jets for two draft picks- A conditional Fifth or Sixth Round Pick in 2015 and a Third Round Pick in 2016.
The Hurricanes lost an element of physicality with the trade of Gleason and the Hurricanes are not a physical hockey team. Sekera was coming off a career year in 2013-14 when he scored a career high 44 points but he had struggled to find his game this season, scoring only 19 points in 57 games. Tlusty had appeared in parts of six seasons with the Hurricanes but was also having a tougher time fitting into Head Coach Bill Peters system.
The end result is that the Hurricanes traded three NHL veterans for one veteran, a prospect, and four draft picks. The plus/minus to these trades may not be known for several seasons as the Hurricanes are destines to miss the playoffs once again.
Sunday, March 1, 2015
A Good Week For The Hurricanes
The Hurricanes finished off a solid week with a 5-3 win over a good New York Islanders team yesterday. They had beaten the Philadelphia Flyers 4-1 and the Washington Capitals 3-0 earlier in the week.
The five goals against the Islanders represents an offensive explosion for the Hurricanes. The goals came from some unlikely sources as Defensemen Michal Jordan and Brad Malone had goals and Center Jay McClement had two. The Hurricanes peppered the Islanders Goalie with 41 shots and was able to negate the Islanders team speed by keeping the pressure on the Islanders defense.
The week also saw a flurry of trades by Hurricanes General Manager Ron Francis that resulted in Defensemen Andrej Sekera and Tim Gleason and Left Winger Jiri Tlusty leaving the team. The trades netted Defenseman Jack Hillen and Prospect Roland McKeown and four Draft Picks spread out over the next couple of years.
The five goals against the Islanders represents an offensive explosion for the Hurricanes. The goals came from some unlikely sources as Defensemen Michal Jordan and Brad Malone had goals and Center Jay McClement had two. The Hurricanes peppered the Islanders Goalie with 41 shots and was able to negate the Islanders team speed by keeping the pressure on the Islanders defense.
The week also saw a flurry of trades by Hurricanes General Manager Ron Francis that resulted in Defensemen Andrej Sekera and Tim Gleason and Left Winger Jiri Tlusty leaving the team. The trades netted Defenseman Jack Hillen and Prospect Roland McKeown and four Draft Picks spread out over the next couple of years.
Wednesday, January 28, 2015
Off To A Good Second Half Start
The Carolina Hurricanes beat a pretty good Tampa Bay Lightning team last night 4-2. That is 4 goals in each of their last two games for the Hurricanes. Eric Staal and Justin Faulk had a goal and an assist and Jordan Staal had two assists. That was Eric Staal's 9th goal in 12 games and Jordan Staal has 8 points in 11 games since his return from injury. The Hurricanes improve to 17-25-5.
Sunday, January 25, 2015
The Hurricanes At The All-Star Break
The Carolina Hurricanes carry a 16-25-5 record (37 points) into the All-Star break. They have been playing much better of late going 6-3-1 over their last ten games. They only have more points than the Buffalo Sabres and the Edmonton Oilers amd are tied with the Arizona Coyotes.
The Carolina Hurricanes biggest problem all season long has been goal scoring. They are 29th in the National Hockey League in Goals Scored ahead of only the Buffalo Sabres. Eric Staal leads the team with 28 points but has been hot of late scoring 8 goals in his past 11 games. The Hurricanes and Eric Staal's recent hot streak coincide with the return of Jordan Staal from a preseason leg injury. He returned 10 games ago and has 6 points. Jordan Staal's return and getting other players such as Jeff Skinner back on track will be key for the Hurricanes in the second half of the season.
The Hurricanes best unit has been the Penalty Kill where they are 4th in the league at 87.0%. The unquestioned leader of the Penalty Kill Unit is Justin Faulk. He has the Hurricanes only two short handed goals on the season.
The Hurricanes goal tending tandem of Cam Ward and Anton Khudobin are only allowing 2.5 goals per game and rank 11th in Goals Against Average.
In the games that I have seen, the Hurricanes have had trouble getting the puck out of their own zone. They are consistently out shot by their opponents, and although they rank 13th in the NHL on the power play, they are not getting as many opportunities with the man advantage. They need to be able to put more pressure on the other team's defense and create more opportunities. That is as simple as it can get. Is it puck handling? Team speed? Decision making? not having an offensive mind set?
It will be interesting to see if the Hurricanes can carry the momentum of the last ten games into the second half of the season.
The Carolina Hurricanes biggest problem all season long has been goal scoring. They are 29th in the National Hockey League in Goals Scored ahead of only the Buffalo Sabres. Eric Staal leads the team with 28 points but has been hot of late scoring 8 goals in his past 11 games. The Hurricanes and Eric Staal's recent hot streak coincide with the return of Jordan Staal from a preseason leg injury. He returned 10 games ago and has 6 points. Jordan Staal's return and getting other players such as Jeff Skinner back on track will be key for the Hurricanes in the second half of the season.
The Hurricanes best unit has been the Penalty Kill where they are 4th in the league at 87.0%. The unquestioned leader of the Penalty Kill Unit is Justin Faulk. He has the Hurricanes only two short handed goals on the season.
The Hurricanes goal tending tandem of Cam Ward and Anton Khudobin are only allowing 2.5 goals per game and rank 11th in Goals Against Average.
In the games that I have seen, the Hurricanes have had trouble getting the puck out of their own zone. They are consistently out shot by their opponents, and although they rank 13th in the NHL on the power play, they are not getting as many opportunities with the man advantage. They need to be able to put more pressure on the other team's defense and create more opportunities. That is as simple as it can get. Is it puck handling? Team speed? Decision making? not having an offensive mind set?
It will be interesting to see if the Hurricanes can carry the momentum of the last ten games into the second half of the season.
Tuesday, January 20, 2015
The Captain To The Rescue
The Hurricanes had quite a game last night against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Four goals, two fights, and a statement making empty net goal at the end of the game by Captain Eric Staal.
Brad Malone started it off for the Hurricanes by scoring a goal for the second game in a row and he also dropped the gloves with Maple Leafs David Clarkson later in the game. Elias Lindholm scored the second goal and the Hurricanes were comfortably in front 3-0.
Captain Eric Staal scored the final two goals, both on assists by his brother Jordan Staal. Those were his 14th and 15th goals on the season and he has 8 in his last 11 games. After his first goal of the game and with the Hurricanes holding a 3-0 lead, Maple Leaf Dion Phaneuf leveled Jordan Staal with a questionable blind side hit, and Captain Eric Staal immediately challenged Phaneuf and they both dropped the gloves. Fighting is not Eric Staal's strong suit but I think he held his own. Sometimes it is all about standing up.
With under two minutes to go and the Hurricanes holding a 3-1 lead, Eric Staal gained posession of the puck and all that was between him and an empty net was Dion Phaneuf. Staal wound up and fired a slap shot that was aimed more at Phaneuf's family jewels than it was at the empty net. I believe the puck went between Phaneuf's legs and luckily for both, the puck went into the empty net.
Brad Malone started it off for the Hurricanes by scoring a goal for the second game in a row and he also dropped the gloves with Maple Leafs David Clarkson later in the game. Elias Lindholm scored the second goal and the Hurricanes were comfortably in front 3-0.
Captain Eric Staal scored the final two goals, both on assists by his brother Jordan Staal. Those were his 14th and 15th goals on the season and he has 8 in his last 11 games. After his first goal of the game and with the Hurricanes holding a 3-0 lead, Maple Leaf Dion Phaneuf leveled Jordan Staal with a questionable blind side hit, and Captain Eric Staal immediately challenged Phaneuf and they both dropped the gloves. Fighting is not Eric Staal's strong suit but I think he held his own. Sometimes it is all about standing up.
With under two minutes to go and the Hurricanes holding a 3-1 lead, Eric Staal gained posession of the puck and all that was between him and an empty net was Dion Phaneuf. Staal wound up and fired a slap shot that was aimed more at Phaneuf's family jewels than it was at the empty net. I believe the puck went between Phaneuf's legs and luckily for both, the puck went into the empty net.
Sunday, January 18, 2015
Taking Out The Senators
Justin Faulk and Nathan Gerbe both had a Goal and an Assist in last night's 3-2 win over the Ottawa Senators. Faulk finished at a +3 for the game. Brad Malone scored the other goal.
Since the Hurricanes started out the season 0-6-2, they have improved to 15-25-5 and have 35 points in the standings. I believe the Stanley Cup playoffs are a little bit of a reach right now.
Since the Hurricanes started out the season 0-6-2, they have improved to 15-25-5 and have 35 points in the standings. I believe the Stanley Cup playoffs are a little bit of a reach right now.
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