After hanging with the Vancouver Canucks through two periods, a pair of goals by old nemesis Ryan Kesler were all the difference in a 3-1 loss at Bridgestone Arena, the Preds' third straight defeat on home ice.

Nashville (13-12-3, last in the Central) came out with a strong first period, and while things shifted Vancouver's way in the second, they were able to answer an opening goal for Brad Richardson with a Colin Wilson score just 30 seconds later to head into the third period tied 1-1. Kesler gave Vancouver a 2-1 lead by banking a puck in off Preds defenseman Ryan Ellis, and added the insurance goal on a power play, busting Nashville's long streak of successful kills.

Next up, the Preds host the Carolina Hurricanes Thursday night. By the way, if you want to catch the Hurricanes' practice, head over to Centennial Sportsplex Wednesday afternoon at 1:30.

Random Observations

• Much has been made about guys getting scoring chances but not converting, and we saw it early with Colin Wilson, Craig Smith, and Viktor Stalberg. I'm actually pretty encouraged showed
• We often criticize a player making the "extra pass" right in front of the net, but Patric Hornqvist's assist to Wilson was a wise one. Roberto Luongo had his shooting angle covered, but Wilson was set up for a much better chance, and it paid off.
• Is Marek Mazanec getting more confident with each passing game? He certainly seemed animated in the crease tonight.
• You can get worked up about Luongo embellishing those goalie interference calls, but it's what savvy goalies do.
• I could do without seeing the Gaustad line start games & periods on a regular basis. It's the worst line on the team by far, and doesn't need the additional ice time.
• Once again, the defense did a decent job in the absence of Shea Weber & Kevin Klein, but there was some confusion deep in the zone on the Richardson goal. Roman Josi skated right by Richardson and left him wide open to bury that rebound.

Boxscore - Game Summary - Event Summary - Fancy Stats

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More from On the Forecheck

Follow @ForecheckerFollow @SBNationNHL

• Nashville Predators News: Marek Mazanec Wins NHL Rookie of the Month Honors
• Tuesday's Dump & Chase: They're All Must-Win Games Now
• Nashville Predators vs. Vancouver Canucks Preview: Seeing Double
• Community News: OTF Blogger Finishes Atop Preds 2013 Movember Fundraising Team
• Nashville Predators Injury News: Shea Weber Out Tuesday, Kevin Klein At Least 2 Weeks

The Hurricanes are having more scoring problems this season than the Predators are. With Shea Weber out again, Nashville has to make that trend continue to avoid dropping their fourth in a row.

The Nashville Predators' schedule hasn't been too difficult as of late. It seems every game we talk about a team that's either struggling, underachieving, hitting a rough patch, or all three. Tonight, the Carolina Hurricanes make their only appearance in Music City this year, and they could possibly be considered one of those three adjectives.

They are 4-5-1 in their last 10, but one their last outing against Washington on Tuesday. Of course, they are still right in the thick of the Metro race, just one point behind the New York Rangers. Make all the jokes you want about the horrid Metropolitan division, but Nashville has only been able to take two wins away from them in seven tries.

The Stats

The Carolina Hurricanes

The Canes started out their two-game road trip off right, with a 4-1 drubbing of the Washington Capitals. Jeff Skinner had a three point night, (2G, 1A) and now has fourteen points on the season. Goals have not been coming easily for the Hurricanes, which is a problem of which Nashville fans can relate. Only Florida, Philadelphia and Buffalo are scoring a lower rate than Carolina.

One of the guys they need to get going is Jordan Staal. With only 10 points on the campaign so far, the Thunder Bay, Ontario native is on pace to have one of the worst offensive seasons of his career. With Alex Semin out with a concussion at the moment, he needs to help chip in on the stat sheet, especially for the money he is making.

Jordan Staal

#11 / Center / Carolina Hurricanes

Height: 6-4

Weight: 220

Born: Sep 10, 1988

Currently, Carolina is carrying a three-headed monster in net. Now that he's back from injury, (again) Cam Ward is going to be their go-to guy, but Justin Peters has done well for his team in his absence. Peters has started one less game than Ward but won one more. Anton Khudobin, who originally took over for Ward, only played in three games at the beginning of the season before also getting injured.

For more on all things Carolina, check out our colleagues at Canes Country.

The Nashville Predators

It sure looked for a little bit that the Predators were going to hang with the Canucks on Tuesday. Then the second half of the game started. Despite their less than stellar season so far, they still have plenty of ways to burn teams, which the Predators saw last night. The good news for Vancouver is if they don't make the playoffs, they'll have plenty of time to practice for the Summer Olympics.

Shea Weber is going to be out of the lineup again tonight, but in a surprising update from Kris Martel, Kevin Klein will return. The young defense corps hasn't looked ridiculously out of place the past couple of game. However, maybe it's time to give certain players more responsibility, and see how they take to it. You never know, it could really pay off.

If there's a game to get Carter Hutton a pity start, this is it. Carolina is a bottom five team in both Corsi and Fenwick percent during five on five situations when the score is close. If not, then he may just be on the bench for an emergency basis and it will be many ages before Emperor Mazanec is dethroned. We'll see how Pekka Rinne's MRI goes later today, but even if it goes well it's going to be some time before he's game ready.

Carter Hutton

#30 / Goalie / Nashville Predators

Height: 6-1

Weight: 195

Born: Dec 19, 1985

You know the drill! 7 p.m. CST start on FS-TN.

More from On the Forecheck

Follow @JGarcia36Follow @SBNationNHL

• What I want from the Nashville Predators: more Ryan Ellis, less Seth Jones
• Wednesday's Dump & Chase:There Is No Home-Ice Advantage
• Vancouver Canucks 3, Nashville Predators 1: Kesler Does It Again
• Nashville Predators News: Marek Mazanec Wins NHL Rookie of the Month Honors
• Tuesday's Dump & Chase: They're All Must-Win Games Now

The Hurricanes pay a visit to the Predators in Music City tonight, hoping to accomplish something they haven't done in over a decade - win.

Carolina Hurricanes at Nashville Predators
December 5, 2013 - 8:00 pm ET
Bridgestone Arena - Nashville, TN
TV - SportsSouth (channel guide)
Radio - 99.9 The Fan

SB Nation Rival Blog: On the Forecheck (twitter @Forechecker)

Hurricanes Record: 11-12-5 (27 pts.)
Predators Record: 13-12-3 (29 pts.)

The Hurricanes and Predators meet tonight for the first of two games this season and the first in Nashville since the 2011-12 season. Both teams last played on Tuesday night. The Hurricanes come in to town on the heels of an impressive 4-1 road win against the Washington Capitals. The Predators lost at home Tuesday 3-1 to the Vancouver Canucks.

The Canes have a rather dismal record in Music City, where they haven't won since December 2002. They've scored two goals or less in six of the last seven games against the Predators, and they've never earned a shutout.

Hurricanes Notes

The Hurricanes held a light practice in Nashville yesterday and will not skate today prior to the game. Following the success against the Capitals there were no tweaks to the lineup other than replacing injured defenseman Brett Bellemore, who left the game early in Washington after taking a hard hit from Tom Wilson and flew back to Raleigh yesterday. Other than complaints about neck stiffness, there is no other news on Bellemore's injury.

Ryan Murphy was a healthy scratch Tuesday and will presumably be back in the lineup in place of Bellemore. Tim Gleason is with the team and skating on the road trip, but was reported to need more practice time to get up to speed prior to returning to the lineup.

No starting goalie has been named but going into a back-to-back scenario (Canes return to Raleigh tonight to take on the Sharks Friday) it's expected that Justin Peters and Cam Ward will split duties, and with Peters coming off an impressive win Tuesday, he may get the start again tonight. Peters has only faced the Predators once, in a loss where he gave up five goals. Cam Ward is 1-4-1 with a 2.98 GAA in six appearances.

Eric Staal did not practice yesterday (under the weather) but is expected to play tonight. Staal has points in his last ten games. After being reunited on a line with Staal and Tuomo Ruutu. Jeff Skinner is coming off his first three-point game of the season.

Forward Alexander Semin remains sidelined with a concussion, and goaltender Anton Khudobin is day-to-day as he continues to recover from an ankle injury.

Notes from yesterday's practice: [N&O] [Kirk Muller audio]

Projected lineup (based on Tuesday's game):

Jeff Skinner - Eric Staal - Tuomo Ruutu
Jiri Tlusty - Jordan Staal - Patrick Dwyer
Nathan Gerbe - Riley Nash - Elias Lindholm
Drayson Bowman - Manny Malhotra - Radek Dvorak
Kevin Westgarth

Andrej Sekera - Justin Faulk
Ron Hainsey - Mike Komisarek
Jay Harrison - Ryan Murphy
Tim Gleason

Justin Peters
Cam Ward

Predators Notes

The Predators have two more wins than the Canes, but despite the better record, their 29 points lands them in the 12th spot in the Western Conference and last (seventh) in the Central Division, seven points out of a playoff spot.

The Preds are not known for elegant or prolific scoring. Their team is built from the goal out and create their success with sound defense performance and gritty, hard-working goal scoring. They have eight players in double digit points. David Legwand leads the team with 20 points, and former Hurricane Matt Cullen has nine points in his last nine games.

Nashville's defensive corps has taken some big hits due to injury. Captain Shea Weber is still recovering from an eye injury and won't be in the lineup tonight, and Kevin Klein remains out with a foot injury. As a result, the Predators have relied heavily on rookie defenseman Seth Jones (who was selected one spot ahead of Elias Lindholm in this summer's draft). Jones is currently leading all NHL rookies in average time on ice (23:55).

The Predators were also hit hard by the injury to goaltender Pekke Rinne, who continues to recover from a bacterial infection requiring hip surgery in late October. In his place, another rookie has been called in to shine. Marek Mazanec has been up to the task and has posted a 5-5-1 record with a 2.09 GAA, .930 save percentage, and two shutouts. Marek was selected NHL Rookie of the Month for November.

Filip Forsburg is also out of the lineup with an upper body injury.

The Predators lead the league (tied for first) in the faceoff circle with a 54.5% win rate, and they rank in the top half of the league on both sides of the special teams battle.

Projected lineup based on Tuesday's game:

Colin Wilson - Mike Fisher - Patric Hornqvist

Gabriel Bourque - David Legwand - Viktor Stalberg

Nick Spaling - Matt Cullen - Craig Smith

Eric Nystrom - Paul Gaustad - Matt Hendricks

Rich Clune

Roman Josi - Seth Jones

Victor Bartley - Ryan Ellis

Mattias Ekholm - Joe Piskula

Marek Mazanec

Carter Hutton

We'll have the game thread ready to roll by 7:30 pm. See you there.

The Stars run of four penalty shots in the last 12 games isn't close to reaching the NHL record for penalty shots in a season, but it has set a team record and is among the most productive month-long streaks of all time.

Every time the Dallas Stars turn around this season, at least since the calendar flipped to November, it seems like they're earning a penalty shot.

In the past 12 games, starting with the road victory over the Boston Bruins, the Stars have earned four penalty shots and converted on two of them. And they've added to matters by giving up an unsuccessful penalty shot attempt as well during that stretch to the New York Rangers.

History tells us the Stars have already set their team's record, and despite extensive searching, I could not find the official all-time NHL record for team penalty shot attempts in a season. I did find, however, that several teams have had five attempts.

Additionally, five teams have had six penalty shot attempts in a season: the 1934-35 Detroit Red Wings, the 2003-04 Minnesota Wild, the 2005-06 Calgary Flames, the 2008-09 Philadelphia Flyers and the 2010-11 Boston Bruins. The 2005-06 Atlanta Thrashers, 2005-06 Carolina Hurricanes and 2005-06 Nashville Predators are among the leaders in the clubhouse with seven attempts in a season. Heck, the Tampa Bay Lightning have had seven twice - in 2008-09 and 2010-11.

The closest I could find to the Stars short run were those 05-06 Hurricanes, who had four penalty shots in November, and, of all teams, the woeful 1988-89 New Jersey Devils, who were awarded four penalty shots in the month of March and five overall that season. The fun part about the Hurricanes run is that five of those seven penalty shots were earned by Erik Cole, who scored on two of them. The 2008-09 Lightning also had a four penalty-shot run in January and added another on Feb. 10.

(As an aside, I could find records for every team except the New York Rangers and St. Louis Blues. If you have access to those, I would love to see them. Then I could confidently say seven is the most.)

Even if it's not an NHL record, four in 12 games seems like a pretty epic streak, so I decided to dig into the numbers to see if I could find any explanations for this little run. Through a combination of the Stars media guide, the official NHL website and various other historical statistics sites, I was able to find the regular-season call and conversion rates dating back to the 1984-85 season as well as a full listing of penalty shot attempts in Stars franchise history.

The first thing I wanted to look at was the sheer number of penalty shots per regular season in the league. Perhaps, some people suggested, the league average is way up, and that's what accounts for the Stars' higher number of penalty shots this season.

Penalty shots are indeed up this year. The rate of a penalty shot in 7.6 percent of games this season would be the second-highest rate over a full season over the past 30 years, second only to the 2005-06 season that featured a notable crackdown on obstruction.

Still, the Stars are a huge outlier even at that rate, which would be a total of about 94 penalty shots this season. That would give each team an average of 3.13 penalty shots over 82 games this season as well as the ones they face from opponents.

But the Stars have been involved in five penalty shots already - four for and one against. They've earned a penalty shot in nearly 15 percent of their games, and if you extrapolate that out, that's 13 penalty shots over the course of an 82 game season. That's obviously not going to happen (or at least, if it does, it will be an outlier of historic proportions.)

Only one other team - the Philadelphia Flyers - has at least three penalty shot attempts this season. Five other teams - Chicago, Montreal, the New York Rangers, Pittsburgh and Toronto - have been awarded two.

So why are the Stars earning more penalty shots this season outside of the general uptick?

The first answer is probably team speed. The Stars have speed to burn and are finally learning how to take advantage of it via breakaway passes from defensemen. Three of the players who have earned penalty shots this year for Dallas - Vernon Fiddler, Valeri Nichushkin and Antoine Roussel - are among the faster guys on the team, and while Alex Chiasson isn't traditionally considered a speedster, he certainly moves around the rink well.

The second answer is likely related to puck possession. While the Stars haven't always had the results to show for it (or sometimes have results in spite of poor games), they have been a generally above average team in terms of puck possession this season. Breakaways, and therefore the opportunity to create a penalty shot situation, come when your team gains control of the puck in an advantageous situation and takes advantage of a napping or flat-footed defense.

Finally, there is obviously some luck involved. I'd call at least one of the Stars penalty shot opportunities - Nichushkin's against the Edmonton Oilers - a weak call. Those things tend to even out over time, and the Stars are on the favorable side of that equation at the moment.

So where does this little run stand in Stars history? Well it's already the most prolific for drawing penalty shots, tied with the 2010-11 season at four and with 2005-096 for most goals scored via penalty shot at two.

For comparison, here's a chart of the Stars penalty shots for and against going back to their Stanley Cup Championship season.

For the record, before the team moved to Dallas (as well as the years in Dallas preceding the Cup win), the Stars had two seasons where they earned three penalty shots but never converted on more than one a season.

In their franchise history, including this season, the Stars have earned 52 penalty shots and converted 12 of those. They have given up 52 penalty shots to opponents and allowed 17 goals on those. The rise in Stars penalty shot opportunities, though not necessarily those of their opponents, runs in pretty direct parallel to the increase throughout the league, at least until this season's outliers.

Again, it's obvious this run of four penalty shots for in 12 games (or even the full 26 games) won't last. There are reasonable, if unexpected, outliers and then there are ridiculous outliers, and this falls directly into the latter category.

But it's still been fun to experience as a fan, especially with players like Fiddler and Roussel converting on sweet backhand shots. And even if things don't continue at this pace, the Stars very well may find themselves in the NHL record book before this is all said and done.

Struggling to make the playoffs for four consecutive years, Eric Staal's explosive season could help the Canes reach the post season.

Since his arrival in 2003, Eric Staal has shown he is one of the franchises most dominant players.During the 04-05 lockout, Staal stepped onto AHL ice for the Lowell Lock Monsters, which was possibly the best decision of his young career.

The following season was the Hurricanes’ unforgettable and successful Stanley Cup run.Staal totaled 100 points scoring 45 goals and tallying 55 assists.

After Staal’s tremendous sophomore season he’s consecutively recorded more than 50 points per season.Although it is hard to top his career high numbers, there could have been more production out of the Thunder Bay native.

The 2011-2012 season may have been Staal’s worst season to date.His lackadaisical style of play didn’t demonstrate the player we all know Staal to be capable of being.In February of 2011, Eric laid a hit, which appeared to be clean, on his brother Marc of the New York Rangers.Eric’s hit on his brother caused the concussion his brother suffered from the to keep him out of action for about a month shy of a year."I wouldn't say it has kept me awake at night, but it's tough," Eric Staal told NHL.com. "If I could take it back I probably wouldn't hit him knowing where we've gone and what has gone on since then. But it was one of those plays, bang-bang, happens so quickly, and I hit him hard."

NHL Eric Staal Huge Hit on Brother Marc Staal 2/22/11 (via NHLHockey95)

That same season was the first time Staal heard his name buzzing as a trade possibility. Rumblings of the possible Ontario native to be a Christmas wrapped present for the Toronto Maple Leafs came about in December of 2011. However, General Manager Jim Rutherford put a quick stop to the rumors stating that he had no intentions of moving Staal or Cam Ward.  However, the Hurricanes eighty-sixed Paul Maurice for the second time in franchise history and was replaced by former Canadiens assistant coach Kirk Muller.  Muller ended his first season as head coach above .500 going 25-20-12.

Hockey has it’s mental components and it was clear that gaining the responsibility of being a captain, trade rumors, and having his mind distracted by his brothers well being took a toll on his game.Staal finished the 2011-2012 season with 24 goals 46 assists for a third season of 70 points.

Another lockout in 2012-2013 shortened the NHL season to 48 games.  It wasn’t enough to make a coaching change the previous season as the Hurricanes added Alexander Semin and brother Jordan Staal to the roster during the off-season with both players signing contract extensions. The new additions, the coaching change in full effect, and Eric’s brother Marc returning to action sparked new life into the captain as he finished the 48 game season with 53 points.

Fast forward to present day and we have Eric Staal leading the Hurricanes for the month November in points with 10 while he ended a seven game point streak Friday, November 29 against the New Jersey Devils."Eric’s really picked up his pace. His pace is quicker now. He’s going more direct. He’s faster, he’s hungrier and he’s got his confidence again," Muller told CarolinaHurricanes.com. "When he’s going like that, now he looks like a power forward who’s tough to contain."As mentioned before, there is a mental aspect to the sport and Staal has what he needs to get the job done.Staal has 20 points in 27 games so far and that number is only going to increase at the rate he’s going.It has been an "up-and-down" month for the Hurricanes according to Muller.The test for Staal now is to lead the Hurricanes in the search for consistency and get the team who has not qualified for the playoffs in four years to clinch playoff berth.December’s first game for Carolina showed complete dominance as they easily took care of the Washington Capitals 4-1 with Staal adding 2 assists on the night.  It appears Staal's rough patches have only made him better.

The Nashville Predators lost their fourth straight game on home ice tonight, as Jeff Skinner recorded his first career hat trick in a 5-2 win for the Carolina Hurricanes.

After taking a 2-1 lead early in the second period on goals by Mike Fisher and Viktor Stalberg, things turned decidedly sour from that point on. After Skinner scored to tie the game, one high-sticking penalty by Stalberg led to a Carolina goal shortly after their power play had expired, and another Stalberg high-stick resulted in a PP score by Skinner to make it 4-2 after two periods. The only scoring in the third was an empty netter for Skinner to complete his hatty.

Next up, the Preds (now 13-13-3, last in the Central Division) head east for road games against the Washington Capitals and New York Rangers Saturday and Tuesday. Might the captain return to the lineup and help turn things around?

Random Observations

• For one night the magic pixie dust was blown off Marek Mazanec, who gave up four goals on 13 shots.
• Go figure - I complain about the Gaustad line starting games, and tonight it's Fisher's line that gives up an early goal instead.
• Something has to change soon, right? I'm not sure exactly what will happen, but there's little reason to believe that the current cast of characters will suddenly gel into a winning team.
• Eric Nystrom through 26 games - 4 goals, 2 assists. Brandon Yip through 26 games last season - 3 goals, 4 assists. I know he's a great quote (and a Michigan man to boot), but ugh. I'm not singling him out tonight for any particular reason, but that signing was perhaps the biggest head-scratcher to me last summer.

Boxscore - Game Summary - Event Summary - Fancy Stats

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Jeff Skinner nets first career hat-trick to lead Carolina

For the second game in a row, Jeff Skinner was looking for a hat-trick, but on this night he was able to knock a third goal in as the Carolina Hurricanes took care of the Nashville Predators, 5-2 at Bridgestone Arena on Thursday night.

Justin Faulk and Riley Nash also scored for the Hurricanes while Justin Peters made 20 saves on 22 shots for the visitors.

Faulk got the scoring started just 27 seconds into the game when he beat Marek Mazanec on a harmless looking shot that the goalie probably did not see.

The period ended up 1-0 and the Hurricanes are now 7-0-2 when they score first in a game.

The second period opened up as Mike Fisher knocked one in for the Preds just 50 seconds in.  The home team made it 2-1 as a high deflected shot got by Peters, but Skinner took over after that.

Skinner tied it up 6:11 into the second period and then Nash scored his second of the season to give the Hurricanes back the lead, 3-2.

Skinner would then score again on a powerplay with just 52 seconds left in the period.

The third period went back and forth until the former Calder winner potted an empty netter to complete his first NHL career hat-trick.

The team battled injuries throughout this game as they lost Mike Komisarek, Drayson Bowman, and Patrick Dwyer to various ailments.   Status reports on the players will be released tomorrow.

The Canes will hustle back home for a game on Friday night against the San Jose Sharks.

Game Notes:

• The Canes outshot the Preds 23-22 and were led by Skinner with six shots.
• Ron Hainsey had a team high three blocked shots and played 24:37, good for second on the team.  Justin Faulk once again had a team high 26:33 of ice time.
• Justin Peters coughed up a few rebounds but looked solid again for most of this one.  He stopped a key 2-on-1 in the second period when the score was close.
• The powerplay went 1-5 and looked better as they were able to establish more possession time.  Elias Lindholm hit the post on one attempt and there were a couple of other near misses.  They failed on another long 5-on-3 though.  The penalty kill was perfect, (0-4).
• Post game interviews are at Canes PR.

The Hurricanes take a break from the road to host the San Jose Sharks in Raleigh tonight.

Carolina Hurricanes vs San Jose Sharks
December 6, 2013 - 7:00 pm ET
PNC Arena - Raleigh, NC
TV - Fox Sports Carolinas
Radio - 99.9 The Fan

SB Nation Rival Blog: Fear The Fin (twitter @fearthefin)

Hurricanes Record: 12-12-5 (29 pts.)
Sharks Record: 19-4-5 (43 pts.)

Wow, what a great road trip! A 4-1 division win Tuesday against the Washington Capitals, and a 5-2 win and a Jeff Skinner hat trick against the Predators last night in Nashville to pull within one point of third place in the Metro division. The Canes get a couple of nights to sleep in their own beds before jetting back off to Vancouver Saturday, but there is no rest for the weary as there is a little business to take care of tonight called the San Jose Sharks.

The Sharks played the second game of a road trip themselves last night and it did not fare well as they were railroaded by the Pittsburgh Penguins, 5-1, to snap a six-game win streak.

Updates today will be few and far between as both teams arrived in Raleigh late and won't hold a morning skate or media scrum. Here's what we know, look for minor updates in the comments and any major updates will get a headline.

The Hurricanes did not make it out of Music City unscathed, as Drayson Bowman (puck to the leg), Mike Komisarek (unknown lower body issue) and Patrick Dwyer (scary high stick to the eye area) had to leave the game early. Status of all three is unknown at this time.

Suffice it to say that the line of Eric Staal/Jeff Skinner/Tuomo Ruutu will likely remain intact. Since the line change two games ago, Skinner has five goals and six points, Staal has three assists (and 13 points in his last 12 games), and Ruuty is being Ruuty, banging bodies, digging out pucks, and screening goalies.

Last night Justin Faulk again gave USA Hockey a glimpse of what they could see in Sochi with a goal and two assists for his first career three-point game. Faulk has eight points in his last six games.

The Sharks will likely not be in a good mood after last night's loss to the Penguins (read about it on Fear The Fin), but they will be a formidable opponent tonight regardless. They rank first in the Pacific division, second in the Western Conference, and occupy either the first or second spot in all the major power rankings. Their special teams play (PP and PK) ranks near the middle of the pack, but they either lead the league or are no worse than top-ten in the league in most other categories on both ends of the ice. Despite their moderate success on special teams, they lead the league in both power play time and in PP-PK differential.

The Sharks are led by Joe Thornton with 31 points (5 goals, 26 assists) followed by Logan Couture (28 points) and Patrick Marleau (26 points), but rookie Tomas Hertl is their leading goal-scorer with 14 on the season. Wookie defenseman Brent Burns (who missed 13 games earlier in the season with an upper body issue) scored his first career hat trick on November 29th against St. Louis. Last night's regulation loss was the first of the season with Burns in the lineup.

Alex Stalock replaced Antti Niemi in net for the third period last night, and it's unknown whether Stalock will get the start or whether the Sharks will go back to Niemi. Niemi has started the last eight games for the Sharks and is 16-4-5 with a 2.31 GAA and .915 save percentage. Stalock is 3-0-0 with a 1.55 GAA and .944 save percentage.

Do a good deed tonight and drop off toys and pajamas at the arena to help Pajama Program of Raleigh and you'll be eligible to win several nice prizes (details here). We'll have the open game thread ready to roll at 6:30 pm. See you at the rink.

Update: Hurricanes Recall Zach Boychuk From Charlotte

Here's the release from the Hurricanes:

‘CANES RECALL FORWARD ZACH BOYCHUK
Mike Komisarek placed on injured reserve

RALEIGH, NC – Jim Rutherford, President and General Manager of the National Hockey League’s Carolina Hurricanes, today announced that the team has recalled forward Zach Boychuk on emergency from Charlotte of the American Hockey League (AHL). In addition, the team has placed defenseman Mike Komisarek on injured reserve with a lower-body injury.

Boychuk, 24, leads the Checkers in goals (9), assists (10) and points (19). The Airdrie, Alb., native has scored seven goals in the last nine games and is tied for first in the AHL in power-play goals (7). Carolina’s first-round selection, 14th overall, in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft, Boychuk has totaled eight goals and 12 assists (20 points) in 85 career NHL games with Carolina, Pittsburgh and Nashville.

After suffering a big loss in Pittsburgh, the Sharks look to get back in the win column in the third of four games on their road trip.

Twenty-four hours after a 5-1 loss to the Penguins, the Sharks will take to the ice in Raleigh, North Carolina for the first time since early 2012 for a matchup with the Carolina Hurricanes. Carolina ranks fourth in the dreadful Metropolitan Division but have won four of their last six and are coming off a 5-2 victory in Nashville last night that Hurricanes writer Corey Sznajder described as what "may have been the best game Carolina has played all season."

The Hurricanes were probably a better team than their record indicated in the shortened 2012-13 season but a potentially career-ending injury to Joni Pitkanen combined with former U.S. Olympian Tim Gleason's game falling off the face of the planet has decimated their back end. Only the Oilers, Blue Jackets, Maple Leafs and Sabres have earned a smaller proportion of even-strength shot attempts in score-close situations this season than Carolina and the Hurricanes are fifth-worst in overall offense as well. After forming one of the most lethal top lines in the NHL a season ago, Jiri Tlusty, Eric Staal and Alexander Semin have been unable to recreate that magic so far in this campaign. Tlusty was predictably unable to sustain his 19.7% shooting percentage, Staal is on pace for his lowest goal total of the past decade and the uber-talented Semin is currently out with a concussion.

Fortunately for Carolina, former Logan Couture Calder Trophy nemesis Jeff Skinner has been excellent since returning from an injury of his own and scored a hat trick last night in Music City. Fellow youngster Justin Faulk logs some of the toughest minutes on a very different-looking Hurricanes blueline than years prior. Along with the Sharks' Justin Braun, Faulk is very much a dark horse candidate to represent Team USA in Sochi and would fit nicely on a shutdown pairing with Ryan Suter. He, along with tough-minutes center extraordinaire Jordan Staal, will likely be tasked with attempting to neutralize the Tom, Dick & Hairy line while old friend Manny Malhotra, thankfully back in the NHL after a gruesome eye injury put his career on hiatus, should take plenty of draws in his natural habitat, the left defensive zone faceoff circle. Ultimately, the Hurricanes aren't very good and are without their best winger in Semin so, despite it coming on the second half of a back-to-back, this is one of those games the Sharks need to win to gain some separation from the rest of a tightly-contested Pacific Division.

	@
19-4-5, 43 points		12-12-5, 29 points
1st in Pacific		4th in Metropolitan

4PM PST | PNC Arena | Raleigh, North Carolina
TV: CSNCA-HD | Radio: SJSharks.com, 98.5 KFOX
Know Your Enemy: Canes Country, Shutdown Line

Projected Sharks Lineup

Tomas Hertl - Joe Thornton - Brent Burns
Patrick Marleau - Logan Couture - Tommy Wingels
Marty Havlat - Joe Pavelski - Tyler Kennedy
John McCarthy - Andrew Desjardins - James Sheppard

Marc-Edouard Vlasic - Justin Braun
Brad Stuart - Dan Boyle
Scott Hannan - Jason Demers

Alex Stalock
Antti Niemi

Projected Hurricanes Lineup

Tuomo Ruutu - Eric Staal - Jeff Skinner
Jiri Tlusty - Jordan Staal - Patrick Dwyer
Nathan Gerbe - Manny Malhotra - Elias Lindholm
Drayson Bowman - Riley Nash - Radek Dvorak

Andrej Sekera - Justin Faulk
Ron Hainsey - Ryan Murphy
Jay Harrison - Mike Komisarek

Cam Ward
Justin Peters

The Carolina Hurricanes had 2013 American League rookie of the year Wil Myers sounding the siren before their game against San Jose on Friday night.

Every once in a while the Carolina Hurricanes score somebody big to sound the warning siren before their home games (former Pittsburgh Steelers coach Bill Cowher has done it a handful of times, perhaps most famously before a playoff game against the Pittsburgh Penguins back in 2009).

On Friday, it was Tampa Bay Rays outfielder and 2013 American League Rookie of the Year Wil Myers.

Before Myers made his Major League debut he appeared in 64 games with the Durham Bulls, Tampa Bay's Triple-A affiliate. He was also born in nearby Thomasville, North Carolina.

Myers finished his rookie season with a .293 average, 13 home runs, 53 RBI, and an .831 OPS.

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Elias Lindholm has first NHL career multi-point night and Carolina overcomes early deficit against San Jose.

The Carolina Hurricanes once again found themselves in the familiar position of being down 2-0 in the first period, but in this game they were not necessarily starting the game off slowly.  The Canes were out-shooting the San Jose Sharks and had good possession time, even though they were losing up on the scoreboard.

The home team did not give up and ended up scoring three goals in a row to take the lead, watched the Sharks tie things up again on a long goal, but then scored twice more to take the game, 5-3 in front of 14,553 at the PNC Arena on Friday night.

Elias Lindholm was the game's first star as he earned his first career multi-point NHL game, while also scoring the game-winner.

Cam Ward was not as sharp as he was a week or so ago as he allowed a goal on the Sharks' second shot of the game, then another later in the period as the team fell behind, 2-0.

At the other end of the rink, goalie Alex Stalock was standing on his head.  He stole one goal away from Nathan Gerbe and made several other solid saves as the Canes outshot the Sharks in that period, 13-10.

The second period has been Carolina's forte this season though and they did score 11:36 into it when a Jay Harrison shot from the point, somehow rattled by Stalock.  Zach Boychuk was in front of the net creating havoc and also earned an assist on the play.

Before this game, the Hurricanes were the NHL's lowest scoring team in the third period, but that changed after this night.

Just 4:34 into the period, Riley Nash tipped in another Harrison shot, to tie the score.  Lindholm earned the second assist.

Less than two minutes later, Stalock failed to secure a loose puck in the crease and Jordan Staal was there to jam it home.  Nathan Gerbe got the primary assist and Lindholm again got the secondary.  The Hurricanes had all the momentum and were buzzing around the Sharks' net, but the momentum would soon change.

At 9:35 into the period, Justin Braun wristed a shot from the blueline which evaded Cam Ward's glove hand, and the score was tied once more.  In other games, that might have deflated the team, but it did not this time around.

Four minutes and change later, Andrej Sekera walked the blueline and fired one at the the net.  Lindholm was able to get his stick on it and tipped it past Stalock for the eventual game winner.

Eric Staal made an empty-netter with less than a minute left to finish the scoring.

Coach Kirk Muller was understandably proud of his group after the game.

"That was our best game this year," he said.

The Canes will travel to Vancouver tomorrow for a game on Monday against the Canucks.

Game Notes:

• There were no passengers in this one as everyone made a contribution.  Kevin Westgarth had a team low 4:45 of ice time while Jeff Skinner had a team high 23:22. 
  
• Jordan Staal, Jay Harrison, and Riley Nash each had two points. 
  
• Lindholm had the best game of his young career as not only did he have a goal and two assists in the third period, he had a hit, two takeaways, and a blocked shot in the game as well.
  
• Tuomo Ruutu had four hits and four blocked shots, both team highs.  He also got his nose in front of the goalie numerous times, as he has been doing in recent games. 
  
• The team outshot the Sharks 35-25 and were led by Gerbe with six, Jordan Staal, with five, and Eric Staal with four.
• Manny Malhotra had another stellar game in the circle as he won 77% of his draws.

The Penguins hold a 10 point lead in first place and the Islanders, with one win in their last 10, are starting to fade. Everyone else, however, continues to stay clumped up in the middle, including Carolina who jumped to second with a win over San Jose. What were the other teams up to this week?

1. Pittsburgh Penguins (20-9-1)

Pittsburgh's record in their last 10 is 8-1-1. They are winners are five straight, including wins this week over the Panthers, Islanders and Sharks.

In their duel with the Sharks on Thursday, a game they played without the services of Evgeni Malkin, Chris Kunitz scored twice in a 2:03 span to lead a four goal second period for the Penguins.

Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 44 of 45 San Jose shots in the win.

Chris Kunitz is riding a six-game point streak. During that time, he has five goals and four assists.

Sidney Crosby had three assists on Thursday against the Sharks, which gives him four multi-point games in his last five.

Similarly, James Neal had two assists against San Jose to notch his seventh multi-point game in his last nine.

Pittsburgh will travel to Boston for a matchup with the Bruins on Saturday night. This week also features matchups against Columbus on Monday and New Jersey on Friday, both in Pittsburgh.

Malkin remains out with a lower body injury and will not play against the Bruins.

Pascal Dupuis may play on Saturday night after leaving Thursday's game due to an undisclosed reason.

Thomas Vokoun, Rob Scuderi, Paul Martin, Chuck Kobasew, Beau Bennett, Tanner Glass and Andrew Ebbett are all on injured reserve.

2. Carolina Hurricanes (13-12-5)

Carolina is back in second place thanks to three-straight wins this week, two of which came on the road.

After falling to the Canucks at home, the Hurricanes defeated Washington and Nashville on the road and finished the streak by beating the Sharks at home.

Over the three-game win streak, Carolina has outscored opponents 14-8.

A Carolina team that has had trouble scoring goals has put up five in back-to-back games, both against unfamiliar Western Conference opponents.

The Western Conference swing continues this week. The Hurricanes will play four-straight on the road against Western Conference teams, beginning with a back-to-back against the Canucks and Oilers early in the week, before heading to Calgary for a Thursday night affair.

Anton Khudobin, Alexander Semin, Brett Bellemore, Mike Komisarek, Drayson Bowman and Patrick Dwyer are all injured for the Hurricanes.

Khudobin and Semin both skated on Dec. 6.

3. Washington Capitals (14-12-2)

The Capitals played twice this week, defeating the Islanders on the road 3-2 before dropping a 4-1 decision at home to the Hurricanes.

Dmitry Orlov and Martin Erat have reportedly requested trades through their agents.

Erat will face his former team in a Saturday matchup against the Predators.

The Predators will look to end a four-game losing skid.

After hosting Nashville, the Capitals will play the Rangers on the road in the second half of a weekend back-to-back.

Then, Washington will host Tampa Bay on Tuesday night and will take on the Panthers on the road on Friday night.

Eric Fehr has six points in his last seven games.

Brooks Laich, John Erskine, Jack Hillen and Michael Neuvirth are injured for Washington.

4. New York Rangers (15-14-0)

The Rangers will host the Devils on Saturday night to kick off a nine-game homestand that spans 17 days.

The next time the Rangers play on the road will be Dec. 27 when they travel to Washington to battle the Capitals.

The rest of the week's home games pits New York against the Capitals on Sunday, the Predators on Tuesday and the Blue Jackets on Thursday.

This week, the Rangers traded forward Brandon Mashinter to Chicago for 23-year-old forward Kyle Beach.

Beach was the 11th pick in the 2008 entry draft.

In 169 career AHL games, all with Rockford, Beach has 41 goals, 76 points and 422 penalty minutes.

"I am very excited to be joining the Rangers organization, and can't wait to get started with this new opportunity and adventure," Beach said via Twitter.

Brad Richards is riding a season high five-game point streak. During that span, he has two goals and four assists.

The Rangers report no injuries.

5. Philadelphia Flyers (13-13-2)

This week, the Flyers plugged away on a six-game road trip by defeating Nashville, falling to Minnesota and defeating the Red Wings.

On Saturday, they will play Dallas at 2:00 p.m.

An ice-storm in the area knocked power out at the practice facility the Flyers were scheduled to be at, so they were forced to scrap the practice.

Coach Craig Berube said there would be a workout and meeting at the hotel and a long night of sleep before the afternoon puck drop.

Center Vincent Lecavalier leads the club with nine goals, but will be without him for the third-straight game as he battles back spasms.

The Flyers are 2-4-0 in six games with Lecavalier.

The Philadelphia line of Sean Couturier, Matt Read and Steve Downie has combined for 12 goals, 17 assists and a +28 rating in the last 12 games.

After Saturday's game in Dallas, the Flyers will finish off the road trip with games in Ottawa and Chicago before hosting the Canadiens on Thursday night.

6. New Jersey Devils (11-13-6)

After a 1-0 victory over Buffalo, New Jersey dropped two decisions to Montreal, one of which came in a shootout, and also lost to the Red Wings.

The Devils will head to MSG to face the Rangers on Saturday, wrapping up a stretch of 11 games in 18 days.

In the 3-1 loss to the Red Wings on Friday, the Devils were limited to 11 shots- the lowest in team history.

New Jersey is averaging 24.9 shots per game- an NHL low.

After the road game in New York, the Devils will face the Blue Jackets and Penguins on the road this week.

Adam Larsson, Bryce Salvador, Ryan Carter, Stephen Gionta and Ryan Clowe are on injured reserve.

7. Columbus Blue Jackets (12-14-3)

The Blue Jackets dropped a road game in Boston 3-1, but responded with two big home wins over Tampa Bay and Minnesota, both of which were shutouts.

Sergei Bobrovsky carried his shutout against the Lightning into the third period but was injured after making a glove save in the third period.

Bobrovsky was not contacted on the play, but seemed to be nursing a lower-body injury.

Curtis McElhinney made the last seven saves to preserve the shutout and the Blue Jackets finished off a 1-0 win.

McElhinney turned away all 20 Minnesota shots on Friday night to cap off another win for Columbus, this time it came by a score of 4-0.

This week, the Blue Jackets will have a back-to-back starting in Pittsburgh and ending with a home game against the Devils.

After that, Columbus wraps up the week with a road game against the Rangers.

8. New York Islanders (8-16-5)

The Islanders are without a win in their last eight. (0-6-2)

On the road, they have dropped eight in a row in regulation.

This week saw the Islanders pick up points in overtime losses at home to Washington and Pittsburgh.

After that, New York started a five-game Western Conference tour that started with a 5-1 loss to the Blues on Thursday.

The trip continues this week with games in Los Angeles, Anaheim, San Jose and Phoenix.

One of the keys to New York's struggles is their penalty kill. With a 70 percent success rate, it ranks last in the NHL.

Captain John Tavares has been held without a point in six of his 29 games this season.

Kyle Okposo and Andrew MacDonald both have three-game point streaks.

Evgeni Nabokov, Lubomir Visnovsky and Brian Strait are on injured reserve.

With Anton Khudobin nearly ready to return, the Hurricanes have a decision to make

About a month and a half ago, the Carolina Hurricanes were in a dire situation regarding their goaltending.  In mid-October, Anton Khudobin injured his ankle while skating outside of the crease to play a puck, then a game or so later, Cam Ward pulled his groin making a routine save against Minnesota.

The team had no choice but to rely on their AHL tandem of Justin Peters and Mike Murphy.

Carolina fans had seen this scenario before, as Ward and his backup, Dan Ellis both suffered injuries last season, requiring Peters to hold the fort through a prolonged period.   Neither Peters or the team reacted well, as the team lost 14 of 17 games during one stretch while the goalie won only four games in 16 starts.  His GAA was 3.46 and he had a save percentage of .891.

Enter 2013-14 and "Pete Dawg" started out much like he finished the previous season.  He lost his first five decisions and allowed 18 goals in those five games.  But Peters kept the faith and believed that the extra work he had put in during the offseason to improve, made him an NHL caliber goalie.

Give credit to him and his teammates, as the defense made some adjustments and started to collapse more around the crease area to take care of rebounds and Peters was less erratic in the crease.  The Canes went on a five game point streak and Peters was the number one star of multiple games during the stretch, while earning a 4-0-1 record along with a .959 save percentage.

At the present time, it seems that the coaching staff thinks that starting him gives the team as much chance to win as starting Cam Ward, who has had ups and downs since his return from injury.  The goalie currently has a two game winning streak, has the only shutout of the season, and is 6-2-1 in his last nine games.

While Ward has started one more game than Peters this season, the backup actually has better numbers.

The perception is that the Canes play a bit tighter in front of Peters, than Ward, but the numbers indicate something different.   Peters sees an average of 30 shots a game, where Ward sees an average of 28.

In a near perfect world, the Hurricanes could simply reassign Peters back to Charlotte when Khudobin was ready, but it is a good bet that the goalie would be claimed on waivers.  (While he was originally recalled on an emergency basis, he has played over the 10 game minimum and indeed would have to pass through waivers.)

With Carolina's luck regarding injuries, they would try to send Peters to Charlotte, he would get claimed by another team, and then either Ward or Khudobin would get hurt again and the Canes would be stuck without a suitable backup.

Also, the fact is that starting Peters gives the Hurricanes a good chance to win right now, which is important to the club at the present time.  Ward has looked brilliant on some nights, but has been inconsistent on others.

Khudobin has yet to lose a game this season and was playing better than either Ward or Peters, in the small time frame before he was injured.

So what should the Hurricanes do?  They could try to trade one of the goalies for another needed asset.  They could try to keep three goalies on the roster for awhile, which really is cumbersome for practices and a waste of a spot for games.  They could try to package one of the goalies along with another player, for a needed asset.

If they did trade a goalie, which one should they try to trade?  Peters is hot right now, but can he keep up his solid performances?

Khudobin has not been around enough to give a true reflection of his ability.  Should the Canes consider trading him if they can get a good return?

Should the Canes do what many consider the unthinkable, try to trade Cam Ward?  That is hard to imagine in reality because he has always been a personal favorite of Jim Rutherford, but Ward has been inconsistent, or injured for a couple of seasons now and his numbers do not measure up to his lofty salary, ($6.3 million per year for two more seasons with a no trade clause.)

According to Cap Geek, Ward has the fourth highest cap hit of all goalies in the NHL this season, but his performance is nowhere near that number.

Here is your chance to speak up and voice your opinion.  If you were GM, what would you try to do?

Assuming that you could get a fair return for any of these goalies, which one would you try to trade, or would you just try to send Peters back to Charlotte and roll the dice?

Neither the Canes nor the Canucks have lost a game since the two teams met last Sunday. Who prevails in the rematch?

Carolina Hurricanes at Vancouver Canucks
December 9, 2013 - 10:00 pm ET
Rogers Arena - Vancouver, BC
TV - Fox Sports Carolinas
Radio - 99.9 The Fan

SB Nation Rival Blog: Nucks Misconduct (twitter @nucksmisconduct)

Hurricanes Record: 13-12-5 (31 pts.)
Canucks Record: 17-10-5 (39 pts.)

The Canes and Canucks met a mere eight days ago, in a Sunday afternoon matinee at PNC Arena. It was not a pleasant outcome for the home team, and the game was never as closely matched as the 3-2 final score would indicate. To sum it up, there were a lot of passengers wearing red New Storm jerseys, and the 0-6 effort on the power play was a particular low point. So what has happened since last Sunday?

Vancouver has moved up to fourth in the Pacific Division. Starting with the win over the Canes last Sunday, their win streak is now four straight including a 3-1 home win last night against the Colorado Avalanche that didn't appear to be an overly taxing effort. The Canucks did not score on the power play against the Avs, snapping a seven-game streak where they had logged at least one power play goal. They remain the number one penalty killing team in the NHL, with an 89.3% success rate.

The Canucks come into tonight's game on the back end of a back-to-back and three-in-four scenario, so they will not practice today and will likely ice a similar lineup to last night's game. Roberto Luongo started in net last night and was 7.1 seconds away from a shutout, stopping 28 shots. Eddie Lack was in net for the win against the Canes last Sunday and may get a chance for a repeat performance.

Mark Santorelli is coming off his first career three-point night, and Jason Garrison is riding a four game points streak.

Alexander Edler has been sidelined with a lower body injury and is listed as day-to-day, joining Jordan Schroeder who is out with an ankle injury. Andrew Alberts has been in the lineup to replace Edler on defense, and Yannick Weber has been called up as well but sat out Sunday's game.

The Canes have moved up to third in the Metro division after having won three in a row, the most recent a 5-3 home win on Friday against the San Jose Sharks. Credit a renewed offense, which started clicking into place the day after the loss to the Canucks, when head coach Kirk Muller made a line change decision that united Eric Staal, Jeff Skinner, and Tuomo Ruutu. In three games the trio has combined for 11 points (6 goals, 5 assists) including a power play goal. Credit also the return of Andrej Sekera, who missed two games with an upper body injury. Sekera logged a point in each of the last three games, including a power play goal, and leads the team in points from a defenseman in addition to solidifying the blue line with Justin Faulk.

There has been a lot of roster shuffling over the last week due to injuries, and here's how things are sorting out as the team left Raleigh Saturday to start a four-game Western Conference road trip (note, the Canes practiced Sunday in Vancouver but it's unknown as of this morning whether or not they will have a morning skate):

• Brett Bellemore left the game against the Washington Capitals on Tuesday after taking a hit from Tom Wilson that left him with whiplash symptoms. He has missed the last two games but traveled with the team and practiced yesterday in a no-contact jersey, so he could return to the ice during the road trip.
• Patrick Dwyer (stick to the face) and Drayson Bowman (puck to the leg) both suffered injuries in Thursday's game against the Nashville Predators and missed Friday's game, but both practiced yesterday and should be able to play tonight.
• Mike Komisarek entered the lineup Thursday in place of Brett Bellemore but suffered a lower body injury and has been placed on injured reserve. Tim Gleason returned to the lineup in his place Friday.
• Last but not least, Zach Boychuk made good on a one-day emergency call-up for Friday's game, notching an assist, but has returned to Charlotte since Bowman and Dwyer appear ready to return.

On the longer term injury front, both Alexander Semin (IR, concussion) and Anton Khudobin (IR, ankle) traveled with the team and practiced yesterday (Semin in a no-contact jersey). It's possible one or both could be activated during the road trip.

Canes projected line-up based on Sunday's practice:

Jeff Skinner - Eric Staal - Tuomo Ruutu
Nathan Gerbe - Jordan Staal - Elias Lindholm
Jiri Tlusty - Riley Nash - Patrick Dwyer
Drayson Bowman - Manny Malhotra - Radek Dvorak
Kevin Westgarth

Andrej Sekera - Justin Faulk
Jay Harrison - Tim Gleason
Ron Hainsey - Ryan Murphy

Cam Ward
Justin Peters

Canucks projected line-up based on Sunday's game:

Daniel Sedin - Henrik Sedin - Jannik Hansen
Chris Higgins - Ryan Kesler - Mike Santorelli
David Booth - Brad Richardson - Dale Weise
Tom Sestito - Zac Dalpe - Zack Kassian

Dan Hamhuis - Christopher Tanev
Ryan Stanton - Kevin Bieksa
Andrew Alberts - Jason Garrison

Roberto Luongo
Eddie Lack

We'll have the open game thread up and rolling by 9:30 pm. See you there. Don't forget your caffeinated beverages.

The biggest and brightest from the past week in fantasy hockey.

A couple of great multicat performances this week from Ryan Getzlaf and Ryan Kesler, but we've only got three stars to hand out, so here goes:

3rd Star, from the Carolina Hurricanes, number 53, Jeff Skinner! Nothing quite like trading a player just moments before (or in this case, during) a huge breakout. I dealt Skinner last Tuesday, but the other owner didn't accept until after the Hurricanes game was underway. As a result, I got to watch Skinner line up with Eric Staal for the first time in ages and score what would be his last two goals for my team. More painful was the hat trick that followed two nights later against Nashville. I still like the deal I made (acquired James van Riemsdyk) but Skinner isn't making it easy. This week: five goals, one assist, plus-2, 15 shots.

2nd Star, from the Edmonton Oilers, number 4, Taylor Hall. 21 shots in three games. Seven. seven, and seven. Played a combined 16:52 on the powerplay. Came away with four goals (two PPG), two assists, plus-2, two penalty minutes, three hits and two blocked shots. Hall turned 22 years old less than a month ago. If he can stay healthy, he could challenge for the Art Ross a couple of times over the next few years.

1st Star, from the Minnesota Wild, number 37, Josh Harding. Interesting to compare Harding and Roberto Luongo over the last week. Three games, three wins, four goals against for each goalie, with Luongo facing more shots (99-78) and thus coming away with a better save percentage (.960 - .949). Luongo also had a slightly better GAA (1.31 - 1.33) by virtue of playing 3:40 in overtime against Phoenix. BUT Harding takes this for two reasons: firstly, he had a shutout where Lu did not, and secondly, two of Harding's three wins came against Chicago and San Jose. He's still giving you elite stats against the best teams in the league. He's been great all year, but this was a statement week.

***

Rookie Star of the Week:Valeri Nichushkin, and it was not a remotely close race. Three games, two goals, five assists, and plus-5, and he did it with TOI totals of 13:49, 16:48, and 13:54, with next to no PP time. Playing with Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin is a cushy gig for sure, but with Seguin and Benn managing only four and two points respectively this week, it makes one wonder who is running the show there.

Breakout Star of the Week: Mats Zuccarello. He's been a solid play for a while now, with nine points in his last nine games, so maybe we're a week late with this, but...another fine week from Zucca. Three goals, two assists, ten shots, seven hits. He's been spending most of his time on a line with Brad Richards and Ryan Callahan, and as long as that keeps up, the goodness should continue.

Breakdown of the Week:Marek Mazanec. If you're a Pekka Rinne owner, maybe Mazanec had been sort of holding the fort for a while there. Before last week began, he had a record of 11-5 with two shutouts and 2.00/.932 peripherals. Well, he spent the week losing 3-1 to Vancouver, getting pulled against Carolina, and losing 5-2 to Washington, and his peripherals suffered a swift and brutal correction. They now stand at 2.51/.915. Reality is lame.

Eddie Lack gets his first NHL career shutout with second straight win against Canes

The Vancouver Canucks jumped out to a one goal lead and never looked back as they defeated the Carolina Hurricanes, 2-0 at Rogers Arena on Monday night.

Christopher Tanev scored on a long shot just 3:35 into the game as it appeared that Justin Peters was screened on the play.  The score stayed 1-0 until the Canucks added an empty-netter with a bit over a minute left.

While they put 31 shots on net, the Hurricanes could never rattle goalie Eddie Lack, who earned his first NHL career shutout with the effort.  Lack also beat the Canes in Carolina on the first of the month.

Both goalies made some nice saves at times but there was tight defense throughout and several blocked shots in this one as well.

The Canes travel to Edmonton right after the game so they can take on the Oilers on Tuesday night.

Game Notes:

• Both team's powerplays went 0-4.
• Jeff Skinner had a team high five shots on goal.  Jiri Tlusty was next with four.
• Manny Malhotra led the team in the faceoff circle with a 67% winning percentage, (10 of 15).  The Canes finished at 46%.
• Carolina finished with 14 blocked shots.  Tim Gleason led the way with four.
• Tuomo Ruutu led the Canes with five hits.  They had 20 for the game.
• Low man with ice time was Kevin Westgarth with 4:08.  Next lowest was Radek Dvorak with 10:03 and Riley Nash with 10:15.  Justin Faulk had a team high 23:28.
• Post game interviews are at CanesPR.com.

The Carolina Hurricanes kicked off their West Coast swing in the far reaches of Canada, coming away with just one point on back-to-back nights in Vancouver and Edmonton.

Carolina was shut out Monday, but bounced back with two third-period goals Tuesday against Edmonton to force overtime and salvage one point to start their four-game road trip.

Three Observations

1. Jeff Skinner looked like he had lost his mojo for five periods on Monday and Tuesday, but then his bullet from the blue line that tied the game in Edmonton quickly reminded everyone what he's capable of. Skinner's closing in on being a point-per-game player (19 in 21 games) and has multiple-point games in three of his last five after going a dozen games — and more than seven weeks with the time missed due to injury — without accomplishing that once.

2. Despite managing just one point in two games, the Canes moved backed into playoff position with their overtime loss Tuesday. At 13-13-6 with 32 points, Carolina is third in the Metropolitan Division, one ahead of the Rangers and four behind second-place Washington. For all the injuries, up-and-down play and overall question marks surrounding the Hurricanes, it seems they will hit the season's mid-point at least in the conversation for a playoff spot.

3. If you lived through my Twitter rant last night, then you can move along. If not, here's the summary: the Hurricanes continue to be a team without an assertive identity. On Monday in Vancouver, they were forced into a plodding, no-offense outing due to John Tortorella's slow-down tactics. Then the next night in Edmonton, the Canes allowed the Oilers to turn the game into a shootout, with plenty of time and space available for both teams to score. The question is: where does this come from? It's not coaching, because this has been going on since the end of the Peter Laviolette era. Is it the long-term core of the team (Eric Staal, Tim Gleason, Tuomo Ruutu, ect.) not setting a consistent tone every night? Is it simply the kinds of players GM Jim Rutherford consistently brings in? At this point, who knows. But what's clear is that Kirk Muller has been unable to imprint a style to the Hurricanes. "Kirk" may still be "work," but no one's really sure what it is they're working toward other than trying to win playing the opposition's chosen style most nights.

Number To Know

0 — Times this season Carolina has scored more than once in the first period. By comparison, the Hurricanes have scored multiple goals in second period in 11 of their 32 games — including five times when they scored three — and Tuesday was the fourth time they scored more than once in the third period. Edmonton's 3-1 lead after the first period marked the seventh time the Hurricanes have allowed more than one goal in the opening frame this year.

Plus

Justin Peters— This will couple with the "Minus," but despite getting the loss Monday, Peters continues to establish himself as a bona fide NHL netminder. Rutherford has already said he won't expose Peters to waivers, so that leaves a trade as the likely option (over keeping three goalies once Anton Khudobin is healthy). It is a shame that the Hurricanes and Peters will likely part ways soon after a long grooming, but he's just a few months younger than Khudobin and we all know Cam Ward is going nowhere.

Minus

Cam Ward — Ward recovered after a shaky start to keep Carolina in the game against Edmonton, but that doesn't absolve him from allowing five goals. But more at play is the rift Ward's play is causing among Carolina fans. While Ward is surely overpaid ($6.3 million AAV for two more years after this one), his playoff pedigree isn't matched by many despite the small sample size. But as a regular season goalie, he's been hindered by injuries, inconsistency and, often, a poor supporting cast. If Peters goes and succeeds elsewhere, many will wonder what could have been. It's up to Ward to prove he's capable of guiding this team back to the playoffs. Once there, one should believe he'll rise to the occasion. But he needs to get there first.

The week started out great for the Canes, scoring and extending the winning streak to 3 games. But a trip to Western Canada has slowed what looked to be a storm gaining traction.

The week started off very strong for the Hurricanes with wind speeds/scoring high enough to lay waste to a solid Predators team and a very good Sharks team. But as the team moved across the country and into Western Canada, things slowed and the hot Hurricanes cooled off. They played a pretty even game in Vancouver, but were not able to solve Eddie Lack and ended up with their second shutout loss of the season. They then traveled further north to frigid Edmonton and started the game cold as ice. For the most part, they were outplayed by the Oilers, but the Canes never gave up, tied it late and were able to gain a point they probably didn't deserve. The road trip continues before a nice little break for the team. I really think the Canes need 3 points in these next 2 games to keep up in the Eastern Conference standing. Here are the stats for the week of 12/4/13 through 12/10/13.

Canes Weekly Stats

Weekly Advanced Stats

Here is a little key to some of my abbreviations. F - For, A - Against, CF% - Corsi For Percentage, FF% - Fenwick For Percentage, SF% - Shots For Percentage, OZst% - Offensive Zone Start Percentage, NZst% - Neutral Zone Start Percentage and DZst% - Defensive Zone Start Percentage. If you would like more advanced statistics, this information was collected from www.extraskater.com.

Who's Hot

• Andrej Sekera - Sekera had yet again another fantastic week for the Hurricanes. He was the top scoring defenseman with 4 points, led all Canes with 4 assists and was a team high +4. He was second on the team in time on ice per game and tied Justin Faulk for the team lead in shots by defensemen. But the thing that stood out to me the most was the goals for and against. He was on the ice for 10 Canes goals and only 5 against. Sekera was also a possession best for the week. He led all defensemen in All Situations & 5 on 5 Close Fenwick and 5 on 5 Close Corsi. All of these numbers were over 59%. Sekera continues to make a believer out of me and show how much more he can offer than he did in Buffalo.
• Jordan Staal - Jordan also continues putting together solid weeks. He tied for 2nd on the team in goals for the week with 2 and was tied for 4th in points. If his recent pace keeps up, Jordan should be able to crack 20 goals, 50 points and be a plus player. He was also 2nd on the team in hits with 10 and 3rd in shots with 12. He and his linemates really took over the San Jose game and got the Canes the victory. You could even argue that Jordan sort of kick-started the comeback in the Edmonton game. But as with Sekera, the most impressive thing about Jordan's week was his puck possession. He was in the top 5 in every category and his lowest number was 62.2%. It seems as if Jordan Staal is now playing like the player the Canes traded for.
• Elias Lindholm - I gave Lindholm this spot over Jeff Skinner because I thought he did some little things very well and was a little more consistent in his overall play for the week. Lindholm finished the week tied for 2nd in points and assists. He also had a team high 6 takeaways without a single giveaway. He really didn't shot the puck a whole lot, registering only 2 shots on goal, but he made 1 of those count with the game winner against the Sharks. He was generally lined up with Jordan & Nathan Gerbe and that lines possession numbers were very good. Lindholm's numbers were all above 52% and he actually led the Canes in All Situation Corsi and Fenwick. It might have taken this rookie a little while to get comfortable and I'm sure he will have some more rough patches as the season wears on, but I think we're starting to see why management thought so highly of him.

Who's Not

• Cam Ward - I'll start off by saying that the Oilers game was not completely Cam's fault, but at the same time, he didn't real do himself many favors either. I don't know if Cam isn't 100% healthy yet or if he is feeling the pressure of the 3rd string backup playing so well, but the Hurricanes have themselves a goaltending controversy. Ward did help the team collect points in both games he played this week, but his save percentage numbers and goals against average were down right bad. Justin Peters save percentage was almost 10% higher than Cam's and his goals against average was less than half of Cam's. Maybe the team is playing differently in front of Ward, maybe Ward just isn't as sharp as normal right now? But whatever the reason is, this skaters on the ice look to play better and have more confidence when Peters is in the net for the Hurricanes.
• Skinner/Staal/Ruutu - While the Canes top line for the week was productive on the scoresheet, they also were inconsistent and had some negatives. These 3 players accounted for 7 of 14 goals, but 2 came on the PP, 2 were when individual players were on the ice with different teammates and 1 came shorthanded. For 1 game, this line looked really good, but the other 3 games were not really that impressive. While these 3 players did combine for 10 points, they also combined for a collective -8 rating. Their possession numbers all ranked in the bottom half of the team in every category. These are the guys that opponents are suppose to game plan against, they should be better and should be more consistent. Individually, they all had decent to good weeks, but as a group they have work to do.
• Manny Malhotra - I imagine that I would have a lot of people angry I put Manny on this list, but there is a reason. While Manny is a great team guy and an unbelievable faceoff man, I have watched his possession numbers gradually erode as weeks have gone by. I understand that he generally starts each shift in the defensive zone and doesn't have the most skilled linemates. But for a player with his faceoff ability, the Canes should be getting the puck and taking it to the other end of the ice. His possession numbers were never really that good, but this past week saw him enter the mid to low 20s in every category and he was last on the team in 3 of those categories. I know this is being nitpicky, but I would really like to see Malhotra's numbers a little higher than what they are this week.

Notable Weekly Team Stats

• Even despite being shutout in 1 games. The Canes still averaged 3.50 goals per game for the week. That was good for 7th in the NHL. Their 3.00 goals against per game was the same as last week and was tied with Montreal for 20th in the league.
• The Faceoff percentage was back down below 50%, coming in at 48.8%, 19th for the week. Manny again led the way at 66.0%, Eric was at 50.0%, Jordan clocked in at 46.3% and Riley finished at 36.8%.
• The PP had it's best week in a while, converting 2 of 11 chances. Stop the presses! The Canes actually finished with more teams below them than above them. The 18.2% PP was tied for 14th in the league.
• The PK also was very good for the week. Heading into overtime against Edmonton, the Canes were perfect on the kill. But a 4 on 3 did them in and regulated them to a loser point. For the week, they were at 92.3%, good for 6th in the NHL.
• Carolina led the league in takeaways this week with 40 and finished in the top 10 in blocks with 59. The were middle of the pack in hits with 77 and finished bottom 10 in giveaways with 38.
• The Hurricanes even outshot their opponents for the week. They averaged 29.3 shots per game (tied for 13th) and gave up 25.5 shots against per game (tied for 5th).
• Team Stat of the Week - Corsi For % & Fenwick For % - 55.9% & 55.4% - For the first time this season, the Canes actually finished a week on the positive side for 5 on 5 possession numbers. That is over a 10% improvement from last week and about 8% higher than this season's average. These are even better numbers than last season and would put the Canes in the top 5 if they could do it all year.

Former Canes Weekly Stats

The biggest and brightest from the past week in fantasy hockey.

A couple of great multicat performances this week from Ryan Getzlaf and Ryan Kesler, but we've only got three stars to hand out, so here goes:

3rd Star, from the Carolina Hurricanes, number 53, Jeff Skinner! Nothing quite like trading a player just moments before (or in this case, during) a huge breakout. I dealt Skinner last Tuesday, but the other owner didn't accept until after the Hurricanes game was underway. As a result, I got to watch Skinner line up with Eric Staal for the first time in ages and score what would be his last two goals for my team. More painful was the hat trick that followed two nights later against Nashville. I still like the deal I made (acquired James van Riemsdyk) but Skinner isn't making it easy. This week: five goals, one assist, plus-2, 15 shots.

2nd Star, from the Edmonton Oilers, number 4, Taylor Hall. 21 shots in three games. Seven. seven, and seven. Played a combined 16:52 on the powerplay. Came away with four goals (two PPG), two assists, plus-2, two penalty minutes, three hits and two blocked shots. Hall turned 22 years old less than a month ago. If he can stay healthy, he could challenge for the Art Ross a couple of times over the next few years.

1st Star, from the Minnesota Wild, number 37, Josh Harding. Interesting to compare Harding and Roberto Luongo over the last week. Three games, three wins, four goals against for each goalie, with Luongo facing more shots (99-78) and thus coming away with a better save percentage (.960 - .949). Luongo also had a slightly better GAA (1.31 - 1.33) by virtue of playing 3:40 in overtime against Phoenix. BUT Harding takes this for two reasons: firstly, he had a shutout where Lu did not, and secondly, two of Harding's three wins came against Chicago and San Jose. He's still giving you elite stats against the best teams in the league. He's been great all year, but this was a statement week.

***

Rookie Star of the Week:Valeri Nichushkin, and it was not a remotely close race. Three games, two goals, five assists, and plus-5, and he did it with TOI totals of 13:49, 16:48, and 13:54, with next to no PP time. Playing with Jamie Benn and Tyler Seguin is a cushy gig for sure, but with Seguin and Benn managing only four and two points respectively this week, it makes one wonder who is running the show there.

Breakout Star of the Week: Mats Zuccarello. He's been a solid play for a while now, with nine points in his last nine games, so maybe we're a week late with this, but...another fine week from Zucca. Three goals, two assists, ten shots, seven hits. He's been spending most of his time on a line with Brad Richards and Ryan Callahan, and as long as that keeps up, the goodness should continue.

Breakdown of the Week:Marek Mazanec. If you're a Pekka Rinne owner, maybe Mazanec had been sort of holding the fort for a while there. Before last week began, he had a record of 11-5 with two shutouts and 2.00/.932 peripherals. Well, he spent the week losing 3-1 to Vancouver, getting pulled against Carolina, and losing 5-2 to Washington, and his peripherals suffered a swift and brutal correction. They now stand at 2.51/.915. Reality is lame.

Eddie Lack gets his first NHL career shutout with second straight win against Canes

The Vancouver Canucks jumped out to a one goal lead and never looked back as they defeated the Carolina Hurricanes, 2-0 at Rogers Arena on Monday night.

Christopher Tanev scored on a long shot just 3:35 into the game as it appeared that Justin Peters was screened on the play.  The score stayed 1-0 until the Canucks added an empty-netter with a bit over a minute left.

While they put 31 shots on net, the Hurricanes could never rattle goalie Eddie Lack, who earned his first NHL career shutout with the effort.  Lack also beat the Canes in Carolina on the first of the month.

Both goalies made some nice saves at times but there was tight defense throughout and several blocked shots in this one as well.

The Canes travel to Edmonton right after the game so they can take on the Oilers on Tuesday night.

Game Notes:

• Both team's powerplays went 0-4.
• Jeff Skinner had a team high five shots on goal.  Jiri Tlusty was next with four.
• Manny Malhotra led the team in the faceoff circle with a 67% winning percentage, (10 of 15).  The Canes finished at 46%.
• Carolina finished with 14 blocked shots.  Tim Gleason led the way with four.
• Tuomo Ruutu led the Canes with five hits.  They had 20 for the game.
• Low man with ice time was Kevin Westgarth with 4:08.  Next lowest was Radek Dvorak with 10:03 and Riley Nash with 10:15.  Justin Faulk had a team high 23:28.
• Post game interviews are at CanesPR.com.