We are still in the middle of August, but hockey season is fast approaching.  Players are returning to town and some are starting to work out on their own at Raleigh Center Ice for informal practices, otherwise affectionately known as "Camp Brind'Amour".

There were tweets last week that Patrick Dwyer and Cam Ward were skating, along with a few others.  This morning, Jamie (@jbk_ltd) attended and tweeted that Zac Dalpe, Zach Boychuk, Jay Harrison,  Kevin Westgarth, Brett Bellemore, Tim Gleason, Ryan Murphy, Nicolas Blanchard, Dwyer, and others were on the ice this morning.  (She will be posting some pics here).

It seems the organization has not given up on signing Boychuk yet and Chip Alexander also mentioned on Twitter that the Canes were trying to sign development camp stand out, Sergey Tolchinsky.  Stay tuned.

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Peter Koutroumpis interviewed Cam Ward last week and got a couple of good quotes from the hungry goaltender.

"It’s about having everybody buying into the system and having a winning attitude. Obviously missing the playoffs four years in a row – clearly enough is enough. I think the leaders are going to lead by example with the fire and motivation, and come this camp, we’re not messin’ around. This is a big year for us, and there’s gonna’ be no excuses."

Ward claims that he is as healthy as he has ever been.  Read more at the author's new site, Triangle Sports Network.

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Koutroumpis also interviewed Pete Friesen, who spoke about the rehab efforts of both Eric Staal and Ward.  Friesen traveled to Thunder Bay to work with Staal and the team captain will also be ready for training camp.

Check out that story at the Examiner.

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Chip Alexander started asking a few preseason questions himself in this article from last week's News and Observer, Key Questions for Canes.

Where will Jeff Skinner play, the second or third line?  Will the much maligned defense be improved?  Many of us have the same questions and we will start seeing the answers soon enough.

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Caniac Carnival in less than a month....

Hurricanes fans unofficial season starts on Sunday, September 15th, with the annual Caniac Carnival.  The team will be hosting autograph sessions in the morning as well as a red/white scrimmage in the afternoon.   The schedule follows:

For more info, go to Carolina Hurricanes.com.

Another episode of BSH Radio was recorded on Tuesday evening, and though our original plan -- to talk mostly about our other new division rival, the Carolina Hurricanes -- fell through, we still, against all possible odds, found some things to talk about. Such as:

* Claude Giroux injuring himself golfing.

* Paint drying.

* The bottom of the defensive lineup, and whether it could include Marc-Andre Bourdon or Brandon Manning.

* Ilya Bryzgalov's current lack of employment.

* New uniforms in the league this year.

* A little bit about the Hurricanes, including Alex Semin and how the 'Canes and their fans seem to like him.

* Flyers rookie camp, which should be starting soon.

* Whether Jason Akeson has a real shot at cracking the opening-day lineup.

And a little bit more.

We should hopefully be able to talk more about the Hurricanes next week, but for a slowly-moving news cycle kind of week, we managed to find a decent amount of things to discuss.

Listen to the podcast by clicking here or using the embedded player below. To subscribe to the podcast via iTunes or RSS, or listen to any recent episodes, click here.

Over at Shutdown Line, Corey Sznajder explores a big dilemma facing the Carolina Hurricanes in the upcoming season, too much centre depth:

What do Eric Staal, Jiri Tlusty, Jordan Staal, Jeff Skinner, Tuomo Ruutu, Jeremy Welsh, Nathan Gerbe, Riley Nash and Zac Dalpe have in common? They're all natural centers and only three of them have stayed that position throughout their careers. There's a good chance that at least 50% of the forwards currently in the NHL have played center at one point in their careers and most teams like to stock up on guys who can play this position.

Emphasis mine. Most teams. The Oilers counter with an injured Ryan Nugent-Hopkins, Sam Gagner, Boyd Gordon, left wing Ryan Smyth, Anton Lander, Mark Arcobello, Will Acton and Andrew Miller. Or they can move Taylor Hall to the middle and wreck their left wing depth. Back to Sznajder:

The point here is that having a lot of centers gives your team versatility and that's never a bad thing.

Depth is never a bad thing at any position, but the Tambellini-era Oilers were frightened of depth. Craig MacTavish has made a number of moves, but he hasn't strengthened the centre position enough to be competitive in the newly-formed Pacific Division, especially if Nugent-Hopkins is not legitimately healthy enough to start the season. There are still options on the table, cheap ones at that, and the Oilers have just enough cap room to add one more player.

Winnipeg Jets General Manager Kevin Cheveldayoff has locked up his team’s core and he has received a fair bit of flack for it – at least from media members outside of Winnipeg. In the minds of many, these core players – especially the top line players, Little and Wheeler - are not good enough and really shouldn’t be a top line. Perhaps there is something to that, there is no doubt that the team would be better if there was more top end talent, but the fact remains Ladd, Little and Wheeler are not the problem in Winnipeg.

There are first lines that are better offensively. There are first lines that have more star power, but guess what Andrew Ladd, Bryan Little and Blake Wheeler are better than some of them and manage to beat them head to head.

Today we are going to break down some numbers (both boxcars and possession stats) to see how the trio of Ladd, Little and Wheeler have compared to other top lines over the last couple seasons. We will also look at some head to head results for a little more in depth fun. I would also like to extend a big thank you to stats.hockeyanalysis.com for making this possible.

Counting Stats

Notes:

• I doctored the numbers a little (added points to Johansson and Hartnell) to lessen the impact of injuries on the numbers.
• Ladd, Little and Wheeler clearly weren't the NHLs top scoring line this past season, but they were far from the worst.
• Five teams that had less productive first lines than Winnipeg made the playoffs.
• A couple of the teams with lower scoring 1st lines (Boston and Montreal) had very good second lines.
• Three of the teams with lower scoring 1st lines received phenomenal goaltending this year (Lundqvist, Anderson, Rask).
• Much fuss is made about Bryan Little's contributions (or lack there of) to the line's scoring, but it isn't uncommon for a line to have one player that scores less than his line mates. That said, you probably don't want the weak link to play centre.

Of course that is only one season's numbers, so lets look at lets take a look at where this trio ranked individually over the last 2 years

Numbers courtesy Hockey Reference:

Notes:

• Hockey reference still has Evander Kane, Tyler Seguin and Brad Marchand listed as centres (ahead of Little).
• Removing them would slide Little up to 26th overall, 13th in the East. This is better, but still well below Ladd and Wheeler.
• Wheeler has been a very productive player. I am not sure what more could be asked of him as he has out-produced a number of highly touted right wings over the last two seasons.

It is pretty apparent that the counting stats aren't what separates Ladd, Little and Wheeler from other top lines. What else could be in play here? Could it be their defensive contributions that leave people weary? Perhaps. Let's take a look at their two way ability.

Possession Numbers

For the sake of simplicity I will primarily use Andrew Ladd's possession numbers in this section. The reason for this is two-fold; 1) Little and Wheeler are occasionally used away from the 1st line (Little is used as a faceoff specialist while Wheeler gets double shifted) 2) The WOWYs for Ladd suggest his numbers are fairly representative of the line.

Lets start with the basics - Ladd, Little and Wheeler have spent the last two season facing tough opposition and on the whole they have have beaten them. No, this doesn't mean they have beaten every opposing top line, but they have beat enough of them to finish both season's with positive possession numbers.

For the uninitiated, by possession I mean Corsi and by Corsi I mean Ladd, Little and Wheeler direct more pucks at the opposition's net than they allow at even strength. That's all. This isn't an advanced stat, just a +/- of shot attempts. Today I will be expressing it at a percentage - anything over .500 is positive (means they outshot the opposition).

Over the last two seasons Ladd's Corsi percentage has been 54.7% (2011-12) and 51.7% (2012-13). What changed between year one and year two? In year two Jets Coach Claude Noel relied even more on Ladd, Little and Wheeler to take on the best the opposition had to offer. They also started a good chunk more shifts outside of the offensive zone. Still, they came out ahead.

Head to head (thank you stats.hockeyanalysis.com):

Tampa Bay Lightning

Notes:

• For two straight years LLW has out shot and out scored one of the most dynamic offensive lines in the NHL.
• Outshooting and outscoring Martin St. Louis and Steven Stamkos is a big win for LLW.

Pittsburgh Penguins

Notes:

• I grabbed a cross-section of players here. Injuries mess with sample sizes a little bit.
• LLW did well vs Staal and Co last year, but Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin both killed them this year.
• The GF% vs the Penguins show you how small sample sizes come into play. Malkin was great, but netted zero goals.
• Even though things were pretty even on the score board, LLW takes an L here. That shouldn't be a big surprise to anyone.

Carolina Hurricanes

Notes:

• LLW have played well against the Staal line, thoroughly controlling play, but the goals simply haven't come.
• The GF% looks nasty, but one has to think this would even out over time.
• Jordan isn't better (although he handled LLW well this year). This isn't a big loss, but it is a loss.

Washington Capitals

Notes:

• Alex Ovechkin, Nicklas Backstrom, Marcus Johansson and Alexander Semin are all top notch hockey players and LLW beats them.
• This is the second offensive powerhouse that LLW has outplayed and outscored.
• Head to head - Ladd, Little and Wheeler get the win in this one.

New York Islanders

Notes:

• There is an obvious discrepancy between years one and two, but it doesn't appear to have been about Brad Boyes
• Matt Moulson and John Tavares are scary good. Perhaps they took a step forward or perhaps it is random variance.
• LLW won this battle in 2011, but lost out in 2012. Given the sample size lets call this a wash.

New York Rangers

Notes:

• This is a weird chart!! Nobody scored!! Well the Rangers got one, but that's it.
• LLW didn't score, but they destroyed the Rags in terms of possession.
• The CA20 numbers are shocking. LLW did a great job of limiting any type of offence from the Rangers top line.
• One the score sheet, we are looking at a one goal loss, but overall LLW dominated. Win!

Toronto Maple Leafs

Notes:

• This is another weird chart. LLW played the Leafs top line to a stalemate in year one and pretty even in year two (minus one goal).
• LLW won the possession battle versus Phil Kessel, Joffrey Lupul, Tyler Bozak and James Van Riemsdyk, but lost to Mikhail Grabovski (they got him back this year though.)
• While Kessel was on the ice for one goal apart from his linemates (Little or Wheels may have done this too - I haven't looked into it), this is not a W for the Leafs. It is at minimum a wash and there is a case for giving the Jets another W here.

Philadelphia Flyers

Notes:

• This is another funny looking chart. LLW has bee hemmed in their own zone a lot, but also have all the goals.
• Jets goalies were fed a lot of pucks by Claude Giroux and his linemates. The 30+ Corsi Against per 20 are ugly.
• This was a win on the score board, but it hardly looks like a win on the possession side. Let's call this a loss.

Buffalo Sabres

Montreal Canadiens

Boston Bruins

Florida Panthers

New Jersey Devils

Ottawa Senators

Summary

DUCKS NEWS

• According to Eric Stephens of the OC Register, a decision from Teemu Selanne regarding his future is expected next week. [OC Register $]
• The same Teemu news with a little Puck Daddy flavor (also you don't have to pay for it) [Puck Daddy]
• Bourne has a Teemu prediction (Spoiler: It's not 'PAIN') plus some other top stories [Backhand Shelf]
• Francois Beauchemin, the late bloomer. [Backhand Shelf]
• A preview of the Ducks' 2013-14 season. [Sports Jerks]

AROUND THE NHL

• Daniel Alfreddsson wore a Senators jersey at an informal NHL skate, and the Canadian hockey blogosphere is in a tizzy. [CBC]
• Winnipeg Jets prospect Mark Scheifele is doing all he can to stick in the NHL. [The Hockey News]
• Puck Daddy has published the New York Rangers' National Hockey League of Nations. [Puck Daddy]
• An introduction to Raw Charge's Top 25 Under 25. [Raw Charge]
• Informal ice sessions have commenced for the Carolina Hurricanes. [Canes Country]
• The 13 types of unsigned free agents in August. [Down Goes Brown]
• The Washington Capitals hope that Martin Erat can make a difference. [CSN Washington]
• Erik Karlsson has said that his Achilles injury is not 100%, but that it won't affect his game this season. [Senators Extra]

The Carolina Hurricanes inked their final restricted free agent Tuesday, signing former first-round pick Zach Boychuk to a one-year, two-way deal to remain with the club. Boychuk played with three different NHL teams last season, opening the season with Carolina and then having stints in both Pittsburgh and Nashville via waiver wire claims. He returned to Carolina near the end of the season, playing the balance of the year with the Charlotte Checkers.

Boychuk will earn $550,000 — $75,000 less than his contract would have paid in the NHL last season —and $105,000 in the AHL in 2013-14. Here is the release from the team:

’CANES AGREE TO TERMS WITH ZACH BOYCHUK
Forward played 13 NHL games in 2012-13

Jason Karmanos, Executive Vice President and Assistant General Manager of the National Hockey League’s Carolina Hurricanes, today announced that the team has agreed to terms with forward Zach Boychuk on a one-year, two-way contract. The deal will pay Boychuk $550,000 on the NHL level or $105,000 on the American Hockey League (AHL) level for the 2013-14 season.

Boychuk, 23, split the 2012-13 season between Carolina, Pittsburgh and Nashville on the NHL level and Charlotte in the AHL. The Airdrie, Alb., native totaled two points (1g, 1a) in 13 NHL games. He ranked second among Charlotte skaters in goals (23) and third in points (43).

Carolina’s first-round selection (14th overall) in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft, Boychuk (5’10", 185 lbs.) has earned 20 points (8g, 12a) in 85 career NHL games with Carolina, Pittsburgh and Nashville. He has totaled 189 points (81g, 108a) in 227 career AHL games with Albany and Charlotte, and ranks second all-time among Checkers skaters in goals (66), assists (86) and points (152). Boychuk has represented Canada in a number of international competitions, winning gold at the 2008 and 2009 World Junior Championships.

The Carolina Hurricanes added more depth today as they signed Sergey Tolchinsky to a three-year entry-level contract.  Tolchinsky was an undrafted invitee to the team's development camp and impressed the coaching staff with his hustle, skill, and overall attitude.

He is another player short in stature, he is listed at 5'8, (and seems smaller), but he did well against the bigger players at camp and scored 51 points in 62 games in the OHL last season.

It's expected the winger will now represent the Hurricanes at the upcoming Traverse City Tournament, (he previously had committed to play for the Rangers.)  We will have more news about that as we get it.

After the tournament, Tolchinsky could be invited to the Hurricanes training camp, or he might return to the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, his junior team.

Here is the team's release with more information.

‘CANES AGREE TO TERMS WITH SERGEY TOLCHINSKY

Forward had 51 points in 62 games with OHL’s Greyhounds in 2012-13

RALEIGH, NC – Ron Francis, Vice President of Hockey Operations for the National Hockey League’s Carolina Hurricanes, today announced that the team has agreed to terms with free-agent forward Sergey Tolchinsky (SIHR-gay TOLL-chin-skee) on a three-year, entry-level contract. The deal will pay Tolchinsky $550,000 at the NHL level or $55,000 at the American Hockey League (AHL) level in the first year, $550,000 in the NHL or $67,500 in the AHL in the second year, and $575,000 in the NHL or $67,500 in the AHL in the third year. He will also receive a signing bonus of $150,000.

Tolchinsky, 18, played the 2012-13 season with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), notching 26 goals and 25 assists (51 points), and posting a plus-8 plus/minus rating in 62 regular-season games. He finished the season ranked second in goals and tied for third in points among OHL rookies. The Moscow, Russia, native also scored two goals and earned two assists (4 points) in the Greyhounds’ six playoff games. This summer he attended the New York Rangers’ and the Carolina Hurricanes’ prospects development camps as a camp invitee.

Prior to coming to North America, Tolchinsky (5’8", 165 lbs.) played the 2011-12 season with CSKA Moscow of the Russian Junior League (MHL), scoring 19 goals, earning 15 assists (34 points) and posting a plus-17 rating in 51 games. He added four points (2g, 2a) in 15 games during CSKA Moscow’s run to the 2012 Kharlamov Cup final, where his team fell to Omsk in five games. Tolchinsky has represented Russia in several international competitions, including the 2013 International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) Under-18 World Championship. At the 2012 Under-17 World Hockey Challenge, he notched a hat trick in the gold-medal game as Russia defeated the United States, 7-4. The Greyhounds selected Tolchinsky in the first round, 12^th overall, in the 2012 Canadian Hockey League (CHL) Import Draft.

The Carolina Hurricanes open their 2013-14 season on Oct. 4 at PNC Arena against the Detroit Red Wings. Individual game tickets for all Carolina Hurricanes exhibition and regular-season games will go on sale to the general public on Sept. 6. For information on 2013-14 Hurricanes ticket packages, please visit www.CarolinaHurricanes.com, or call 1-866-NHL-CANES.

We asked five trivia questions about leading scorers by team in the NHL since 2008-09. For our quiz, we've extrapolated 2012-13 to an 82-game season. The answers appear below:

Over the last five seasons, just two men have led their respective team in points in each of those five seasons. Name them.

• Anze Kopitar of the Los Angeles Kings and Alex Ovechkin from the Washington Capitals. While Ovechkin has 84 points more than Nicklas Backstrom, his closest competitor, Kopitar leads Dustin Brown by 90 points.
  

Over the last five seasons, how many total points has the leading scorer on each team in the league averaged (consider 2012-13 extrapolated over 82 games)?

• The average top scorer per team in the league scored 73 points during this five-year stretch.
  

Over the last five seasons, how many defensemen have led their respective team in total points? Name them.

• Three. Mark Streit led the 08-09 Islanders with 56 points, Keith Yandle led the 2012-13 Coyotes with 51 points and Shea Weber led the 2012-13 Predators with 48 points.
  

Over the last five seasons, what was the lowest point total to lead a team (consider 2012-13 extrapolated over 82 games)? Who posted the number?

• The lowest total to lead a team was 43, posted by the Edmonton Oilers' Jordan Eberle in 2010-11. Evgeni Malkin's 113 in 2008-09 is the highest mark.
  

What percentage of teams were led in total points by non-Canadian born players over the last five seasons?

• 78 foreign-born players have led their teams in scoring, or 52%. However, due to ties, 75 or 50% would be correct as well.
  

What is the most commonly occurring value, or Mode, amongst team-leading point scorers over the last five years (consider 2012-13 extrapolated over 82 games)?

• The most commonly occurring value is 76, appearing 7 times on the list.
  

With training camp right around the corner, NHL teams and their fans can dive into the process of acclimatizing themselves with the league's new realignment. For some teams the changes aren't drastic-take the Pacific Division for example; the Western Canadian teams join the California clubs and Phoenix, while Dallas moves to the more geographically appropriate Central Division. For other squads, like Winnipeg finally being able to jump to the Western Conference, realignment brings a whole new outlook. In addition to the Jets, the two other squads who are affected the most by realignment are Detroit and Columbus, who are making the jump from the Western Conference to the Eastern Conference.

Prior to this upcoming season, the Jackets were of course members of the old Central Division. They were lumped in with Detroit, Chicago, Nashville and St.Louis- a meat grinder of a division which produced multiple Stanley Cups and from the Jackets' perspective, a bitter rivalry with the Predators and continued hatred for the team from Michigan.

Fast forward to today and the Jackets are members of the newly-formed Metropolitan Division. Gone are the Midwestern division rivals, the regular trips out West, and lack of national exposure. The Jackets can now look to the Penguins, Flyers, Devils, Islanders, Hurricanes, Capitals and Rangers as division rivals. Of those seven new divisional opponents, one team stands out when discussing the next bitter, hated rival of the Jackets.

The Rangers.

First, let's make something clear- the Rangers are an original six team (for whatever that's worth), recently celebrating their 85^th anniversary. They've won Cups, and play in the most historic rink in the NHL. The Blueshirts don't owe the Jackets the time of day, quite frankly, but rivalries don't develop overnight and thanks to many common links between these two squads heading into this season, the groundwork is in place for an intense rivalry.

The Rangers currently have six former Jackets players on their roster, and recently hired former Columbus head coach Scott Arniel as an assistant coach. The Jackets have six former Rangers on their current roster, while Senior Advisor Craig Patrick is a former head coach in New York and President John Davidson tended goal for the Rangers in the 1970s, and went on to be the Rangers' analyst for MSG for many years.

A visual.

In terms of the players on the ice, we're not talking about some bottom-six players who briefly played for either the Jackets or Rangers. Rather, we're talking about the best players on each team- Gaborik for the Jackets and Nash for the Rangers-making it easy for fans of either team to focus their support and vitriol, respectively, when the two teams play each other.

Going a few steps further, each team's core features players who suited up for the other team. For the Jackets, Anisimov and Dubinsky are essential pieces to the puzzle, and Fedor Tyutin is the team's most complete defenseman. Tim Erixon is on the cusp of becoming a regular on the back end. From the Rangers' perspective, Brassard was a huge addition to their core last year, playing out of his mind after moving to Manhattan. John Moore is going to be a very good blueliner in the NHL for a long time, and you can take that to the bank. Dorsett, Stralman and Johnson are more complimentary players, but the fact remains when the teams play each other, fans will be pulled in every direction, which is sure to directly inject fuel into the superheated exhaust that is this budding rivalry.

The teams will face off four times this season, two each in Columbus and New York. The first game will be in Columbus on November 7^th, with games in New York on December 12^th and January 6^th, with the final meeting back in Columbus on March 21^st.

The first game between the clubs will be the first time the former Jackets, most notably Nash, return to Columbus. How will he be received by the fans, and for that matter, the organization? The fact that there were truckloads of dirty laundry strewn about at or around the time of his trade to the Rangers, including the revelation that Nash had requested a trade, my thinking is that the fans may still harbor ill will toward their former captain and perennial all-star. I'll tell you one player who'll get a chorus of ovation if/when his name is called, or when he gets a hold of the puck though- Derek Dorsett.

After the initial oohs-and-aahs, it will be down to business. As these will be divisional games, both teams will be gunning hard for the win. The emotion of the crowd will go a long way as well, and while the bad blood is certainly more toxic from the Columbus angle, all four games should be wildly exciting and full of storylines.

Mark your calendars, folks.

The Carolina Hurricanes released information yesterday regarding the Traverse City Tournament, including the expected roster.  Some big names will be making the trip to northern Michigan.

Elias Lindholm, Ryan Murphy, Victor Rask, and newly signed Sergey Tolchinsky will all be there.

The remaining forwards are: Erik Karlsson, Brody Sutter, Brock McGinn, Brendan Woods, Brandon Shea, Brent Pedersen, Hunter Garlent, Zack Mitchell, Stephen Pierog, and Adam Brace.  (Brace was recently signed by the Checkers.)

Joining Murphy on defense are: Danny Biega, Austin Levi,  Keegan Lowe, Trevor Carrick, Beau Schmitz, and Tyler Ganly.

Daniel Altshuller will most likely see the bulk of time in net.  He will be backed up by Austin Lotz.

Checkers coach Jeff Daniels will be leading the team as they get started with their first game on September 5th against the Rangers at 3:30 p.m.  Next up will be the Blue Jackets on the 6th at 3:30.  After that will be the Sabres on September 8th at 3:30.  The team will play one more game on Monday, the 9th, to be determined.

It is good news that Karlsson will make the trip from Sweden to play because he will be missing some time from his Swedish team.  When I spoke to him at the development camp, he was unsure if he would be able to make it.

This tournament is very important for most of these guys, (including Karlsson), because if they impress, they will be invited to the Hurricanes training camp.

For more information, check out Carolina Hurricanes.com.

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Checkers to play twice at PNC Arena this season

The AHL released schedules yesterday and the Charlotte Checkers will again be making a trip to Raleigh.  You can take your Valentine's date to a game on Friday night, February 14th, and the team will be playing again at the PNC on Sunday, the 16th.  Both games are conveniently scheduled during the Olympic break.

For more info, go to Go Checkers.com.

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NHL.com's "30 in 30"

The NHL posted the Hurricanes version of their preseason "30 in 30" feature today and it is worth a look.

First up they ask if Jeff Skinner is Carolina's "X-Factor"?  Jeff Skinner

Next, they look at the possible lineup, (good luck with that). Hurricanes Lineup

They give an overview stating that the Canes are now healthy.  Canes looking to bounce back

Cam Ward's health is of course important  Ward's health is key

They name Carolina's top prospects.  Lindholm tops list

It is very difficult to project what the Hurricanes lineup will look like.  Muller has stated that he will experiment with Skinner as the third line center.  I would expect Tuomo Ruutu to be on the second line. But depending upon chemistry, the most dangerous second line could be Skinner, Jordan Staal, and Ruutu.

Although the coaching staff also has to worry about where the points are going to come from within the bottom two lines, which are wide open in my opinion.  So they may wish to spread the talent out.

Muller was quoted as saying that special teams is job one during training camp, and rightfully so.  The PK finished 28th in the league and the PP was 27th.  Next priority will be trying to reduce goals against.

Former Boston College forward Nathan Gerbe wasn't unemployed for very long ...

Less than a month after getting waived by the Buffalo Sabres, the Carolina Hurricanesagreed to terms with the left wing on a one-year, two-way contract. The deal will pay Gerbe $550,000 if he plays in the NHL and $150,000 down in the AHL, with $250,000 in guaranteed money.

"Nathan has had success on the NHL level and should compete for a job with the Hurricanes during training camp," Hurricanes vice president of hockey operations Ron Francis in a statement announcing the signing.

The Oxford, Michigan native had five goals and five assists in 42 games for the Sabres last season. Gerbe spent his first five seasons in the NHL with the Sabres after being selected in the fifth round (No. 142) of the 2005 NHL Draft.

In five years in the League, Gerbe has 29 goals and 43 assists in 188 NHL games, and has appeared in nine Stanley Cup playoff games, totaling three goals and four points. At Boston College, Gerbe helped lead the Eagles to the 2008 National Championship, earning Frozen Four MOP honors and finishing as a Hobey Baker Award finalist. In three seasons on the Heights, Gerbe registered 71 goals and 62 assists (133 points) in 123 career games.

The diminutive winger joins former Boston College teammate John Muse, currently playing for the ECHL's Florida Everblades, in the Carolina organization.

Best of luck to Nate in Carolina!

For more on the Carolina Hurricanes, check out Canes Country.

The Carolina Hurricanes most recent free agent signings each have something to prove. Nathan Gerbe and Mike Komisarek were both bought out by their previous teams.

Gerbe, who was set to make $1.85 million this season, said in a recent interview in the News and Observer that he was surprised at the buyout.

"I was a little shocked that happened," Gerbe said. "Then it becomes something that drives you to work harder. I want to prove everyone wrong, and especially prove it to one team up North."

Komisarek might not have been as surprised about his buyout. The defenseman was put on waivers last season by Toronto, and there were no takers. But he still wants to show that the Leafs made a mistake.

This quote, also provided by the News and Observer:

"With that being said, you don’t complain, you don’t whine. ... It just didn’t work out. Right now I’m excited for the opportunity to prove a lot of people wrong and having that fresh start."

These two players, each of them looking to prove people wrong, bring back memories of a couple of other players that the Hurricanes signed during the summer of 2005.

At that time, there was a brand new CBA as well as salary cap and many teams were struggling to keep under it. Several players were bought out, much like what is happening now, and even more players were forced into huge pay cuts, as they were hoping for a team to have room for them.

In the season before the lockout, Ray Whitney suffered through a couple of injuries and did not live up to expectations in Detroit. The Red Wings bought the winger out that summer and the Hurricanes signed him to a much lower contract than he signed in Detroit, a $1.5 million, two-year deal, (total of $3 million).

Cory Stillman was scoring at a point-a-game clip for Tampa Bay, but never got offered a contract to return to the Stanley Cup Championship team. After making nearly double the amount in the previous season, the Hurricanes signed him to a three-year contract which paid him $1.75 million per year. When asked why he came to Carolina, Stillman responded that no other team made him an offer.

After a couple of injury plagued seasons in Florida and Anaheim, Matt Cullen was looked upon by many as being a lower-tier player, if even a borderline NHL'er. The Hurricanes signed him for a paltry $668,000 in the summer of 2004, so the center had plenty to prove when he came to camp after the lockout.

Experts were unimpressed with these signings and the Hurricanes were not looked upon to do much that season.

With perhaps extra incentive and motivation, Whitney, Stillman, and Cullen responded with huge seasons for the Hurricanes in 2005-06. Can Gerbe and Komisarek do the same?

With the drastic lowering of the salary cap this season, teams and players are finding themselves in a similar situation this summer. Can the Hurricanes find anymore bargains?

Well, we're getting to the point in the offseason when there's literally nothing to talk about. Here's the top three things upcoming for the New York Rangers in terms of news:

1) Derek Stepan's negotiations/contract talks.

2) The lineup for the Traverse City tournament.

3) Did I mention Stepan's negotiations, yet?

Of course there's also the Henrik Lundqvist extension we're hoping to see sometime soon, and maybe a hint or comment on some of the prospects or kids the Rangers are expecting to see next year. Personally, the Traverse City lineup is really interesting for me. Especially since the Rangers allegedly had an agreement with prospect Sergei Tolchinsky that he would play for them in the tournament.

Remember, the Rangers didn't sign him to a contract after prospects camp, and he did go to the Carolina Hurricanes. So both the Rangers and Hurricanes can offer him a contract. We'll see what's happening here sooner rather than later.

Anyway, thoughts guys?

Reports on Twitter Tuesday confirmed that Tim Wallace and Andreas Nodl will join former teammates Bobby Sanguinetti, Tim Brent, and Marc-Andre Bergeron in Europe this coming season.

Wallace, who played in 28 games for the Hurricanes last season, signed to play in the Swedish Hockey League. Nodl played in eight games in Carolina last season. He will play in Switzerland.

Brent said his goodbyes on Twitter last week after his new KHL team, Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod announced his signing. The center was a huge disappointment last season as he failed to score a single goal in 30 games.

Sanguinetti and Bergeron had previously announced their signings in Europe.

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Where will Chad LaRose sign?

Luke DeCock had an interesting article in Sunday's paper which created quite a buzz about the rise and fall of Chad LaRose. In the article, DeCock says that LaRose did not answer texts or phone messages, meaning that the winger is looking to stay out of the media.

Remember that Jim Rutherford threw the winger under the bus during his end of season press conference when he told local media that LaRose skipped his end of season interview.

With most teams under severe salary cap pressure and with many free agents still on the market, LaRose could be hard pressed to get an NHL contract. Could it be long before there is an announcement of his signing in Europe?

The Michigan native's numbers last season were not impressive as he scored just two goals and two assists in 35 games, but his average minutes of ice time per game dropped from a career high 16:46 in 2011-12 to 12:51 per game in 2012-13.

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Open Ice with Ryan Murphy

The Carolina Hurricanes are keeping up some fresh content over the slow month of August. This week they posted part one of a behind the scenes look at Ryan Murphy's experience at development camp. Check it out here.

The Hurricanes first line of Eric Staal, Jiri Tlusty, and Alexander Semin was one of the most lethal lines in the league last season. There is little doubt they will make every effort to keep that line together again this coming year.

The second line is still up in the air, but if coach Kirk Muller decides to keep his next best three players of Jordan Staal, Jeff Skinner, and Tuomo Ruutu together, that does not leave much scoring experience within the bottom two lines.

Patrick Dwyer had a good season last year, (8G 8A 16 points), and Nathan Gerbe has notched points in bunches earlier in his career, but after that, the Canes have no one with proven success in NHL scoring.

At this time, here is the list of remaining players who will be fighting to fill the bottom six slots:

Elias Lindholm, Riley Nash, Drayson Bowman, Zac Dalpe, Aaron Palushaj, Kevin Westgarth, Jeremy Welsh, Brody Sutter, (Victor Rask), and a few other players who signed two-way deals.

The Hurricanes not only need a proven scorer, but they also need someone with penalty killing experience in this role as well.

Brenden Morrow's name has been tossed out there as a possibility and he could bring what the Canes need.  But he earned $4 million last year and is most likely out of Carolina's budget.  It's the same story for another top level free agent, Mikhail Grabovski, who is also out of this team's price range.

Who might be a more affordable option?

Brad Boyes had a good year for the Islanders last season, (48 Games- 10G 25A 35P) and he can kill penalties.  He's been around a bit, but he's not too old to be effective and is usually a durable player.  Last season he signed a $1 million dollar deal for New York, but he is most likely looking for a bit more now.

Daniel Cleary and Mason Raymond are also interesting options, although they earned $3 and $2.275 million last year, respectively.

All of the above players might be out of reach, so don't be surprised if Carolina picks up someone along the lines of Chuck Kobasew, who the organization has liked for a long time.  Kobasew teamed up with Eric Staal in Lowell back during the 2004-05 lockout year to help form one of the best one-two scoring punches in the AHL at the time.  (The Canes shared the Loch Monsters with the Calgary Flames).

The winger's best scoring days are behind him, but he brings a solid two-way game with him and he can help kill penalties.  If the Canes cannot free up some money, he might be a more realistic addition.

We will have much more discussion about this in the coming days.

Saturday was Carolina Hurricanes Day at Pro Hockey Talk and they had plenty of Hurricanes information to look over.

First up, James O'Brien looked at who the Canes will face in their new division and notes that things will be a bit different than they were in the Southeast. Can Canes weather the division change?

O'Brien also points out that this season is an important one for Kirk Muller. How long of a leash will the coach have if things start out slowly? This season pivotal for Muller.

Ryan Dadoun posted an article about the changes on the Carolina blueline. Komisarek and Sekera look to bolster Carolina defense.

Do Carolina's hopes rest on the shoulders of Cam Ward? Carolina's fate.

Dadoun brought up the importance of the long term signings of Alexander Semin, Jordan Staal, and Jeff Skinner. Three important signings for Carolina.

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Tolchinsky overcomes adversity to earn his contract

There was a very interesting recent article on Backhand Shelf written by Cam Charron about some of the inner workings and background of Sergey Tolchinsky. (This article was already linked in the comments of the previous article, but it is worth another mention here. )

You would think that just playing hockey would be more than enough for 17 and 18 year-olds to worry about, but there is so much more to it than that. Players even have to worry about the location of their junior team.

The Canadian Hockey League circuit is difficult to understand for casual fans. It’s split up into the Western, Ontario, and Quebec Major Junior Hockey Leagues. Tolchinsky’s Greyhounds, in the OHL, are far up north, a long drive away from their nearest division rivals. It’s not uncommon for a big-name player to hold out and avoid committing to the organization that drafted them in an attempt to be traded to another team. First-round picks at the most recent NHL draftNathan MacKinnon and Max Domi did exactly that, moving from Baie-Comeau to Halifax and Kingston to London respectively.

The author notes that Tolchinsky had to change agents, at least partly because of the above. Add this drama to the adversity faced after not being selected at the entry draft and the young Russian has already overcome a lot to get to where he is now.

Does anyone want to bet against him making it to the NHL?

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Grabovski signing this year and Semin signing last summer are similar, but different

After reading all of the hoopla over the signing of Mikhail Grabovski by the Washington Capitals late last week, I could not help but remember the response when the Hurricanes signed Alex Semin last summer.

Both players signed after a long delay and much deliberation, but one signing was heralded as a "perfect fit" while the other was labeled as anything from a pending disaster to a huge gamble.

Grabovski is an excellent hockey player and he fits a need for the Capitals. On paper, it looks like a win.

But the center comes with a bit of baggage.

He is not necessarily known for being a great teammate, has been sued for assault after being involved in a fight in Vancouver, and has burned bridges with his previous team after making detrimental comments during an interview over the offseason after the Leafs bought him out.

He left Montreal with plenty of drama as well.

The fun would soon end. On March 7, 2008, Guy Carbonneau changed everything. He benched Grabovski against the Phoenix Coyotes. Grabovski went ballistic and refused to get on the team bus after the game. When his teammates pleaded with him to get on for fear of missing their flight, Grabovski walked past Carbonneau and gave him a nasty stare, then suddenly turned sharply towards team president Pierre Boivin and told him "This was my last flight with the Canadiens." And with that, Grabovski missed the flight, forever changing Canadiens’ history.

Read more at Habs Inside Out.

Alexander Semin is also an excellent hockey player and he came with a lot less baggage than Grabovski. Yet pundits, both mainstream and otherwise, were tripping over each other to take potshots at the Russian and the Canes.

From Jeremy Roenick calling him a "locker room cancer" to Damien Cox stating that the Canes had blown any chance to make the playoffs with the signing, critics had plenty to say. You would think the Hurricanes had just signed public enemy number one in the NHL.

But Semin has always been quiet compared to Grabovski, even as many put the blame of the Caps repeated postseason failures on his shoulders.

Grabovski blamed a poor season on the fact that he was put on lower lines and called his former coach a "fucking idiot". A coach, who by the way, led the Anaheim Ducks to a franchise record number of wins one season, as well as a Stanley Cup Championship.

Despite his excuses, Grabovski had the third highest amount of playing time on the Leafs among forwards during the playoffs last year yet finished with just two assists and had a team worst (+/-)-10.

How long before teammate extraordinaire, Troy Brouwer calls him out?

Yes indeed, "Grabo" is probably a perfect fit for the Caps.

Hello Canes Country!

My apologies for the sudden disappearance, I was making my move to the triangle area from Denver and what a lovely area it is. My wife and I love it and my son can’t get enough of all the greenery here.

Now, back to business…

Before I left Colorado, the Hurricanes had signed a free agent that I have watched quite a bit in game and at practice, obviously that player being Aaron Palushaj.

Palushaj should fit well here in Carolina.  He plays a faster game than some of the other teams he’s been with, one being Montreal. His game never really complimented their style of play at all and I think he really hasn’t gotten a fair shake. In Montreal he was under-valued and under-used and in Colorado I think, as a lot of players in Colorado were, he was mis-managed and under-coached.

Palushaj likes to sneak around the ice, hovering in his zone and sort of weaving in and out of tight spots. He compliments faster forwards like Matt Duchene, whom he had some chemistry with and Ryan O’Reilly, whom he also spent some time on a line with. He isn’t really creating more room but he is making things happen along the boards and down low.

He’s really kind of a deceptive player.  You don’t really notice him on the ice and then he sort of pops up with a shot on net or a well placed pass in the slot. He also plays some PK and can sub on a secondary PP when called upon.

In my opinion Palushaj would benefit playing next to a Jordan Staal or as a line mate to Nathan Gerbe. I know (What am I thinking?) but Palushaj has a mean streak in him and plays a similar game to T.J. Galiardi, another guy I saw A LOT of. He’s small, annoying, scrappy, hard to take off the puck and can put a few points on the board. Keep in mind Galiardi had some success in San Jose as linemate to Joe Thornton and also Joe Pavelski at times.

Another aspect of Palushaj’s game that the Hurricanes will benefit from is his defensive awareness and intelligence with the puck, he isn’t one to give away the puck or get himself into any stupid situations. He is very responsible all around.

All in all, I think he is an under-valued winger and he should see some time on the third line at the least and could even put some points on board next to Staal two (Jordan).

Also, Thank you to the people of North Carolina for making my family feel so welcome. I look forward to meeting some Caniacs this October for my first home game here in Raleigh!

(Editor's note:  Palushaj was drafted in the second round of the 2007 entry draft by St. Louis, (44th overall).  The winger scored two goals and had seven assists in 25 games last year for the Avs.  He was also credited with 32 hits and 13 blocked shots while averaging a bit over 11 minutes of ice time per game.  He signed a two-way deal for the Canes in July.)

The Carolina Hurricanes are coming off an injury filled, disappointing 2013 season.  Any time you have the same amount of points as the Calgary Flames you can not be happy with how your season went.  They finished 3rd in the now defunct Southeast Division, but that was only because the horrible hockey being played in the state of Florida. Their 42 points was the 5th lowest total in the entire NHL and placed them 13th in the final Eastern Conference standings.

The Hurricanes did not lose too much in the offseason.  The biggest names on the departed list are Dan Ellis, Jamie McBain and Joe Corvo.  They added backup goaltender Anton Khudobin from the Bruins which could take some pressure off of Cam Ward.  They also have tried to bolster their blue line by signing Mike Komisarek and acquiring Andrej Sekera from Buffalo.

For a more in depth look at what lies ahead for the Canes, I enlisted the help of Bob Wage who does a great job over at Canes Country.  Here's what Bob had to say:

Have the Hurricanes improved their team enough to make a playoff push in the 2013-14 season?

"The Hurricanes have improved this offseason, but will it be enough? That is the million dollar question. They added experience and size to the blueline with additions Mike Komisarek and Andrej Sekera. 2011 first round pick defenseman Ryan Murphy could also be ready to step up and make the team. He should help to improve last season's 27th best powerplay in the league. The fifth overall pick this summer, Elias Lindholm, is penciled in to make the team as well and should help fill in and improve the third line. Also the addition of backup goalie Anton Khudobin should help to keep Cam Ward from being over-worked. If they can stay healthy, the Hurricanes should be competitive and contend for a playoff spot but it will not be easy in the new Metropolitan Division."

In your opinion, which offseason acquisition was the best move of the summer and who is the player gone from last season the team will miss the most?

The signing of free agent goalie Anton Khudobin could pay off big time for the Canes, especially if Cam Ward falls to injury again this season.  I am not sure if Carolina will miss any of the players who have moved on.  Joe Corvo was the biggest contributor and led the blueline in scoring last season, but the team has other offensively capable blueliners to replace him.
Andrej Sekera could be the most important addition to help on a day-to-day basis.  Last year's defense was young, but with both Jamie McBain and Bobby Sanguinetti moving on, Sekera might be the glue needed to hold the back end together.

Cam Ward has played a ton of hockey over the last 5 years. Can he hold up during a full 82 game season and is he the biggest key to the Canes success this year?

Ward claims right now that he is in the best shape of his career.  He can probably play a good 60-65 games and has done so in the past, but the Hurricanes would love to be able to count on Khudobin to play more than less and that is why they brought the young, talented goalie to town.  Ward is one key, but not the biggest.  The team needs to improve special teams, that is job one this training camp.

The Hurricanes used 12 defensemen during the 2013 season. Has the blue been stabilized at all and who are the keys to the Canes defense?

It looks like the defense has stabilized but again it depends upon injuries and there are still many questions. Joni Pitkanen is the highest paid blueliner and they depend upon him to log big minutes and to contribute on offense. But over his career, the big defenseman has been injured a lot. Is he healthy and will he stay healthy? Can Mike Komisarek play like the blueliner in Montreal and not the one in Toronto? Can Andrej Sekera fit in and play well? Can youngster Justin Faulk continue to improve and impress? Will Tim Gleason play with the physical edge he is capable of? Again, there are more questions than answers here.

Jeff Skinner has been pedestrian since storming onto the NHL scene in 2010. What are the keys to him regaining his Calder Trophy winning form and is that even possible?

It is very possible but Skinner also needs to stay healthy. Over the past two seasons, (and two concussions), he has had ups and downs. But the bottom line is, if he can stay healthy and be concussion free, he should be able to rebound this season and at least approach his rookie year numbers.

Which new Atlantic Division team are you looking forward to starting a new rivalry with? Which old division rival were you sad to see go?

I think the Pens are a natural rival since Jordan Staal used to be with them and Brandon Sutter, Jussi Jokinen, and others used to be in Carolina. I really won't miss any of the old rivals very much. :)

What is one thing Blackhawks fans do not know about Hurricanes fans?

Do Hawks fans know that Hurricanes fans tailgate and party, sometimes for hours before games?

And finally, when will you guy acquire Marc Staal so you have the full set?

Watch out when he becomes a free agent!

Thanks again to Bob for helping me out.  If what you say about tailgating at Canes games is true, I see Raleigh becoming a destination for Hawks fans in the near future. Especially since St Louis and Nashville are trying to keep us out! Best of luck to you guys, except the two times you play the Blackhawks!

If the Carolina Hurricanes thought life in the Southeast Division was tough, things will most likely not be any easier in the new Metropolitan Division. As a matter of fact, the Canes have only posted a 39% winning record during the last three years against their new division foes.

The Canes posted a 7-10-3 record against their future rivals last season and were 6-17-4 the season before that. In 2010-11 they went 10-12-5 for a combined three season record of 23-39-12 against the other teams in the Metro Division.

Let's take a closer look below:

The only team the Hurricanes have a winning record against over the three year period is the New York Islanders, (7-2-2).

They have not had a chance to play against the Columbus Blue Jackets very often in the past, but have not beaten the Jackets since the 2005-06 season and accumulated a record of 0-5-0 against them from then until now.

Of course, the Caps have given the Hurricanes fits in recent years, (5-10-2) as have the Flyers, (2-8-1).

The Canes have not done much better against the Rangers, (2-5-4), Devils, (4-6-1), or Penguins, (3-6-2).

In the new format, Carolina must play 30 games within their division, 24 games against teams in the Atlantic Division, and 28 games against the Western Conference teams, (one each at home and away).

Making the playoffs will be tough and the Canes will most likely need to improve results against their new division rivals to make it to the second season.

I attended the annual Hurricanes Media Golf Tournament today and picked up a lot of information to share.  First up, we learned that Joni Pitkanen has not recovered yet from last season's heel injury and according to his agent, he cannot put weight on his heel.

The defenseman has not yet skated this summer and will have a CT on his foot when he gets to town on Thursday so that the medical staff can make a determination on his status. This is certainly not good news for Carolina.

Jim Rutherford said that the team would keep all options open, but might not necessarily look to bring in a replacement.

"People have a lot of views about Joni but the fact of the matter is he played a lot of minutes. You take a guy out of the lineup that played that many minutes, you really have to look at your defense. What Kirk may have to do is balance it out more."

Rutherford went on a bit more to explain how the Carolina coach might spread out the minutes between the other defensemen. The GM also said that the injury was a serious one.

"It's a serious injury, where he got hurt.  At the time after he had the operation the doctor said this is more like a car-accident impact than a sports injury. When he said that you knew there was pretty good damage."

I asked Rutherford if there was any salary cap relief if Pitkanen could not play for an extended period of time.

"Yes, there is some salary cap relief after a certain period of time, and insurance would pay for a portion of the salary as well, for actual cash relief.  But at this point I am not sure exactly when that would kick in."

The team will find out more after tests are concluded on Thursday, but it does not sound like the Finn will be ready for training camp in a couple of weeks.

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The GM informed the media that rookie Elias Lindholm was not yet 100% recovered from the shoulder injury he got during development camp.

Rutherford mentioned that it was not serious, it was a deep bruise, but it was not yet healed.  Lindholm will still make the trip to Traverse City, but will not play in all the games.  They will be watching him very closely because of course they want him 100% healthy for training camp.

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Rutherford also confirmed that Radek Dvorak would get a tryout at training camp.  Kirk Muller had played with Dvorak before, has spoken with him recently, and called him a "character guy".  The coach went on:

He can kill penalties and can contribute on offense.  He could be a real good pickup for us.

Dvorak most recently played for the Anaheim Ducks last season and scored four goals in nine games.  He did not sign with Anaheim until March 24, 2013.

The season before that, he played 73 games with Dallas and scored 4G 17A.

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Muller also has had a couple of conversations with another former teammate, Brenden Morrow.

I spoke to him about what our team was about, to see if we might be a match for him.  He has a couple of other opportunities out there and looks to be waiting until the last minute to make a decision.

Once again when asked, Jim Rutherford said he was keeping all options open as Morrow's name came up as did Ron Hainsey's.