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Peters will ‘swing the hammer’ of ice time to keep ‘Canes accountable

Bill Peters

Bill Peters was introduced today as the new head coach of the Carolina Hurricanes. A few highlights from the press conference:

--- General manager Ron Francis said Peters received a three-year contract.

--- What attracted Peters to the Carolina job? “We’re not far off. I like our depth down the middle. I think we have a great [first pair of defensemen in Andrej Sekera and Justin Faulk]. ... If we can fix our power play and be a better team at home and get off to better starts in games, we’re going to be a very competitive team. ... I think there’s lots of pieces here and it’s up to us as coaches...to max our group out.”

--- How will Peters keep his players accountable? “I have the ultimate hammer as a coach, and the hammer is the ice time. They all want ice time, they all feel they deserve more ice time, they all want to play in the situations that match their skill set. I’m all for that as long as you’re going to give me the things that I need -- the work ethic, the play away from the puck, the attention to detail. ... When it doesn’t all come together, I’m going to swing the hammer.”

--- Francis on the roster: “I don’t foresee a major makeover. As Bill mentioned, we’ve got some pretty good pieces in place. I know it’s been frustrating that we haven’t made the playoffs in five years. ... We believe we have a pretty good group here that can compete and win.”

--- Peters on the style he wants the ‘Canes to play: “I want to have the puck. ... If you’re not good defensively in the National Hockey League and you don’t know how to play in your own end, you know what end you play in. You never get out of your own end. And it’s that ‘here they come again’ feeling. ... In order to be a good hockey team, you’ve got to be good in the defensive zone, you’ve got to be efficient, you’ve got to be able to get through the neutral zone, and go have fun in the offensive zone.”

--- More Peters: “We’re going to get our d-men in the rush, and we’re going to play an up-tempo exciting game that the fans of this region are going to enjoy watching.

Related: ‘Canes fire Muller; team needs ‘fresh start,’ says Francis