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Hurricanes recalled Murphy, placed Liles on IR

Carolina Hurricanes v Vancouver Canucks

VANCOUVER, BC - OCTOBER 28: Ryan Murphy #7 of the Carolina Hurricanes skates up ice during their NHL game against the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Arena October 28, 2014 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. (Photo by Jeff Vinnick/NHLI via Getty Images)*** Ryan Murphy

NHLI via Getty Images

It’s tough to spin any injury situation, especially for a team as ravaged by ailments as the Carolina Hurricanes have been.

Still, the bright side of John-Michael Liles being placed on injured reserve is that it opens up room for Ryan Murphy to be called up on Tuesday.

The Canes get a chance to see how much Murphy, 21, has progressed. The AHL results are promising so far: his 17 assists lead his teammates on the Charlotte Checkers, which also ties him for the team’s points lead. As the 12th pick of the 2011 NHL Draft, Carolina has to hope that Murphy’s top-level impact isn’t that far away.

Canes Country believes that Murphy has his game back together after struggling during his first look with Carolina earlier in 2014-15:

Murphy endured a difficult start to the season with the Canes, only scoring one point in six games while serving as a healthy scratch twice. With the Checkers, though, Murphy rediscovered his offensive ability, leading the Checkers with 17 assists. While he is still looking for his first goal of the season, his 17 points are tied for the Checkers’ team lead despite playing eight fewer games than co-leader Chad LaRose.

With Carolina located at the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings, some may already be looking to the 2015-16 season. Murphy stands as one of the reasons to be more optimistic about such thoughts, but he’d make a stronger argument in that regard if he shows progress with the Hurricanes.

Carolina faces the Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday night.

Follow James O’Brien @cyclelikesedins