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Looking at the 2019-20 Carolina Hurricanes

By Adam GretzMar 26, 2020, 10:40 AM EDT

With the 2019-20 NHL season on hold we are going to take a look at where each NHL team stands at this moment with a series of posts examining their season. Have they met expectations? Exceeded expectations? Who has been the surprise? All of that and more. Today we look at the Carolina Hurricanes. 

Carolina Hurricanes

Record: 38-25-5 (68 games), Fourth place in Metropolitan Division; first Wild Card spot in Eastern Conference
Leading scorer: Sebastian Aho 66 points (38 goals, 28 assists)

In-season roster moves

  • Acquired defenseman Sami Vatanen from the New Jersey Devils for Janne Kuokkanen, Fredrik Claesson, and a conditional 2020 fourth-round draft pick.
  • Acquired defenseman Brady Skjei from the New York Rangers for a 2020 first-round draft pick.
  • Traded for Vincent Trocheck by sending Erik Haula, Lucas Wallmark, Eetu Luostarinen, and Chase Priskie to the Florida Panthers.
  • Veteran forward Justin Williams returned mid-season after using the first half of the season to contemplate his future.

Season Overview

After their surprise run to the Eastern Conference Final during the 2018-19 season, expectations were sky high for the Hurricanes at the start of this season.

The results so far have been a bit of a mixed bag.

At the time of the NHL’s hiatus the Hurricanes occupied the first Wild Card spot in the Eastern Conference but were in the middle of an intense fight alongside the Columbus Blue Jackets, New York Islanders, New York Rangers, and Florida Panthers for those two playoff spots. They still seem to have the inside track for one of them, but the overall results may not be exactly as good as they hoped given their success last year and the improvements they attempted to make to the roster in the offseason (additions of Jake Gardiner, Erik Haula, Ryan Dzingel) and internal improvements from young players like Andrei Svechnikov and Martin Necas.

One of the biggest things that has held them back — injuries.

Specifically, the injuries to top defensemen Dougie Hamilton and Brett Pesce.

Prior to breaking a bone in his leg in mid-January, Hamilton was not only having a Norris Trophy caliber season, he may have been the best all-around defensemen in the NHL this season. It was a completely dominant performance and one that was not going to be easy to replace.

When Pesce was injured a month later — along with James Reimer and Petr Mrazek, the teams top two goalies — it put a pretty significant dent in their greatest overall strength.

They attempted to address the defense at the trade deadline by acquiring Vatanen and Skjei in separate trades, while also adding another potential impact forward in Trocheck. The latter joins an already impressive core of forwards that includes Aho, Svechnikov, and Teuvo Teravainen.

Assuming everyone on defense is healthy, that is a potentially imposing roster.

Highlight of the Season

What else could it be other than 42-year-old David Ayres, a zamboni driver by day, entering a game and getting the win against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

MORE:
• Hurricanes’ biggest surprises and disappointments
• Hurricanes long-term outlook
• John Forslund tells his quarantine story

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Adam Gretz is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @AGretz.

WATCH LIVE: Flyers host Hurricanes on NBCSN

By Sean LeahyMar 5, 2020, 6:00 PM EST

NBCSN’s coverage of the 2019-20 NHL season continues with Thursday’s matchup between the Philadelphia Flyers and Carolina Hurricanes. Coverage begins at 6 p.m. ET on NBCSN. You can watch the game online and on the NBC Sports app by clicking here.

This game will be the second of a back-to-back for Flyers, who beat the Capitals in D.C. Wednesday night. Philadelphia heads into the stretch on a season-long seven-game win streak, their longest since winning eight straight from mid-Jan. to early Feb. last season.

After the Canes topped the Flyers in OT in their most recent meeting on Jan. 7, the Flyers sat behind Carolina in the standings. Since then, the Philly has taken off and played as well as any team in the league, while Carolina has faltered as they look to get back to the postseason. The Flyers are seeking their first division title since the 2010-11 season. They’ve alternated missing and making the playoffs in each of the past seven seasons with three postseason appearances (all Round 1 exits).

Philadelphia has earned 50 points at home this season (23-5-4), tied for the 3rd-most points at home in the NHL. They have won 5 straight home games coming into this one, and 8 of their last 9 at Wells Fargo Center overall.

Sebastian Aho saw his career-long 14-game point come to an end in the loss to Montreal Saturday. He had 21 points (12G-9A) during his streak, which was the 3rd- longest in the NHL this season (Eichel – 17 / Kane – 15). Aho is in the midst of a breakout season. He leads the team with 36 goals and 62 points. His 36 goals are a career high and rank fifth in the NHL. The last Hurricane to reach 40 goals in a season was Eric Staal, who had 40 in the 2008-09 season.

[COVERAGE BEGINS AT 6 P.M. ET ON NBCSN]

WHAT: Carolina Hurricanes at Philadelphia Flyers
WHERE: Wells Fargo Center
WHEN: Thursday, March 5, 6 p.m. ET
TV: NBCSN
LIVE STREAM: You can watch the Hurricanes-Flyers stream on NBC Sports’ live stream page and the NBC Sports app.

PROJECTED LINEUPS

HURRICANES
Nino Niederreiter – Sebastian Aho – Teuvo Teravainen
Ryan Dzingel – Jordan Staal – Justin Williams
Andrei Svechnikov – Vincent Trocheck – Martin Necas
Warren Foegele – Jordan Martinook – Brock McGinn

Joel Edmundson – Jaccob Slavin
Haydn Fleury – Brady Skjei
Jake Gardiner – Trevor van Riemsdyk

Starting goalie: Alex Nedeljkovic

FLYERS
Claude Giroux – Sean Couturier – Jakub Voracek
Scott Laughton – Kevin Hayes – Travis Konecny
Joel Farabee – Derek Grant – Tyler Pitlick
Michael Raffl – Nate Thompson – Nicolas Aube-Kubel

Ivan Provorov – Matt Niskanen
Travis Sanheim – Philippe Myers
Robert Hagg – Justin Braun

Starting goalie: Carter Hart

John Forslund and Pierre McGuire will call the contest from Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pa. Thursday’s studio coverage will be hosted by Paul Burmeister alongside analysts Mike Milbury and Scott Hartnell.

***

NBC Sports will utilize an all-female crew to broadcast and produce game coverage of Sunday’s Blues-Blackhawks game, coinciding with International Women’s Day and marking the first NHL game broadcast and produced solely by women in the U.S.

Kate Scott (play-by-play) will call the action alongside U.S. Olympic gold medalists Kendall Coyne-Schofield (‘Inside-the-Glass’ analyst) and AJ Mleczko (analyst) from United Center in Chicago, Ill. Game production will be led by producer Rene Hatlelid and director Lisa Seltzer.

Push for the Playoffs: Blue Jackets’ depth being tested down the stretch

By Joey AlfieriMar 4, 2020, 9:39 AM EST

Push for the Playoffs will run every morning through the end of the 2019-20 NHL season. We’ll highlight the current playoff picture in both conferences, take a look at what the first-round matchups might look like, see who’s leading the race for the best odds in the draft lottery and more.

The expectations around the Columbus Blue Jackets heading into this season weren’t too high. After all, they had lost Artemi Panarin, Sergei Bobrovsky, Matt Duchene and Ryan Dzingel in free agency. But thanks to their team depth and the emergence of certain young players, they’ve found a way to put themselves in the mix for a playoff spot.

Heading into tonight’s game against the Calgary Flames, the Jackets find themselves in the final Wild Card spot, with 78 points. The Carolina Hurricanes are three points behind them, but they have three games in hand. This should be a tight finish.

The bad news for Columbus, is that they’ve been hit pretty hard by the injury bug this week. Not only did they find out that Josh Anderson, who has been out since mid-December, won’t be returning this year, they also lost Oliver Bjorkstrand for eight-to-10 weeks.

Goaltender Elvis Merzlikins has also missed the last three games due to a concussion. Seth Jones has been sidelined with a right ankle injury and Cam Atkinson is also out with an ankle injury.

They caught a break on Sunday, as they welcomed back Ryan Murray back from a prolonged lower-body injury. He played 20:28 in the victory over the Canucks.

They’re about to hit the road for a three-game road trip through Western Canada.

“Yeah, we have a good trip planned,” head coach John Tortorella said, per The Athletic. “We’re going to take off to go to an area up there to practice. I think it’s a good time for our team to get off and get away … quite honestly and just concentrate on each and every game. We’re looking forward to it.”

IF PLAYOFFS STARTED TODAY

EASTERN CONFERENCE
Bruins vs. Blue Jackets
Capitals vs. Islanders
Lightning vs. Maple Leafs
Flyers vs. Penguins

WESTERN CONFERENCE
Blues vs. Jets
Golden Knights vs. Canucks
Avalanche vs. Stars
Oilers vs. Flames

TODAY’S GAME WITH PLAYOFF CONTENDERS
Flyers at Capitals, 7 p.m. ET (watch live on NBCSN)
Blue Jackets at Flames, 8:30 p.m. ET
Ducks vs. Avalanche, 9:30 p.m. ET (watch live on NBCSN)
Coyotes vs. Canucks, 10:30 p.m. ET

PLAYOFF PERCENTAGES (via Hockey-Reference)
Bruins – 100 percent
Lightning – 100 percent
Capitals – 99.9 percent
Flyers – 98.6 percent
Penguins – 96.9 percent
Maple Leafs – 84.6 percent
Islanders – 71.9 percent
Hurricanes 62.9 percent
Blue Jackets – 38.2 percent
Panthers – 23.3 percent
Rangers – 22.4 percent
Canadiens – 1.1 percent
Sabres – 0.2 percent
Senators – 0 percent
Devils – 0 percent
Red Wings – Out

PLAYOFF PERCENTAGES
Avalanche – 100 percent
Blues – 100 percent
Stars – 99.6 percent
Oilers – 97 percent
Golden Knights – 96.2 percent
Canucks – 77 percent
Flames – 62.9 percent
Wild – 54.5 percent
Jets – 37 percent
Coyotes – 32.5 percent
Predators – 30.4 percent
Blackhawks 12.7 percent
Sharks – 0.2 percent
Ducks – 0 percent
Kings – 0 percent

THE DRAFT LOTTERY PICTURE
Red Wings – 18.5 percent
Kings – 13.5 percent
Senators – 11. 5 percent
Ducks – 9.5 percent
Senators – 8.5 percent*
Devils – 7.5 percent
Sabres – 6.5 percent
Blackhawks – 6 percent
Canadiens – 5 percent
Devils – 3.5 percent**
Jets – 3 percent
Predators – 2.5 percent
Panthers – 2 percent
Rangers – 1.5 percent
Blue Jackets – 1 percent
(* SJ’s 2020 first-round pick owned by OTT)
(** ARZ’s lottery-protected 2020 first-round pick owned by NJ. If top three, moves to 2021)

ART ROSS RACE
Leon Draisaitl, Oilers – 108 points
Connor McDavid, Oilers – 95 points
David Pastrnak, Bruins – 92 points
Artemi Panarin, Rangers – 90 points
Nathan MacKinnon, Avalanche – 86 points

ROCKET RICHARD RACE
David Pastrnak, Bruins – 47 goals
Auston Matthews, Maple Leafs – 46 goals
Alex Ovechkin, Capitals – 45 goals
Leon Draisaitl, Oilers – 43 goals
Sebastian Aho, Hurricanes – 36 goals

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Joey Alfieri is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @joeyalfieri.

The Buzzer: Stone ties career high; Vasilevskiy keeps point streak alive

By Scott CharlesFeb 7, 2020, 12:47 AM EST
1 Comment

Three Stars

1) Mark Stone, Vegas Golden Knights

He opened the game with two goals and then added three assists in the Golden Knights’ 7-2 win. Stone tied a career high with five points, a feat he previously recorded twice with the Ottawa Senators. Stone lit the lamp early in the first period when he banged home a loose puck in front, but his prettiest goal of the game came early in the second period. No. 61 danced around Panthers defenseman Mike Matheson and then lifted a shot over the glove of Sergei Bobrovsky. His three assists were also impressive as the Golden Knights ended a season-long eight-game road trip.

2) Dylan Larkin, Detroit Red Wings

It can’t get much worse in Detroit this season. However, Larkin has given Red Wings fans a reason to believe they have a foundational building block for the future. No. 71 scored twice including a neat breakaway deke with less than one second remaining in the opening period as Detroit snapped a nine-game losing streak with a 4-3 shootout win over the Buffalo Sabres. Larkin also added a shootout tally after Detroit surrendered the game-tying goal in the final minute.

3) Andrei Vasilevskiy, Tampa Bay Lightning

The Russian netminder improved to 15-0-2 in his last 17 starts and set a Lightning record for longest point streak by a goalie in the 4-2 win against the Pittsburgh Penguins. Vasilevskiy made 29 saves as he broke Nikolai Khabibulin’s record that stood since April of 2003. He also picked up his fourth assist of the season when Nikita Kucherov tallied an empty-net goal in the final minute. After a slow start to the season, the Bolts have regained their form as an elite team in the Eastern Conference.

Other notable performances

  • Marc-André Fleury claimed sole possession of fifth place on the NHL all-time wins list with his 460th victory, passing Henrik Lundqvist.
  • Kieffer Bellows scored twice in his second career NHL game in the New York Islanders’ 5-3 win against the Los Angeles Kings.
  • Cale Makar has made the transition to the NHL look too easy as he picked up his 39th and 40th point of the season.
  • Mackenzie Blackwood made 46 saves in his second career shutout as the New Jersey Devils rolled past the Philadelphia Flyers, 5-0.
  • Andrei Svechnikov and Sebastian Aho each had two goals and an assist as the Hurricanes topped the Coyotes, 5-3.
  • Steven Stamkos recorded his 25th of the season and has scored seven goals in the previous six games.
  • Jeff Petry sniped the overtime winner as the Montreal Canadiens collected their fourth win in the past five games.

Highlights of the Night

Connor McDavid can fly on the ice but his speed when he has possession of the puck makes him the most dangerous player in the NHL.

Vincent Trocheck showed great vision when he fired a pass from the top of the crease on one knee to set up Mike Hoffman late in the first period.

Kieffer Bellows scored his first NHL goal after Anthony Beauvillier delivered a pretty touch pass to set up the rookie forward. In two career NHL games, Bellows has a two-game point streak.

Damon Severson went coast to coast and wired a wrist shot off the post and in to give the Devils a two-goal advantage early in the second period

Ryan Dzingel sets up in Wayne Gretzky’s office and finds Jaccob Slavin darting toward the high slot.

Nikita Kucherov is known for his offense, but made a strong play in the defensive zone which led to a Stamkos goal. The Russian hustled back to intercept a cross-ice pass from Sidney Crosby, then corralled the loose puck to set up the Lightning’s offensive attack.

Bloopers of the Night

Jacob Markstrom has to make a smarter play with the puck in this situation.

Panthers defenseman Riley Stillman over skated the puck, then struggled to find it and the Golden Knights capitalized.

Stat of the Night

Injury News

  • Lightning defenseman Ryan McDonagh did not return after blocking a shot in the second period against the Penguins.
  • Penguins defenseman John Marino took a puck to the face but early reports are that it was not as bad as it looked.

Scores

New York Islanders 5, Los Angeles Kings 3

Detroit Red Wings 4, Buffalo Sabres 3 (SO)

Montreal Canadiens 3, Anaheim Ducks 2 (OT)

Tampa Bay Lightning 4, Pittsburgh Penguins 2

Vegas Golden Knights 7, Florida Panthers 2

New Jersey Devils 5, Philadelphia Flyers 0

Colorado Avalanche 4, Ottawa Senators 1

Winnipeg Jets 4, St. Louis Blues 2

Minnesota Wild 4, Vancouver Canucks 2

Nashville Predators 3, Calgary Flames 2

Carolina Hurricanes 5, Arizona Coyotes 3

San Jose Sharks 6, Edmonton Oilers 3

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Scott Charles is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @ScottMCharles.

How Hamilton injury impacts Hurricanes’ trade deadline approach

Hurricanes trade
Getty
By Adam GretzJan 31, 2020, 4:37 PM EST

Carolina Hurricanes general manager Don Waddell was able to shine some light on his team’s strategy approaching the trade deadline when he spoke with NHL.com’s Tom Gulitti this week. The most intriguing information to come out of the interview was Waddell’s optimism that standout defenseman Dougie Hamilton may not be done for the season and could be in line to return before the end of the regular season. That prognosis is far more optimistic than the recent one from head coach Rod Brind’Amour a couple of weeks ago when he said that the team was expecting that Hamilton would be done for the year.

Hamilton, one of the mid-season contenders for the Norris Trophy as the NHL’s best all-around defenseman, has been sidelined since the middle of January after breaking his fibula.

Waddell’s hope that Hamilton could return has made him reluctant to put the defenseman on the long-term injured list, which could create some additional salary cap space to work with at the trade deadline.

Said Waddell, via NHL.com:

“The only thing that I’m cautious about is with Dougie they say 8-12 weeks,” Waddell said Friday. “If he’s 10 weeks, that’s the last week of March. If he was ready to go that last week of the season, the last week of the season, starting on March 28, we have five games. Those might be the most important five games of the year. So if he was ready to come back, you’d want to try to keep space to bring him back.”

Waddell also said the Hurricanes can currently add a contract of more than $5 million before the deadline without having to go into LTIR.

At this point the Hurricanes have played just three games without Hamilton (going 2-0-1, earning five of a possible six points) but they still have a lot of work ahead of them without his services. The Hurricanes are clinging to a playoff spot in the Eastern Conference as of Friday and now have to start a significant stretch of the season without one of their best, most impactful players in Hamilton.

Waddell told NHL.com that he was already in the market for a defenseman prior to Hamilton’s injury, but that the Hamilton’s absence has probably changed the type of player they are looking for. Instead of looking for a more defensive-minded player, Waddell said they are more open-minded on that.

Hamilton is a massive part of the Hurricanes’ defense, and while the unit is still strong overall even without him, there isn’t another player on the blue line that can provide the offensive impact that he does. Jaccob Slavin is the only other defenseman on the roster that currently has more than 16 points this season (he has 23) and no one has his ability with the puck.

There’s also limited options on the trade market that could be available to replace even a fraction of that.

New Jersey’s Sami Vatanen could be intriguing as a rental.

He is not Hamilton, but he might be the most productive blue line rental on the market.

The forward situation

While Waddell tries to figure out how to navigate the blue line situation, the Hurricanes look to be pretty set at forward where they have already made their big in-season addition — the return of veteran forward Justin Williams.

Getting Williams back is a huge bonus for the stretch run because it basically sees them add a top-six forward — one that can still produce offensively while also play a great two-way game — without having to give up anything off of their roster.

The Hurricanes’ forward situation is interesting because that unit of the team doesn’t get a ton of attention for how good it is.

For years the focus from outside has been on the overall strength of their defense (it is a young, talented group with great depth) or the constant question marks that have followed them around in net.

But the trio of Sebastian Aho, Andrei Svechnikov, and Teuvo Teravainen has become an outstanding foundation to build on long-term, while rookie Martin Necas looks to be on the verge of joining them as an impact core player.

The addition of Ryan Dzingel and return of Williams only strengthens that group.

Something that else that could strengthen them: A second-half bounce-back from Nino Niederreiter.

He was their big in-season addition before the trade deadline a year ago and was outstanding during the stretch run. But he has struggled through a brutal first half this season with only six goals in his first 50 games. He is looking like he could be a healthy scratch for Friday’s game against Vegas.

If he can return to the form he has shown throughout his career — and especially his post-trade performance from a year ago — that might be more important than any outside addition they could possibly make.

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Adam Gretz is a writer for Pro Hockey Talk on NBC Sports. Drop him a line at phtblog@nbcsports.com or follow him on Twitter @AGretz.