Carolina wins fight-filled shootout.

On Friday night, the Hurricanes closed their preseason schedule with an exciting shootout victory over the Blue Jackets. Andrew Ladd ended the nine-round shootout with the only goal, and the Hurricanes emerged with a win, but they can't be all that happy about it.

Carolina mustered just 21 shots on goal. This is unacceptable. It has been an ongoing problem during the preseason. Tonight they had the exact same roster that they'll have opening night, so you can't chalk it up to "a bunch of kids trying to make the team but not trying hard enough".

I didn't watch the game, and I couldn't get a radio feed here in Greensboro I'm just going by the statsheet and the real-time scoring, which I was following the whole time.

Apparently, the game was very chippy. There were four fights including two as part of an apparent brawl at 19:37 of the second. There were two game misconduct penalties assessed there (presumably for second man in) and three other major misconduct penalties issued (two to Carolina and one to Columbus).
Columbus was whistled 18 times for a total of 64 penalty minutes. Carolina was whistled 21 times for a total of 78 minutes. 142 total PIM. That's almost two and a half hours to you and me. Not surprisingly, many of these penalties overlapped.
Carolina had five power play opportunities, and could not cash any of them in. This is also unacceptable. I think the word "anemic" suits the power play, which has been something like 4-45 during the pre-season.

On the flip side, there was good news. Columbus had 14 power play opportunities totaling 18:55. Carolina only allowed one of those to convert. Particularly good is that the Dinner Jackets had a total of six minutes of five-on-three, all of which was killed. In fact, if the scoresheet is accurate, the Canes only allowed one shot during those six minutes. For this, the defense should be applauded.

Judging from the stat sheet, the game wasn't just fight-filled and penalty-happy. It was extremely physical. Carolina doled out a whopping 37 hits. Timmmmmmaaaaay Gleason led the way with six. Again, I didn't watch or even listen to the game. I'm all for physical play, but if it's undisciplined physical play, there's where I have a problem.

Carolina finished 4-2 in the preseason, which is nothing to sneeze at, but they need to get their offense in gear or they will struggle terribly once the games start to count.

Cam Ward has been quite good, and will probably shoulder 75% of the goaltending load this season. The blueline, which was presumed to be Carolina's weak point, has also been pretty good. The rest of it needs to take shape, and in a hurry.

Opening night (and my birthday) is just five days away now!

Why are we in this handbasket, and why is it so hot?

Here's another indicator that the NHL is screwing up. I got this from James Mirtle's blog today.

Minnesota Wild defenseman Sean Hill was suspended for 20 games by the NHL for failing a drug test. We still don't know what "positive" result came back, but the League immediately hit him with 20 games. Of that, he served one game, and still owes 19. We all remember that. That's not the point.

The NHL decided to forbid him from participating in preseason games. Meanwhile, it has decided to allow the Islanders' Chris Simon to participate in the preseason even though he is still under suspension for his violent attack against Ryan Hollweg of the Rangers back in March.

As I pointed out on Tuesday, Simon's participation in a preseason tilt against the Rangers resulted in a huge brawl. I wondered on this page why he was allowed to play, and many people answered "because these games don't count". Of course I understand that, but I was (and still am) of the belief that a suspended player shouldn't be allowed to participate in any games (real or preseason) until he has served his suspension.

The problem here is that there's a double standard. The NHL has responded to this by saying "Terms of suspensions are case specific. Sean Hill's does not allow him to play" in the preseason.

In otherwords:

We spun the wheel of disciplinary fortune, and Sean Hill hit a whammy while Chris Simon landed on "get out of jail free"

(Please pardon my mixing of two game shows and one board game to make that example)

Here's where it could get even trickier. Steve Downie from the Flyers will have a hearing with NHL disciplinarian Colin "Clownshoes" Campbell on Friday for his violent check of the Senators' Dean McAmmond. If Downie is suspended, Colin Campbell will have a lot of explaining to do in how he doles out the number of games and the remainder of the preseason.
Since these games "don't count", couldn't one make a silly argument that his potential suspension should only be for other exhibition games? Obviously that's a farce, but it would fall suit with the mutual exclusivity of regular season and pre-season rationale that allows Simon to play in the preseason.

You've probably seen the hit by now, but please check out this clip of it because it has a gem at the end.

There is no audio in the first 25 seconds of that video, but the bit that really gets me is Sens coach Bryan Murray talking about a "lack of respect" among players. He essentially calls Downie a "dirty player".
Hey Bryan... You ever hear of a guy named Chris Neil? Check your team's roster.

I will be very curious to see how this all pans out.

Four more sent down, Sutter next

On Saturday, the Hurricanes sent four more players back to Albany, trimming the roster to 28. Brandon Sutter is still in camp, and he has been impressive, but he will be sent back after tomorrow's game.

Forwards Keith Aucoin and Patrick Dwyer along with defenseman J.D. Forrest and Noah Babin are the latest cuts. The River Rats open their training camp on Tuesday and their first preseason game will be on Friday.
Ryan Bayda and Trevor Gillies are competing for a spot as the first call-up. Gillies is a tough guy and won't have a prayer, so it's pretty much Bayda. On the blueline, it's Casey Borer and Brett Carson.
Nic Wallin, Mike Commodore, Tim Gleason, Dennis Seidenberg and Glen Wesley are all healthy. Frantisek Kaberle is nearly fully recovered from surgery. Bret Hedican is looking good, for the most part. That's seven defensemen, which is what Rutherford wants. One of the aforementioned Borer or Carson, my guess is that Borer will be the last cut.

Brandon Sutter is still in camp, but will be sent back to Red Deer after tomorrow's scrimmage with the Caps. He has been a pleasant surprise, but he needs development. He is too young to play in the AHL, so he must be sent back to Red Deer.

Michael Leighton is being given another look. He'll start between the pipes on Tuesday. John "useless" Grahame hasn't been good in camp and Leighton is giving him a run for his money. Unfortunately, Grahame has a guaranteed contract which means that if Carolina wants to send him to Albany, they must still pay him the entire $1.4M. Additionally, he would have to clear waivers before being demoted.

It will be bad news for a lot of people -- especially Beth, but Crackers will be the second goaltender in Raleigh this fall.

Canes final roster starting to take shape

On Tuesday and Wednesday, the Hurricanes played red-white scrimmages. After Wednesday's session, 15 players were shipped to Albany. Four players had already been sent to their respective junior teams. The training camp roster now stands at 33 players.
Surviving the first cut was Brandon Sutter. Because he is under 20 and came up through junior hockey in Canada, he is ineligible to play in Albany. It's either the big club or back to Red Deer for him. There are different provisions for European players under the age of 20, but North Americans have age guidelines.

It's not likely that Sutter will make the final cut, and frankly I'm a little surprised that he made the first cut. He will need to gain about 25 pounds before his body will be ready. He'll also need to develop as a player a little more.

Of the forwards who are still in camp, the most likely final cut survivors are Keith Aucoin and Ryan Bayda. Both had great years with Albany last season. Aucoin had 99 points (27/72) in 65 games and Bayda had 54 (29/25) points in 55 games. Bayda recorded a goal and an assist for two total points in nine games with the big club while Aucoin had one assist in ten appearances with the Canes.

If memory serves me, Bayda scored a goal in his first NHL game. It was back in the abysmal 2002-03 season, and he was one of six Canes players to do the same. Brad DeFauw and Damien Surma were two of the others, and I can't recall the rest.

Less likely to survive, but still alive are forwards Jakub Petruzalek and Pat Dwyer.

Newly arrived "third" goaltender Michael Leighton has been impressive. This is much to the delight of some fans who wish Crackers would take a hike. The other goalies have gone their respective way.

With Bret Hedican's health still a question mark, there may be a roster spot open for a blueliner. Luke Decock of the News and Observer continues to use doublespeak on this subject. According to the steady steam of confusing reports, one day Hedican is in bad shape; the next, he's never looked better. The most likely candidates to fill a vacancy are Noah Babin, Casey Borer and Brett Carson. Babin has been all the rage of camp, and even if he doesn't make the final cut, the Floridian will likely be the first defenseman to get called up.

In the red-white game on Wednesday, Jeff Hamilton scored two goals. He's doing okay. Chad LaRose is already up and skating again. Frantisek Kaberle is up to full speed. Andrew Ladd skated. Justin Williams escaped serious injury after being hit on the ankle by a shot. As it looks right now, the injuries aren't going to be a factor on opening night.

Carolina will host Nashville on Friday night in its second exhibition game of the preseason. RBH will not have a presence there.

Canes eke out victory against Caps b-team

On Sunday, Carolina defeated the Caps in overtime 4-3. Carolina played some of their stars. Washington did not. For about 48 minutes, Carolina looked pretty lethargic. Even bad. Somehow, they pulled it together down the stretch, and the end result, even though it doesn't count, was a win.

First off, my new seat offers a good view, but it's way further up than I'm accustomed to. Yes, I'm spoiled. I spent the last season in the third row, sitting close enough to smell the players' breath. The previous two, a spent sitting close enough to at least see their eyes. I'm still in the lower bowl, and I can't complain about that, but I will no longer be able to provide decent photography. And I will no longer be able to harangue the visiting goaltender with any chance of him hearing me.

The Hurricanes dressed nine regulars. Five forwards (Cole, Staal, Stillman, Viva and Letowski), three defensemen (Commodore, Seidenberg and Gleason) and Johnny Crackers. The Caps did not dress any of their top line (Ovechkin, Semin, Nylander). Still, their "b team" looked ready to play.

Seeing the sweaters in action, I liked them quite a bit. The form-fitting business will take some getting used to, but overall I think they look sharp. I tried one on in the souvenir shop, and I like the feel. A lot. Unfortunately, I'm not in a position to be able to plop down the $190 it would take to get one with a player name/number plus the commemorative patch. When the time comes, I'll get a "road" white one. Probably a WHITNEY 13. Part of me wants to just wait for next season's third sweater (black with the "storm warning" logo on the chest).

The boys took a while to get things going, but when the Caps put their reserve backup in, the Canes had a better time. Johnson was good, as he always is against the Canes. With the Canes down by two, they scored two quick goals to knot it up midway through the third.
My notes were crap, but the Canes scoring was thus:

In the waning seconds of a power play, Noah Babin became the first native Floridian to score an NHL goal. It came at 7:46 of the third with helpers from Staal and Stillman. The "official scoresheet" lists this as an even strength goal, but it was most certainly a power play.

Just 49 seconds later, Erik Cole made a textbook Erik Cole maneuver to tie it at the 8:35 mark. Again, the Canes were on a power play, after the Caps were whistled for delay of game (clearing the puck over the glass). Cole took a pass from Staal, broke in on net, sweeping through the low slot. As he moved from left to right across the goal mouth, he pulled it to his backhand at the very last second and easily beat Michal Neuvirth.

Michael Leighton, who once fought Cam Ward as part of an epic bench clearing brawl in an AHL game, was quite good between the pipes. He made a couple of dazzling saves down the stretch including a sprawling save that was kind of reminiscent of Ward's save on Raffi Torres with about six minutes to play in game 7 of the Stanley Cup Final in 2006. Obviously, the stakes weren't as high, but it was a nifty save.

However, at 17:57 of the third, Ben Clymer tipped one passed Leighton to give the Caps a late lead. On the play, I felt like Brandon Sutter could have cleared either the puck or the player out of the goal mouth area, but he just watched as the goal was scored.

As I was sharply criticizing Peter Laviolette for not pulling the keeper for a sixth attacker, the Canes mounted some late pressure deep in the Caps zone. I continued to implore the coach to pull Leighton, but it all became immaterial when my boy Viva scored a very easy goal at 19:00. Neuvirth had practically taken himself out of the play by falling down, and Ryan Bayda had the puck at the bottom of the right circle. He patiently held the puck, then dished it to Williams on the left side. As Neuvirth was down and out, overcommitted to the right side, all Viva had to do was tap it into the yawning net. Like the last game of the 06-07 season, the game would go to overtime.
Like the last game of the 06-07 season, the Canes would be the benefactor of two quick penalties, which gave the Canes a rare overtime five-on-three. In overtime, both teams play with four skaters, and penalties are served as normal. With a second penalty against the same team, though, the non-offending team gets to bring an extra skater on the ice rather than going to a four-on-two situation. The Canes dawdled a bit, but they eventually took care of business. Erik Cole got the game winner at 4:12 of the extra frame. Eric Staal fired a shot from the right circle that Cole deflected in from the goal-mouth area.

Carolina will travel to Nashville for a Friday exhibition. Between now and then, they will play some Red-White scrimmages on Tuesday and Wednesday. There is an outside chance that I'll head out there on Tuesday. On Friday, there will be a different group of players on the ice from what we saw today.

Quick notes:
*Staal looked a bit "off" at first, but came on strong in the third, putting up three assists.

*Erik Cole looked pretty sharp. His first goal was a thing of beauty, and the second was just a right place, right time kind of thing, but he still looked good. I liked the way he responded after he boarded a Caps player. The player went down awkwardly, and Cole immediately turned all of his attention to the health of the player. Fortunately, the player was uninjured, but Cole (who, of course, knows a little something about being boarded)showed class and sportsmanship.

*Brandon Sutter was a non-factor. So much of a non-factor that the official "event summary" lists him as "14 Chad LaRose".

*Wade Brookbank made a couple of sound defensive plays

*Patrick Dwyer is throwing me off. He won't make the opening night roster, so it won't be a big deal, but he's wearing the #39 sweater, and I kept wanting to shout out "C'mon, Dougie!"

*Johnny Crackers wasn't all that good. The first goal was cheap, and I thought (contrary to what Luke says) that he looked bad trying to handle the puck. It makes me nervous as all get-out to see him play the puck as much as he does, and to see him come as far out of the crease as he does, and to try the homerun pass as frequently as he does. There were no Conklin-esque catastrophic mistakes, but I just don't think he's a smooth puckhandler and it makes me nervous.

Most importantly, today felt great. It felt great to go through all my game-night rituals. It felt great to see my hockey friends who I haven't seen in five months. It felt great to be in the building. It felt great to see the new sweaters. It felt good to feel the crisp air. It felt good to see the boys win. It feels good to know that the "real" games are just around the corner.

Sutter to play today

Today, when the Hurricanes open their preseason schedule against the Capitals, many Caniacs will get their first view of Brandon Sutter. The high-profile rookie will be part of the "game group" today, which is always a mix of veterans and camp invitees.

If Sutter can play with the intensity that he displayed in the Super Series, it will be hard to ignore. Since LaRose is injured, there is one roster spot open, so he has a chance. However, as I said before, it's most likely to be Keith Aucoin.

I'm not sure who else of the prospects will be skating, but the veterans will be Erik Cole, Eric Staal, Justin Williams, Cory Stillman, Trevor Letowski, Mike Commodore, Dennis Seidenberg, Tim Gleason and John Grahame.

I'll be arriving a little bit early to drink a few adult beverages in the parking lot. Anyone who knows my number should call or text me.

Canes enter camp banged up

Camp officially opened today, and already the Hurricanes are banged up.

Andrew Ladd is still nursing some undisclosed injury and did not skate today.

Newcomer Jeff Hamilton is also out with an undisclosed injury. What is this? The playoffs? What's this "undisclosed injury" thing? Forslund suspects that it's a groin problem. Nothing is known about when or if he'll be ready.

Frantisek Kaberle is working his way back to shape after having some knee surgery this summer. He's almost there.

Add Sharpie to the list. He caught a rut and threw his knee all out of whack. They're tentatively putting a window of 3-6 weeks on his return.

Opening night is still more than two weeks away, but with Ladd, Hamilton and LaRose all out, the Hurricanes need some answers. Trevor Letowski just got a free pass out of the press box and onto the fourth line. Suddenly, the idea of Brendon Sutter being offered a 10-day trial doesn't seem so far-fetched.

As a commenter rightfully pointed out, Sutter is too young to legally play in the AHL, so Albany isn't even an option. If you're under 20, that's the way it works. It's either the NHL, or back to your junior club. In his case, it would be the Red Deer Rebels. The team will still be owned by his dad, but obviously, Brent will be too busy coaching the New Jersey Devils to continue coaching the Rebels.

Word on the street is that Sutter was having a hard time with the drills and that Harrison Reed looked way better than he did. Obviously, Keith Aucoin and Dave Gove are good choices for call-ups. They both shuttled between Raleigh and Albany last season, with Aucoin being the more impressive of the two. Aucoin put up a very impressive 99 (27/72) points in just 65 games with the River Rats and added a lone assist in eight appearances with the Canes last season.

So the season will start with Sharpie on the shelf. It doesn't sound like Ladd and Hamilton have serious injuries, so they should be there. On the blue line, Hedican's status is still mysterious and Kaberle is on the mend. Snuggles Tanabe opted to attend the Blues camp instead of the Canes.

To fill LaRose's void, my money is on Aucoin. They're almost identical anyway. Both are tiny guys, standing five nine and weighing in at about 185 pounds. Both are very hard working guys with a surprising level of physical, scrappy play.

Still, though, the fans will be very interested in the way Sutter develops during camp.

I'm really looking forward to the first preseason game. Who wants to meet for beers?

Hockey season is finally upon us!

After a long, hot, uneventful summer, hockey is finally just around the corner.

Football has begun. I like football, but each year I have increasingly viewed football as a temporary distraction until hockey starts. From this point forward, I will pay less and less attention to real football, and even less to my fantasy football teams.

After some fitful, nervous waiting, my tickets have arrived. I had to downsize from my traditional 24-game plan to a more affordable and more logistically possible 10-game plan. Those 10-game plans get shipped out after all the others. Full season and 24-gamers have the privilege of selecting the exact seat they sit in all season. 10 gamers can only request a section. I have been in 112 for four seasons, and I didn't want to change that. However, since I was assigned my seat after the others were selected, I didn't get as nice a chair as what I've had in the past. I went from row M to row L to row J to row C (!), improving my view each season. This year, I'll be in row VV. I can't recall how far from the top of 112 that is, but suffice to say it's not as close to the ice as row C. I'll be on the aisle, which is pretty sweet, and I can't complain about a lower bowl seat. I wish I was closer to that row L seat because I have several friends in that area, but this'll do.

This is the Canes' tenth season in North Carolina, and the ice has been painted with a special marking at centre ice. The players will all wear a commemorative patch on their right shoulder. The season ticket holders have been issued special bumper stickers in honor of this decade in Carolina.

Camp opens for the Hurricanes tomorrow. Brendan Sutter will be in camp, but is not expected to make the roster. At best, most people think he'll spend some time in Albany. Barring a spectacular camp for him and some serious injuries to some other forwards, there's just no way he can make the big club. He was good in the Super Series, but I just don't think so. Cason pointed out that Alan Muir of Sports Illustrated has marked Sutter as a darkhorse candidate to make the big team. He marked 14 other "under the radar" type players in NHL camps who have a chance to make the big club on their respective team. He opines that Sutter might get a "10 game look-see". This is precisely how Jordan Staal made the Penguins roster last October. Started out as a doubtful, had a great camp, and blew everyone away during his 10 game free preview. Maybe Sutter can do this, which would likely leave Trevor Letowski out in the cold.

The Hurricanes will open their pre-season with a game this Sunday afternoon. I normally don't care about pre-season hockey, but I'll probably go.

Opening night, which coincides with my 36th birthday, is just 19 days away! I'm not about to miss that.
If you're in the arena that night, I'll gladly let you buy me a birthday beer. One per customer, though.

The Bret Hedican saga continues. One day, he's allegedly on the verge of holding an "I quit" press conference. The next, he's looking better than he's ever looked. The next, he's not practicing. The latest is that Luke Decock has called him "nominally" healthy.

Other news: Andrew Ladd is nursing an undisclosed injury. "Snuggles" Tanabe has been invited to camp.

More details later. For now, it's Scrabble night and I'm late.

Canes lose two more preseason games

On Saturday, the Canes lost the back end of a home and home series with the Preds. The score was 7-3, but it wasn't even that close. I listened to the Nashville radio feed, and the Canes sounded horrible. In a five and a half-minute span early in the third period, the Justin Peters gave up five goals. Included in this onslaught was a three-goal outburst in a 99 second span. Without seeing the game, it sounded like the defensemen were giving up a lot in the Carolina end of the ice, and Justin Peters got rattled. At one point, the Nashville announcer said "That was entirely too easy".

Anton Babchuk started the scoring with a shorthanded goal early in the first, and that lead held up until the second period, but it would soon take a big turn for the worse.

Josef Vasicek scored again for the Preds. Martin Erat scored twice, while Paul Kariya, Steve Sullivan, JP Dumont and Alexander Rudolov each scored once.

The Carolina scorers were Babchuk, Ryan Bayda and Justin Williams.

The positive thing about this game was that the Canes "won" the shootout. They only needed two rounds to do it. Peters stopped the first two Preds shooters, while the two Carolina shooters both scored. A small victory, I know.

I don't think I should be too upset. Nashville was already a good team, and they added JP Dumont, which makes them a lot better. They used their stud goaltender (Vokoun) while we started Andrew Peters, who probably won't even make the AHL River Rats.

On Sunday, the Canes lost again. This time to the Blue Jackets, by the score of 4-2 -- dropping them to 0-3 in the preseason. Justin Williams and Rod Brind'Amour were the scorers for the Canes, while Rick Nash scored twice and Dan Fritsche and Geoff Platt scored once each for the Jackets.

Ryan Bayda, who is competing for a final spot on the Canes forward lines, played well again, picking up two assists.

The Canes will play Columbus again, at home, on Friday. The preseason will wrap up on Sunday with a matinee in Washington.

Big Joe's homecoming -- Preds 5, Canes 4.

On Friday night, the Hurricanes opened their pre-season with a 5-4 loss to the Nashville Predators. As if it was all written out by a fabulous poet, Josef Vasicek got the game winner on a short-handed breakaway with about a minute and a half to play in regulation. Vasicek was traded this summer from the Canes to the Preds for Scott Walker. The Preds won't play in Raleigh this season, so it will be a long time before we see big Joe again. I missed my chance to wear the Vasicek 63 sweater one last time.

I wasn't able to make it out to the rink, but Chris (aka Penalty Killer)was there, and offers his game recap. This season, Chris and I have seats that are close enough to each other that we could practically share a tub of popcorn.

It's hard to place much, if any, stock in these preseason games, but the word on the street is that Shane Willis, who is one of several players competing for a final spot on the forward lines, played well. He had one goal and one assist. A lot of brows were furrowed this summer when the Canes signed Willis to bring him back into the organization. He had a good season for the Canes in 2000-01, scoring 44 (20/24) points. However, he was literally knocked out of the playoffs by a brutal Scott Stevens hit. Willis wouldn't return to that series, which Carolina lost. The following season, he was traded to the City of Tampa Lightning in exchange for Kevin Weekes. This would prove to be a very good move for the Canes, who made a surprising run to the Stanley Cup finals in 2002 thanks to the outstanding playoff goaltending of Kevin Weekes. That season, Willis scored a total of 24 points (11/13). Since then, Willis only played in 12 NHL contests. Most people say that he was a promising youngster prior to getting laid out by Stevens, and that he lost a good deal of his "game" with the hit. We're hoping that his play last night is indicitive of a return to form.

Kim Staal (no relation) scored two goals for the Preds, while Scott Nichol, Ramzi Abid and the aforementioned Vasicek got the other Nashville tallies.

Ray Whitney scored twice for the Canes, while Andrew Ladd and Willis had the others.

They used the same format as last preseason -- shootouts in all games. All I know is that Vasicek scored and the Preds "won" the shootout.

Tonight, the b-squad Canes and the b-squad Preds square off in Nashville. I'll be listening on the radio as I participate in my on-line draft.