Tag Archives: Hurricanes

Edmonton Oilers, Zach Laing

Oilers vs Hurricanes Preview – 2016. New year, new team?

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TALE OF THE TAPE:

Game: Edmonton Oilers (16-21-3) vs Carolina Hurricanes (16-17-6)

Location: Rexall Place, Edmonton, Alberta

Time: 7:00 PM MT

Where to find it: TV: Sportsnet West – Radio: 630 CHED

Edmonton Oilers Preview:

After bringing in 2016 with a solid 4-3 win over the Arizona Coyotes, the Oilers look to build off that win as they take on the Carolina Hurricanes.

In the upcoming month of January, the Oilers face the Lightning and Panthers twice, as well as three games in the Pacific Division (Arizona, San Jose, Calgary) and two against Central Division teams in Dallas and Nashville.

The return of Connor McDavid appears to be coming sooner rather than later as earlier today he was taking faceoffs and participating in drills. HIs return will come at a good time, whenever that might be. He will certainly help offensively, and will be a welcomed addition in the challenging schedule ahead.

The loss of McDavid seems to have taken a huge effect on the team’s power play. Since he suffered his fractured clavicle on November 3rd, the Oilers power play fell from 22.5% (10th) to 16.5% (26th).

His offensive instincts are a huge addition, and allow for the team to run two effective power play units.

Tonight, the Oilers face off against an old foe. This year the Hurricanes have been a bit of an interesting case. Despite sitting 25th overall in the league, the ‘Canes rank 2nd in the league in Corsi For %, with 54.4%.

The Hurricanes are a young, fast team just like the Oilers and like the Oilers, they are weak defensively. It should prove to be an interesting game, and a good chance for the Oilers to get two points in the win column.

Cam Talbot gets the start again for the Oilers.

RNH On Talbot:

“Since he’s been getting some starts here lately, he’s been really solid for us,” said Nugent-Hopkins. “He’s held us in a few games. Boston for sure, and won too. We try to play as well as we can for them and not give up too many high-scoring chances. It’s nice to have confidence in both guys right now.”

As we move into 2016, I hope to see some real progression out of this group. Lead by Todd McLellan and Peter Chiarelli, the effects they have had on this team has already began to show. Now, it is time to take it to the next level.

The Otherside:

Carolina recalled forward Brock McGinn from Charlotte of the American Hockey League on Sunday. McGinn had two goals and three points in 14 games during an earlier stint with the Hurricanes this season. He’ll likely take the place of Phillip Di Giuseppe, who left the Hurricanes’ 2-1 overtime loss to the Nashville Predators on Saturday because of an upper-body injury and went through the NHL’s concussion protocol. Coach Bill Peters hasn’t decided on a goaltender; Eddie Lack is 1-0-1 and has allowed three goals in his past two games; Ward has surrendered eight goals in his past five starts.

Line Combos and Starting Goalies c/o Left Wing Lock:


Oilers (Cam Talbot):
Taylor Hall – Leon Draisaitl – Teddy Purcell
Benoit Pouliot – Ryan Nugent-Hopkins – Jordan Eberle
Matt Hendricks – Mark Letestu – Lauri Korpikoski
Rob Klinkhammer – Anton Lander – Jujhar Khaira

Darnell Nurse – Justin Schultz
Andrej Sekera – Brandon Davidson
Brad Hunt – Eric Gryba

Hurricanes (Cam Ward): 

Kris Vertseeg – Eric Staal – Elias Lindholm
Joakim Nordstrom – Jordan Staal – Andrej Nestrasil
Jeff Skinner – Viktor Rask – Phillip Di Giuseppe
Brad Malone – Riley Nash – Chris Terry

John Michael-Liles – Justin Faulk
Jaccob Slavin – Ron Hainsey
Noah Hanifin – Brett Pesce

Any ideas on how to improve my game previews? Send me an email at zjlaing@gmail.com.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_ghwXLBnVo]

Edmonton Oilers, Zach Laing

Oilers vs Hurricanes Preview – Storm Chasing

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TALE OF THE TAPE:

Game: Edmonton Oilers (7-13-1) vs Carolina Hurricanes (7-10-4)

Location: PNC Arena, Raleigh, North Carolina

Time: 5:00 PM MT

Where to find it: TV: Sportsnet 360 – Radio: 630 CHED

Edmonton Oilers Preview:

The Carolina Hurricanes… woof…

Everytime the Oilers take on the Hurricanes, I can’t help but reminisce over the 2006 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Not over the heartbreaking Game Seven loss, but of the feeling surrounding the team the whole season. The success we once saw will soon return, and I can’t wait to see the first banner get raised to the rafters at Rogers Place in the years to come.

None the less, the Oilers need to focus on the now and not the future. This should be an interesting matchup tonight. The Hurricanes do a great job of suppressing shots (25.4 SA/gm), whereas the Oilers and their lethal top six loves to get pucks on net.

The Oilers have had success lately and there are lots of things going right for the team. A tough schedule to start the year hasn’t helped our efforts, but one of the better things I have noticed is that the systems are starting to show. Since last season, the Oilers have had a increase in CF% in all situations from 48.9 to 50.3. That percentage is good enough for 14th in the NHL – a nice change from the 22nd ranked CF last year.

The emergence of Leon Draisaitl has been big for the Oilers. In his first 10 games, he has scored 17 points. Good enough for the best point pace in the entire NHL. His linemate Taylor Hall isn’t far behind, ranking 5th in the league in that statistic.

“I think we’re all offensive guys and we all want to help the team win or get scoring chances,” said Draisaitl. “That’s the challenge for us tonight, to create as many scoring chances as we can.”

Anders Nilsson will make his fourth-straight start and his eighth in the last ten games.

Walter Foddis’ Pregame Analytics: 

The Otherside:

Forward Nathan Gerbe was placed on injured reserve Tuesday with a lower-body injury sustained in a 4-3 win against the Los Angeles Kings on Sunday; general manager Ron Francis said Gerbe is expected to miss 4-6 weeks. Defenseman Ryan Murphy remains day-to-day with a concussion; Murphy has missed four games and has been skating but not practicing. Carolina lost to the Philadelphia Flyers 3-2 in overtime on Monday, scoring two goals in the third period to force overtime. The Hurricanes are 1-5-1 in their last seven games. “We have three points in our last two games, which is obviously good for our confidence and momentum,” defenseman Brett Pesce told the Hurricanes website after the loss. “We played the best in the third period (against Philadelphia), and we can carry that into the next game.” – nhl.com

Line Combos and Starting Goalies c/o Left Wing Lock:

Oilers (Anders Nilsson):


Hurricanes (Cam Ward):

  

Any ideas on how to improve my game previews? Send me an email at zjlaing@gmail.com.

 

Jack Gruninger, NHL

15-16 Season Primers: The Carolina Hurricanes

Welcome back to Season Primers, today we’re going to jump over to the Eastern Conference for a look at the Carolina Hurricanes. Under new head coach Bill Peters, the Hurricanes finished last in the Metropolitan Division and missed the playoffs for the 6th straight season. This allowed Carolina to add a key piece at the draft in defenceman Noah Hanifin with the 5th overall pick. Hanifin has been signed to a pro contract and I would expect that he makes the Hurricanes this season. The Hurricanes also decided to buy out Alexander Semin, who later signed with Montreal.

Key Additions: C Derek Ryan, LD Noah Hanifin, RD James Wisniewski, G Eddie Lack

Key Subtractions: RW Alexander Semin, RW Patrick Dwyer, RD Brett Bellemore, G Anton Khudobin

The additions of Hanifin and Wisniewski for Carolina add depth to and improve their defence. They should be a good second pairing. Eddie Lack replaces Anton Khudobin. I don’t think either goalie is clearly better than the other. Derek Ryan is an interesting addition. The center led the SHL in scoring last season, he could be a great signing if that offense translates to the NHL. He could quite possibly replace the offense provided by Semin.

Compared to the end of the season, the Hurricanes have made significant improvements to their defense, but no major changes to their offense, which isn’t great.

Projected Lines (All Players Healthy):
Eric Staal – Jordan Staal – Jeff Skinner
Nathan Gerbe – Victor Rask – Elias Lindholm
Chris Terry – Riley Nash – Andrej Nestrasil
Brad Malone – Jay McClement – Zach Boychuk
Derek Ryan

Ron Hainsey – Justin Faulk
Noah Hanifin – James Wisniewski
John-Michael Liles – Ryan Murphy
Michal Jordan
Rasmus Rissanen

Cam Ward
Eddie Lack

Roster Contenders: C Patrick Brown, C Brody Sutter, LW Brendan Woods, RW Justin Shugg, LD Keegan Lowe, RD Danny Biega, G Drew MacIntyre

Carolina’s forward group is the biggest concern coming into the season. There is a both a lack of skilled forwards and a lack of depth in the system. With no skilled forwards being added into their lineup coming into this season, it’s hard to see Carolina improving much on their 27th place finish in goals scored.

On defense, there’s a good mixture of defensive and offensive defencemen in the top 4, with Faulk and Wisniewski being good offensive defenders, the veteran Hainsey being solid defensively, and Hanifin being a good all around defenceman. On the 3rd pairing we have young offensive defenceman Ryan Murphy alongside John-Michael Liles, who is considered to be an offensive defenceman, but has underrated defensive abilities:

John-Michael Liles HERO Chart.

Notice that CA60 +/-?

In net we have Cam Ward and Eddie Lack. I have Ward as the starter but I think Lack could easily take over the starting job.

One of the biggest stories for the Hurricanes this season will be what they decide to do with pending UFAs Eric Staal and Cam Ward. If Staal decides not to re-sign, and Carolina is out of the playoff picture by the deadline, he could be a valuable asset and should fetch a 1st round pick+. Ward might not hold as much value as he used to. In his last 3 seasons he has posted save percentages of .910, .898, and .908, which aren’t great for a starting goalie. He will have to have a good season to prove he can still be a starter in the NHL.

I’d fully expect the Hurricanes to improve this season, but they just don’t have the offense to make it to the playoffs, unless someone really steps up for them. This will be a team to keep an eye on this season. I think it’s entirely possible that they add one of the forwards still remaining in free agency, they definitely have the cap space to do it.

That’s all for today, thanks for reading. Next time we’ll take a look at the Colorado Avalanche.

If you haven’t already, be sure to check out the other parts of the “Season Primers” series:
Anaheim Ducks
Arizona Coyotes
Carolina Hurricanes
Colorado Avalanche
Columbus Blue Jackets
Dallas Stars

Brennen York, NHL, NHL Entry Draft, Prospects

5 – Carolina Hurricanes

Of all the teams picking in the top ten, Carolina has the least amount of pressure on them. They could potentially retool and move guys like Ward, Eric, and Jordan in order to get younger, or they could stay the course, add a few players to the mix, and push for a playoff spot. There have been rumours circulating around potentially shipping off Jeff Skinner, but at such a young age, and only one year removed from a 33 goal campaign, I think that would be a mistake. Other rumours around the Canes have them looking at both Dion Phaneuf and Phil Kessel from Toronto. Could we potentially see a move where Skinner and another piece are sent on their way to Toronto for those two? Possibly. Speaking with Canes fans, I get the sense they would prefer to keep the core intact and add a few pieces without giving up anything significant. One thing GM Ron Francis has going for him is the value of the fifth overall pick this season. One of Hanifin, Marner, or Strome WILL be available in that spot, There are a ton of teams who would be willing to jump up to that spot and grab one of those three guys. That being said, adding a player of, say, Hanifin’s caliber may make a huge difference in Cane Country down the road. He’s a stud, and though I’ve been promoting Ivan Provorov all season, Hanifin is the guy you go with 100%. If for some strange reason Hanifin and Marner are gone by the time the fifth selection comes along, trading down in the draft isn’t a horrible option. Perhaps New Jersey is willing to add a 2nd along with their 6th overall to jump up one spot. In the end, I’m betting the Canes walk away with one of Provorov, Hanifin, or Werenski. Throughout the remainder of the draft, Francis has to look at adding depth up front, especially on the right side. Don’t be surprised if Nikita Korostelev is a Carolina Hurricane by the end of the week. It’ll be interesting to see what may come of the 5th pick but I’m sure whatever it is, Hurricane fans will be excited.

Draft Day Gameplan

– Be open to moving the pick. If you can get additional pieces as well as a top 10 pick, it may be worth it.

– If Noah Hanifin is there, he’s the guy. Some people have soured on him but he’s going to be an excellent NHL’er.

– Heard rumours about Semin plus the 5th overall being moved for a later pick, but whatever you do don’t fall out of the top 8 or 9 picks.

– Add depth at the forward position. At 35 and 66 if be looking at BPA of course, but more specifically Fischer or Senyshyn at 35 and Jens Looke or Spacek at 66.

Canes Big Board (Without McEichel)

1. Noah Hanifin
2. Mitchell Marner
3. Ivan Provorov
4. Dylan Strome
5. Zach Werenski
6. Mikko Rantanen
7. Lawson Crouse
8. Pavel Zacha
9. Timo Meier
10. Mathew Barzal

Who do they take?

If, and that’s a big if, they pick at 5 they go with Noah Hanifin. Considering they could move down, they still leave with a defenceman IMO.

Darkhorse?

We’re in the top 5 now, so dark horses aren’t much of a factor really. If I look at guys who have an outside chance, I’d say one of Mikko Rantanen or Lawson Crouse could be options.