Carolina Hurricanes
The New Third Line
An injury to Chad LaRose back on January 10th caused Kirk Muller to shake things up once again and he did so by placing everyone’s favorite waiver claim Andreas Nodl on the third line with Brandon Sutter and Patrick Dwyer. This is the usual “defensive unit” for the Hurricanes that starts a lot of their shifts in their own zone and is matched up against other teams top lines. Nodl’s specialty is defense so he seems like a natural fit on this line and ever since he has been placed on it, they have seen a fair amount of success.
In the 11 games they’ve played together, this line has been on ice for only two goals against, have a scoring chance percentage of 53.4% and are doing this while starting at least 64% of their draws in their own zone.That is extremely impressive for a line that gets this kind of workload. We know that Sutter and Dwyer have been doing this all and their success has been on-and-off, so is Nodl the secret behind this line or is he just ridin…
Carolina Hurricanes vs. Los Angeles Kings 02/04/12 Scoring Chances
Until tonight, the Hurricanes had not beaten the Los Angeles Kings since Feburary of 2007 and it looked like that streak would continue after the Canes looked flat in the first period and were trailing 1-0. It marks the third straight game that the team has gotten off to a sluggish start and this one was probably their worst yet, but it was all uphill after that…sort of. Carolina battled back and looked a lot stronger for the rest of the game which resulted in them taking home a 2-1 win.
It was definitely an ugly win and there were a lot of things that went wrong for the Canes (awful powerplay, only one even strength scoring chance in the first period, outshot yet again) but all of that usually gets minimized with a loss. Carolina has a lot of things to feel good about with this win, as well. Jiri Tlusty had one of his better games and scored a goal on what was a fantastic individual effort and the Hurricanes played a solid defensive game so Ward did not need to completely stand …
Hurricanes 2, Kings 1
Jeff Skinner scored 3:02 into the third period to lift the Carolina Hurricanes to a 2-1 win over the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday night.
Jiri Tlutsy also scored and Cam Ward made 24 saves for the Hurricanes, who are 8-2-1 in their last 11 home games as they try to work their way up from the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings.
Anze Kopitar scored for Los Angeles and Jonathan Bernier made 20 saves.
The Kings have lost two in a row.
With the score tied at 1, Skinner worked hard on the forecheck deep in the Los Angeles zone. He eventually freed the puck and got it back to Jussi Jokinen, whose wrist shot was stopped by Bernier. Skinner pounced on the rebound before Bernier could freeze the puck and shot it into the open net.
It was Skinner’s third goal in his last five games.
Los Angeles opened the scoring when Kopitar one-timed a shot from the slot past Ward. Justin Williams set Kopitar up with a nice pass from the corner.
Carolina tied the score late in the second when Tlutsy blocked a shot at the Carolina blue line. The puck deflected back into the Kings’ zone, and Tlutsy managed to corral it along the right boards. He skated forward and beat Bernier with a wrist shot from the right circle.
The comeback win was a rarity for the Hurricanes, who entered the game with a 1-13-0 record when trailing after the first period.
Los Angeles, meanwhile, was 9-0-1 when leading after the first.
The Kings are in the midst of six-game road trip. Los Angeles, which entered the game in seventh place in the West, lost 1-0 to St. Louis on Friday.
The last time Los Angeles played in Carolina was on Nov. 11, 2009.
Ward has played especially well during the Hurricanes’ surge at home. Coming into the game, he had posted a 1.88 goals-against average over the previous 10 home games.
NOTES: Los Angeles coach Darryl Sutter is the uncle of Carolina’s Brandon Sutter. … The Kings didn’t get into Raleigh until early Saturday morning after their game in St. Louis. … Williams was a member of the Hurricanes when they won the Stanley Cup in 2006.
Skinner leads Hurricanes to win over Kings
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — After Los Angeles took an early lead, the Carolina Hurricanes waited for the Kings’ travel schedule to catch up with them.
Jeff Skinner scored 3:02 into the third period to lift the Hurricanes to a 2-1 win over the Kings on Saturday night.
Jiri Tlutsy also scored and Cam Ward made 24 saves for the Hurricanes, who are 8-2-1 in their last 11 home games as they try to work their way up from the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings.
“They came out ready to play, and it seemed like they had a step on us in the first period,” Carolina netminder Cam Ward said. “We weren’t too pleased with it after the first intermission, but once again, we were able to turn it around. We knew that they had some travel, so we made it difficult on them in the second and third.”
After their 1-0 loss to St. Louis on Friday night, the Kings didn’t arrive in Raleigh until early Saturday morning.
“It’s not rocket science,” Los Angeles coach Darryl Sutter said. “We played last night and got here at two in the morning. They were pushing a little bit more because they had more.”
Anze Kopitar scored for Los Angeles and Jonathan Bernier made 20 saves.
“I can count the number of opportunities they had on one hand and the number of opportunities we had,” Sutter said. “It’s a fine line. We played six periods on the road and gave up three goals and didn’t get anything out of it. Tough one to swallow.”
The Kings have lost two in a row.
With the score tied at 1, Skinner worked hard on the forecheck deep in the Los Angeles zone. He eventually freed the puck and got it back to Jussi Jokinen, whose wrist shot was stopped by Bernier. Skinner pounced on the rebound before Bernier could freeze the puck and shot it into the open net.
It was Skinner’s third goal in five games as he works his way back into form after missing 16 games with a concussion.
“I’m not going to be digging on Cam Ward like that in practice,” Skinner said. “Those sort of things take a while to come back, and it was a good feeling.”
Los Angeles opened the scoring when Kopitar one-timed a shot from the slot past Ward. Justin Williams set Kopitar up with a nice pass from the corner.
Carolina tied the score late in the second when Tlutsy blocked a shot at the Carolina blue line. The puck deflected back into the Kings’ zone, and Tlutsy managed to corral it along the right boards. He skated forward and beat Bernier with a wrist shot from the right circle.
“He’s really picked his game up over the last 10 games or so,” Carolina coach Kirk Muller said of Tlutsy’s play. “Offensively, he’s been making a lot of things tick.”
The comeback win was a rarity for the Hurricanes, who entered the game with a 1-13-0 record when trailing after the first period.
Los Angeles, meanwhile, was 9-0-1 when leading after the first.
The Kings are in the midst of six-game road trip. Los Angeles, which entered the game in seventh place in the West, lost 1-0 to St. Louis on Friday.
The last time Los Angeles played in Carolina was on Nov. 11, 2009.
Ward has played especially well during the Hurricanes’ surge at home. Coming into the game, he had posted a 1.88 goals-against average over the previous 10 home games.
NOTES: Los Angeles coach Darryl Sutter is the uncle of Carolina’s Brandon Sutter. … The Kings didn’t get into Raleigh until early Saturday morning after their game in St. Louis. … Williams was a member of the Hurricanes when they won the Stanley Cup in 2006.
Kings fall to Hurricanes on the road
RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Jeff Skinner scored 3:02 into the third period to lift the Carolina Hurricanes to a 2-1 win over the Los Angeles Kings on Saturday night.
Jiri Tlutsy also scored and Cam Ward made 24 saves for the Hurricanes, who are 8-2-1 in their last 11 home games as they try to work their way up from the bottom of the Eastern Conference standings.
Anze Kopitar scored for Los Angeles and Jonathan Bernier made 20 saves.
The Kings have lost two in a row.
With the score tied at 1, Skinner worked hard on the forecheck deep in the Los Angeles zone. He eventually freed the puck and got it back to Jussi Jokinen, whose wrist shot was stopped by Bernier. Skinner pounced on the rebound before Bernier could freeze the puck and shot it into the open net.
It was Skinner’s third goal in his last five games.
Los Angeles opened the scoring when Kopitar one-timed a shot from the slot past Ward. Justin Williams set Kopitar up with a nice pass from the corner.
Carolina tied the score late in the second when Tlutsy blocked a shot at the Carolina blue line. The puck deflected back into the Kings’ zone, and Tlutsy managed to corral it along the right boards. He skated forward and beat Bernier with a wrist shot from the right circle.
The comeback win was a rarity for the Hurricanes, who entered the game with a 1-13-0 record when trailing after the first period.
Los Angeles, meanwhile, was 9-0-1 when leading after the first.
The Kings are in the midst of six-game road trip. Los Angeles, which entered the game in seventh place in the West, lost 1-0 to St. Louis on Friday.
The last time Los Angeles played in Carolina was on Nov. 11, 2009.
Ward has played especially well during the Hurricanes’ surge at home. Coming into the game, he had posted a 1.88 goals-against average over the previous 10 home games.
NOTES: Los Angeles coach Darryl Sutter is the uncle of Carolina’s Brandon Sutter. … The Kings didn’t get into Raleigh until early Saturday morning after their game in St. Louis. … Williams was a member of the Hurricanes when they won the Stanley Cup in 2006.
Carolina Hurricanes Scoring Chances Through January
The Hurricanes finished January with a record of 5-3-4 which is the first winning record they have had in a month this season. Definitely a huge milestone for a team that has struggled as much as the Canes have this year. Things do seem to be getting better under Kirk Muller, though. They are winning slightly more games, they earned points in over half of their games in January and if they don’t win, they are at least competitive. The one thing that seemingly hasn’t improved is the team’s underlying numbers as they are stuck on a treadmill there. Their scoring chance percentage at even strength improved by only .01% from December to 47.4%, which is still pretty bad in the grand scheme of things. No one said that climbing out of the basement of the Eastern Conference would be easy.
Cam Ward was a big reason why the Canes earned 14 points in the standings in January as he had his best month of the season. Carolina was also outchanced in half of their games which is actual…
Hurricanes still fighting hard
The Hurricanes are approaching the final two-plus months of the season with an attitude that they must keep improving.
It might be a stretch of positive thinking to suggest they can work their way into the playoff picture.
Thursday night’s 3-0 victory at Boston helped matters as the Hurricanes began a stretch of six road games across an eight-game period. So the big-picture approach is the best way to go about business.
“I want to see a team that looks like it’s capable of winning every night,” coach Kirk Muller said. “I think it’s important that we come down with a good competitive stretch.”
If goalie Cam Ward puts together more 47-save outings for shutouts as he did against the Bruins, it will help matters.
The outlook for the Hurricanes as defined by Muller could involve an influx of young players receiving opportunities to show what they can do. While it’s still too early to totally dismiss the prospects for this season’s team, there’s also the reality that the Hurricanes must prepare for the future.
The next step in that process comes Saturday night at home against the Los Angeles Kings.
NOTES
–The Carolina franchise swept the Boston Bruins for the first time in history, winning all four meetings. With Boston one of the NHL’s top teams and the Hurricanes struggling to move out of the Eastern Conference basement, the results are head scratching. The Hurricanes had gained points in every game during a season against Boston, twice going in 3-0-1. This, however, marks the first time the Carolina franchise has ever swept a reigning Stanley Cup champion when there has been more than one meeting in a season.
“It’s a good test, it’s a good challenge,” coach Kirk Muller said of facing the Bruins, who once were fierce rivals of the franchise during the days of the Hartford Whalers.
–The Hurricanes had an eight-game streak without allowing a power-play goal end when the New York Islanders scored two of those in the first game back from the All-Star break. “The tough part for us was we weren’t really sure what was going wrong,” center Brandon Sutter said. So a 17-for-17 streak of penalty kills ended, but the Hurricanes started a new streak and added to that by killing two Boston power plays (both abbreviated to less than two minutes) on Thursday night.
PLAYER NOTES
D Derek Joslin could be facing a key stretch as he could be the odd-man out among defensemen. D Jaroslav Spacek returned from an injury for Thursday night’s game, leaving Joslin as a healthy scratch. Joslin has played fine at times, but he hasn’t done anything to the point where he was guaranteed keeping a spot in the lineup.
LW Chad LaRose might take some time to get back to form after missing a couple of weeks because of an injury suffered in practice. His situation was further complicated because he missed Thursday night’s game because of illness.
D Tim Gleason recorded his 100th career assist in his first game after signing a four-year contract extension. Gleason played in his 400th game with the Hurricanes during the weekend prior to the All-Star break and that makes him the franchise’s longest-serving active defenseman. Until he signed a four-year contract extension, his name had been coming up in some trade speculation and so there was uncertainty about the former U.S. Olympian’s time with the organization.
MEDICAL WATCH
LW Chad LaRose (illness) missed the Feb. 2 game at Boston. He’s considered day-to-day.
D Joni Pitkanen (concussion) was injured Dec. 6 against Calgary and has missed every game since then. He underwent knee surgery Jan. 3. The new target date for his return is in early March.
G Brian Boucher (lower body) was injured in practice Dec. 5. He has been placed on injured reserve.
QUOTE TO NOTE
“That’s something we have to be a little better on as far as taking penalties.” — C Tim Brent, who has spent time on penalty-killing and power-play units.
Scouts Following Carolina Hurricanes Closely
When the Carolina Hurricanes upset the Boston Bruins 3-0 Thursday, no fewer than 12 NHL teams were represented in the press box.Scouts are tracking several potential trade targets on the ‘Canes, including pesky forward Tuomo Ruutu – who scored one of the Carolina goals during a showcase performance.“I’ve heard rumors I’m going to every team in the NHL,” Ruutu told the Raleigh News & Observer. “I must be really playing well . . . You hear rumors but I think everybody is different. We’re all human. Some guys take it more seriously, some take it less seriously. Everybody has their own way of dealing with it. I hear about stuff but there’s nothing I can really do, so . . .”Defenseman Jaroslav Spacek is coming off an upper body injury, so teams will follow him as a possible rental player. Defenseman Tim Gleason is off the market after signing a four-year contract extension.Goaltender Cam Ward and center Eric Staal appear to be off-limits as well, since GM Jim Rut…
This Week Around the NHL: Ruutu Trade Rumors and Crosby Watch Continues
Zehr is a contributing writer for Gold Star Games, your tailgating games company.This week around the NHL the trade rumors are flying and Sidney Crosby is once again dominating the headlines. Whether you are an avid Tweeter, blog reader or just cannot get enough of the NHL Network, chances are you have heard it all.Here are some of the top headlines are the NHL this week.
Tuomo Ruutu Trade Rumors are FlyingRuutu has heard rumors that he is going to be traded to virtually any team in the NHL. He has even joked with reporters that he must be playing very well. Meanwhile, Ruutu has had no points in his last seven games.
Yet, he still leads the Hurricanes with 15 goals and 99 hits. While he is in the final year of his contract, the rumor mill indicates that he could be one of the most significant players traded this month.Crosby Watch ContinuesOnce again, the eyes of the NHL are on Sidney Crosby. In a press conference earlier this week at Consol Energy Center, Crosby and…
Hurricanes’ asking price for Tuomo Ruutu scaring suitors away?
SportsNet’s HockeyCentral Trade Tracker panel recently are reporting that there’s been lots of calls made to the Carolina Hurricanes about the availability of forward Tuomo Ruutu ahead of the February 27 trade deadline….
Hurricanes complete 1st season sweep of Bruins
Brandon Sutter had a goal and an assist and Cam Ward made a season-high 47 saves for his third shutout of the season and 19th of his career as the Carolina Hurricanes completed their first-ever season series sweep of the Bruins with a 3-0 victory Thursday in Boston.
Sutter secured the win with his 12th goal of the season at 3:13 of the third period. Andreas Nodl blocked a Tuukka Rask clearing attempt in the corner and found Sutter in the high slot.
Ward, a perfect 4-0 against the Bruins this year, has only allowed 20 goals in his last 12 games.
Tuomo Ruutu gave the Hurricanes a 2-0 lead at 16:41 of the middle frame when he backhanded a rebound past a sprawling Rask. Ruutu’s 16th goal of the season came after Sutter forced a turnover and got a shot off that created the rebound.
Despite Carolina being outshot 22-8, Eric Staal scored the lone first-period goal. The play started when Ruutu impaled Bruins defenseman Johnny Boychuk on his own stick in the corner to leave the puck for …
Cam Ward, Hurricanes ‘Cambushed’ Bruins En Route to First-Ever Season Sweep
Wow. Did not see that one coming. After three games of struggles against the Carolina Hurricanes, it seemed like a foregone conclusion that the Bruins would right the ship and finally take care of business on Thursday night. That was not the case. Cam Ward surprised everyone with his great play again, and for that, NESN Nation’s Dan Duquette is awarding Ward our “Cambushed” player of the game. Who is your “Cambushed” player of the game? Join NESN Nation: In-game home page | Twitter | Facebook
Ward’s shutout finishes Canes’ sweep of Bruins
BOSTON (AP) — Cam Ward made 47 saves — 22 in the first period and 20 in the third — Brandon Sutter had a goal and an assist, and the Carolina Hurricanes finished their first season-sweep of the Boston Bruins with a 3-0 victory on Thursday night.
The Hurricanes, who won all four meetings with the Bruins, are 15-25-9 against the rest of the NHL and are last in the Eastern Conference. Carolina outscored Boston 14-5 in the season sweep, the franchise’s first over Boston, dating to the days when the team was the Hartford Whalers.
Eric Staal scored in the first period, Tuomo Ruutu converted Sutter’s rebound in the second, and Sutter added a goal 3:13 into the third.
Ward, 11-11-2 against the Bruins, posted his third shutout of the season and 19th of his NHL career — including three over Boston.
Despite the high number of shots, the Bruins had few quality scoring chances and were booed by the home crowd.
Tuukka Rask made 28 saves and lost his third straight start. Boston lost in regulation for the third time in its last 20 home games and second in the past 10.
The Bruins are 4-4-1 in their last nine overall — including two losses to Carolina — and were blanked for the third time this season, all at home.
Ruutu hit defenseman Johnny Boychuk in the corner to start the play that resulted in Staal’s goal. As Boychuk was trying to get up, Jiri Tlusty got the puck to Staal for a one-timer at 11:51 of the first. Carolina had the lead despite the Bruins matching their season high for shots in a period.
Staal, who has struggled this season, has 18 points in 15 games.
Boychuk missed the rest of the period but was back for the second.
It was the second time this season the Bruins had 22 shots in a period, and they allowed only eight for Carolina.
The Hurricanes outshot the Bruins 14-5 in the second period and cashed in on a mixup between defensemen Andrew Ference and Adam McQuaid to make it 2-0. Sutter stole the puck from Ference and was stopped by Rask. Ruutu made a nifty move past McQuaid after picking up the rebound and swept in his 16th goal of the season on the backhand.
NOTES: Bruins RW Nathan Horton, who sat out the last four games of the Stanley Cup finals because of a concussion, missed his third straight game because of another concussion following a hit from Philadelphia’s Tom Sestito on Jan. 22. “He’s still where he was a few days ago, like I said feeling better but not well enough to get to that stage of working out,” Bruins coach Claude Julien said. … McQuaid was in the lineup despite being questionable because of a lower body injury. Ference returned after serving a three-game NHL suspension. … Carolina D Jaroslav Spacek was struck by a slap shot by Boychuk midway through the second period, but wasn’t seriously injured. . The Hurricanes started a stretch of five of seven on the road.
Ward, ‘Canes frustrate Bruins in Boston
For the first time in franshise history, dating all the way back to the Hartford Whalers, the Hurricanes have swept the Bruins in a season series. Boston outshot the Hurricanes 22-8 after one, but thanks to great goaltending from Cam Ward and a timely goal by Eric Stahl, Carolina headed into the room with a 1-0 lead.
As well as the Bruins played in the opening frame, the Hurricanes were the better team through the final two periods. The third man high gave Boston trouble all night long, and an aggressive forecheck lead to costly turnovers in the defensive zone. Tuomo Ruutu extended the Hurricanes lead to 2-0 with a second period goal, Ruutu’s 16th of the season. There are whispers that Ruutu could become a member of the Bruins at the trade deadline. The third period was as frustrating as any the B’s have played all year. Brandon Sutter scored 3:17 in, and the B’s couldn’t solve Ward, per usual. Sloppy play with the puck and a lack of energy did the B’s …
Where Do the Philadelphia Flyers Look Now for a Defenseman?
With Tim Gleason signing a four-year deal, Joni Pitkanen out with a concussion until likely March, and rumors that Ryan Suter isn’t going anywhere where do the Philadelphia Flyers look to pick up a defenseman.
Suter and Gleason were both atop the Flyers wishlist for a d-man who could help shore up a big hole on the blueline. Philly will now have to shift their focus and two potential players the Flyers could go after wouldn’t require Philly to look far.
The first player the Flyers could look at is Brayden Schenn’s brother Luke Schenn. Luke is what the Flyers really need to look for and that is a big, strong shutdown d-man. Luke loves to hit and is an excellent shot blocker. While he does have big shot from the point, his offense awareness can be lacking at time. With all that said he would still be a great talent for the Flyers to posses.
If the Flyers want to come out guns blazing and make a huge splash, they should look at Suter’s teammate Shea Weber. …
