As the Carolina Hurricanes prepare to begin the regular season on October 7, the team's most recent roster cuts came on Thursday.
The team's 24-man roster takes on the Columbus Blue Jackets on Friday night and has the team preparing to be in season-ready form over the next week.
Before camp started many speculated that the forward positions would be the only ones to be contested but as training camp has progressed rookies Justin Faulk (19 years old) and Ryan Murphy (18 years old) have made strong cases to contest for a spot with the blue line corps of veterans.
With only two games remaining in the preseason, the next week of practices will really focus on putting together all of the individual and small group positional work that coach Paul Maurice and his staff have been putting the team through.
Hurricanes fans can expect a more quick puck-moving offense and a defense that will 'gap' opposing teams in the neutral zone to cause more turnovers with quicker transition into the offense and increase in shots on goal.
That's the plan anyway.
How quickly the team develops those systems to pay dividends remains to be scene, but they're exciting prospects to consider.
New feature: X's & O's
Stay tuned as a new feature titled X's & O's will show the team's plays drawn up to help everyone understand what they're trying to do during games.
Follow on Twitter @pksport to get picture posts of play set-ups used in the games starting on Sept. 30 during the Hurricanes vs. Columbus Blue Jackets game and throughout the season.
After
succumbing to the Winnipeg Jets in a 3-1 preseason loss on Wednesday,
the Carolina Hurricanes made their largest roster cut to date on
Thursday.Hurricanes President and General Manager Jim Rutherford
announced the assignment of 12 players from...
Flying
to the Great White North for the first time this season, the Carolina
Hurricanes lost their third preseason game by a score of 3-1 to the
Winnipeg Jets at the MTS Centre in Winnipeg, Manitoba on
Wednesday.The...
All-Nets.com
introduced its new basketball league concept and league, 5'9"@9', at
NetSports in Morrisville, N.C. on Saturday.The new concept of play has
been created to specifically highlight the talent and skills...
The
Carolina Hurricanes beat the visiting Winnipeg Jets 4-0 at Time Warner
Cable Arena in Charlotte, N.C. on Sunday as goaltender Cam Ward turned
away 36 shots in the team's first preseason win.Not playing in...
The
Carolina Hurricanes suffered a 3-2 loss to the Nashville Predators on
Friday night at the RBC Center in Raleigh, N.C.The Hurricanes were
riding high early into the third period on the offensive output provided
by forward...
Carolina
Hurricanes President and General Manager Jim Rutherford announced on
Wednesday that the team’s training camp roster was reduced to 49 players
as six more were returned to their respective teams.With the club’s
second announcement...
The Carolina Hurricanes recently started training camp as 56 players reported to camp on Friday for physicals and head shots before hitting the ice on Saturday.
There's a lot of excitement coming into the season as team leaders Eric Staal and Cam Ward return along with NHL Rookie of the Year Jeff Skinner, Tim Gleason and Jamie McBain to name a few.
With many question marks regarding who will fill the 2-3 three spots that are available up front and whether top draft pick Ryan Murphy has a shot in earning a spot on the blue line, there are many practice sessions and exhibition games that will help provide the answers.
The first skate is over, the first scrimmage is over, now the first exhibition comes up next on Monday night as the Hurricanes travel to Buffalo to take on the Sabres.
Day
three of Carolina Hurricanes training camp infused the majority of the
roster into a game situation as the team held its Red-White scrimmage at
the RBC Center on Sunday.The game was included as part of the team...
As
each group stepped onto the ice during the first day of on-ice sessions
at Carolina Hurricanes training camp at the RBC Center on Saturday, the
coaches’ faces looked purposeful and intent on delivering a clear
message to...
Starting
their 2011 training camp at the RBC Center bright and early on Saturday
morning, the Carolina Hurricanes began the journey to make the playoffs
and beyond.There's nothing for them to look back at other than
skating...
The
Carolina Hurricanes begin their training camp for the 2011-2012 season
on Friday.If asked the question to point out the most lasting memory of
last year, there will be very few members of the team, organization,
fans, or...
On Wednesday, Carolina Hurricanes President and General Manager Jim Rutherford announced the team's training camp roster of 56 players that will report on Friday for physicals and photos before hitting the ice on Saturday morning.
In addition to veterans Eric Staal, Cam Ward, NHL Rookie of the Year Jeff Skinner, Chad LaRose, Tim Gleason, and Jamie McBain among others, the roster includes Traverse City Prospects Tournament participants forwards Jared Staal, Brody
Sutter, Victor Rask, Justin Shugg, Gregory Hofmann and Mattias Lindstrom;
defensemen Justin Faulk, Justin Krueger, Ryan Murphy, Keegan Lowe, Austin Levi,
Rasmus Rissanen, and goaltender Matt Mahalak.
In time for the start of training camp, President and General Manager Jim Rutherford also announced on Wednesday that the team signed defenseman Mathieu Roy to a one-year contract. The deal will pay Roy $600,000 on the NHL level or
$125,000 on the American Hockey League (AHL) level, with a guarantee of at
least $150,000.
“We wanted to add more depth to our
defense,” said Rutherford. “Mathieu is an experienced player who
is capable of contributing at the NHL level or in the AHL with Charlotte.”
Originally
drafted by the Edmonton Oilers in the seventh round of the 2003 NHL Entry
Draft, Roy (6’2”, 210 lbs.) has skated in 65 career NHL games with
Edmonton, Columbus and Tampa Bay, totaling 13 points (1g, 11a) and 76 penalty
minutes. He has scored 20 goals and earned 97 assists (117 points) in 301
career AHL games. Roy’s career stats are below.
The
addition of Roy will definitely promote an even more intense atmosphere
and competition for a spot on the starting roster and will give fans a
great opportunity to see what improvements the team can make on the blue
line for the 2011-2012 season.
Caniac Carnival news
Hurricanes fans will be able to watch the team practice and will be treated to a Red-White scrimmage game that will take place at Noon on Sunday as part of the team's 12th annual Caniac Carnival.
The event is free and begins on Sunday at 9 a.m. and continues until 3 p.m.
The
Red-White game will mark fans’ first opportunity this year to see the
Canes in action, and all of the team’s veteran players are currently
scheduled to participate.
Seating for the scrimmage is general admission and a
ticket is not required.
The scrimmage will be played and timed like a
regular NHL game, and will feature activities and contests for fans during the
intermissions.
Willis joins Hurricanes as Youth and Amateur Hockey coordinator
It' been just over a week since former Hurricanes forward Shane Willis was named as the team's Youth and Amateur Hockey coordinator.
In making the announcement, Jon
Chase, Director of Community Relations and Promotions for the Hurricanes, today indicated that Willis will spearhead the Hurricanes’
initiatives through Carolina Youth & Amateur Hockey (CYAH), including the
team’s summer camps and the Junior Hurricanes’ annual trip to the
Quebec International Pee-Wee Tournament.
“Shane brings a wealth of hockey
experience to this important role for the Hurricanes organization,” said
Chase. “The team
is committed to the continued growth of youth and amateur hockey in our
community, and Shane, as a former Hurricanes player and longtime Triangle-area
resident, is a great fit for this position.”
Willis,
34, played parts of six NHL seasons with the Hurricanes and the Tampa Bay
Lightning, scoring 31 goals and earning 43 assists (74 points) in 174 career
regular-season games.
The Edmonton, Alb., native had his best season in
2000-01, when he scored 20 goals and earned 24 assists with Carolina, and was
named to the NHL’s end-of-season All-Rookie Team.
Willis also notched 152
goals and earned 161 assists (313 points) in 399 career regular-season games
with top-level minor-league teams in the American Hockey League and the
International Hockey League.
He retired from his playing career following the
2008-09 season.
If you can't make it to the RBC
There is no better way to get the full Hurricanes experience than watching a game live and with single-game ticketsales underway, fans also have the option of purchasing a variety of 12-game ticket plans.
If attending a game is not possible and when the team is on the road, the Hurricanes' announced deal with Fox Sports Carolinas will provide coverage of 67 regular season games that will be shown in high definition.
FOX
Sports Carolinas’ coverage of live Hurricanes games in 2011-12 will
include 37 of the team’s 41 road games throughout the 82-game regular
season.
In the booth John Forslund
will handle the play-by-play duties while former professional goaltender Tripp
Tracy will provide analysis.
The
college football season has already kicked off in the Triangle, and
now, so will Carolina Hurricanes training camp.Hurricanes President and
General Manager Jim Rutherford announced on Wednesday the team’s
upcoming training camp roster that will feature...
The
North Carolina Tar Heels held on for a win while the NC State Wolfpack
and Duke Blue Devils both lost on Saturday afternoon.The Tar Heels (2-0)
gave their fans more reason to believe in the leadership of...
Even
though Duke men’s basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski is a member of many
Halls of Fame, his induction into the Duke University Athletics Hall of
Fame on Friday night in Durham, N.C. is one that he considers...
Many
may wonder what connection the tragic crash on Wednesday of a charter
plane carrying a professional hockey team competing in the Russian
Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) would have with the Raleigh
area.Firstly, hockey fans around the world were...
It's official - the college football season is underway.
In the Triangle, that means the Wolfpack, Tar Heels and Blue Devils have hit the ground running.
For the Pack and Heels, victories over FCS opponents Liberty and James Madison respectively, were never really in doubt while the Blue Devils let one get away with a loss Richmond.
However, don't get too caught up in all the excitement while cheering your favorite school on at the football stadium because basketball season is just around the corner.
Lest we forget this is Tobacco Road country after all.
While enjoying the fall season tailgating and packing the stadium in hopes of watching your Triangle-area team move on to play in this year's ACC Championship game in Charlotte, here is what to look forward to in terms of setting your 2011-2012 basketball calendar to not conflict with your football plans:
Recent news from the Raleigh Sports Examiner: Wolfpack douses Flames in 43-21 win
NC State Wolfpack quarterback Mike Glennon got off to a shaky start in leading his team to a 43-21 victory over the Liberty Flames at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh, N.C. on Saturday.Though Glennon finished the day...
The grills are fired up and the beverages are chilled as Triangle-area college football programs kick off the 2011 season on Saturday.The North Carolina Tar Heels, NC State Wolfpack, and Duke Blue Devils all host top 20 Football...
In his first game with his new team, former NC State Wolfpack quarterback Russell Wilson led the Wisconsin Badgers to a decisive 51-17 victory over the UNLV Runnin' Rebels at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin on Thursday...
