Carolina Hurricanes Season Preview

The Hurricanes currently have the longest playoff drought in the NHL at nine years but with lots of young talent and veteran arrivals they could end the streak. The Hurricanes have plenty of young forwards and a great up-and-coming defensive core so even if this is not their year they could have a bright future in front of them. Bringing in four Stanley Cup champions this off season will help the young players reach their full potential for a playoff push.

Arrivals/Departures

Arrivals: Justin Williams, Scott Darling, Marcus Kruger, Trevor Van Riemsdyk, Josh Jooris, Jeremy Smith
Departures: Eddie Lack, Jay McClement, Bryan Bickell, Ryan Murphy, Matt Tennyson, Ty Rattie, Jakub Nakladal, Michael Leighton, Connor Brickley



Forwards:

Jeff Skinner was the Hurricanes' best forward last season returning to his Calder-winning rookie season form after suffering from concussions. Jordan Staal will center the top line as a solid two-way player but he does not score at the pace first-line centers need too to help their teams win. To cap off a veteran first line, Mr. Game 7 Justin Williams returns to the place where he won his first cup to help show the young guys what it takes to win. Victor Rask will center a young second line with players all out of Scandinavia with Sebastian Aho and Elias Lindholm on the wings. Rask has quietly became one of the NHL most underrated players putting up back-to-back campaigns with 40-plus points. Aho was one of last season's best rookies netting 49 points. Lindholm has been a solid player since being drafted fifth overall in 2013 but will need to take the next step this upcoming season. Derek Ryan has been quite the story not playing a full NHL season until the age of 30 but he finally cracked the league and is a good third liner. Another future star, Teuvo Teravainen, will be on the third line but he has the talents of a top-six forward; if one of the other top-six forwards do not produce he will get a promotion. Journeyman Lee Stempniak, who can still score goals, will be the other third-line winger. Stanley Cup champion Marcus Kruger was brought in to play the same role he did in Chicago as a fourth-line center. The two fourth-line wingers will likely be Phil Di Giuseppe and Joakim Nordstrom who are both still young and should take a jump. Brock McGinn and Josh Jooris will likely be the two depth forwards on the roster. The Hurricanes' number one prospect Julien Gauthier, who excels at scoring in front of the net, could make the leap this season too.



Defenceman:

The Hurricanes defence may be the most underrated defensive core in the NHL as it is stacked with young talent that should make it a great defence for years to come. Justin Faulk is still the team's best player and at only 25 years old he should continue his solid two-way play for another decade. Jaccob Slavin is the other top-pair defenceman and he is probably the most underrated defenceman in the NHL as he received a Norris Trophy vote last season. Noah Hanifin is one of the future stud defenceman in the NHL, making his NHL debut at 18 years old; at only 20, he still has half a decade to grow into a star. Brett Pesce is the other good young defenceman on the roster as he just got a nice six-year deal. Two former Blackhawks in Trevor Van Riemsdyk and Klas Dahlbeck will probably make up the bottom pair. Van Riemsdyk was a solid shutdown defenceman in the Windy City the past couple of years while Klas Dahlbeck has struggled to make a full-time NHL career. Two good first-round draft choices could also both make their NHL debuts this October as Haydn Fleury and Jake Bean are both close to making the jump. There is only room for one of them so Fleury is more likely to get that spot as he is older and has more experience.



Goaltending:

Cam Ward and Eddie Lack struggled in net last year so the Hurricanes made a move to bring in Scott Darling to be the starter after a successful year as Corey Crawford's backup. Darling's numbers suggest he can be a solid starter but he will need to prove he can take the starter's workload before the Hurricanes can feel comfortable with him. Longtime Hurricane Cam Ward remains a good backup as he enters the twilight of his career.

Projected Lineup:

Jeff Skinner	Jordan Staal	Justin Williams
Sebastian Aho	Victor Rask	Elias Lindholm
Lee Stempniak	Derek Ryan	Teuvo Teravainen
Phil Di Giuseppe	Marcus Kruger	Joakim Nordstrom
Brock McGinn	Josh Jooris	Julien Gauthier

Jaccob Slavin	Justin Faulk
Noah Hanifin	Brett Pesce
Trevor Van Riemsdyk	Klas Dahlbeck
Haydn Fleury	Jake Bean

Scott Darling

Cam Ward

Jeremy Smith

Top 10 Players:

10. Brett Pesce

9. Noah Hanifin

8. Elias Lindholm

7. Victor Rask

6. Jaccob Slavin

5. Sebastian Aho



4. Justin Williams

3. Jordan Staal

2. Jeff Skinner

1. Justin Faulk

Projected Finish: 95 Points (5th in Metropolitan)
Last Year: 87 Points (7th in Metropolitan)

Photo credit for Justin Williams goes to http://www.foxsports.com/. Jeff Skinner and Justin Faulk goes to http://www.tsn.ca/. Sebastian Aho goes to https://www.nhl.com/.