Fueled by youthful energy and the optimism that they provide for the future, the Carolina Hurricanes have suddenly become at least temporarily fun again.
Warren Foegele received headline coverage at Canes and Coffee during day prior to his NHL debut on Monday night. A detailed Daily Cup of Joe article recapped his career to this point and assessed his prospects and potential role at the NHL level. And our “Checkers check ins” series kicked off with an update on Foegele’s 2017-18 season with the Charlotte Checkers. And Warren Foegele proceeded to justify all of the attention with a goal and an assist and the first star the Hurricanes 4-1 win over the Ottawa Senators.
Not to be outdone and pushed to the side as old news, veteran Valentin Zykov (he of 6 NHL games coming into Monday) also continued his scoring ways finishing from his office at the top of the crease on a rebound off a shot by none other than Warren Foegele. Zykov continues to not look out of place defensively or otherwise while continuing to find the score sheet regularly.
In total, I thought the Hurricanes played better in Monday’s win than the win in Ottawa on Saturday. The intermittent defensive break downs were there again, but the Hurricanes decreased the sheer volume and reverted back to the norm of out-shooting opponents. The Senators mustered only 20 shots on the night compared to the Hurricanes 40.
Warren Foegele opened the scoring late in the first period on what looked like a fairly harmless play but also one that showed that good things can happen when you win pucks, forge a path to the goal and put shots on net. Foegele won a puck on the boards and with quick spin created a path right down the end line to the net. His shot from a tough angle found a hole in goalie Craig Anderson and just like that Foegele had his first NHL goal. The first period ended with the Hurricanes up 1-0 on Foegele’s goal.
The Senators struck back in the second period when a pair of small mistakes by Jaccob Slavin compounded to become a scoring chance and a goal for Bobby Ryan. After Derek Ryan won a defensive zone face-off Slavin rushed things a little and played the puck up the boards into a mess of bodies where it was stolen. He was then caught watching and was a little slow defending the front of the net which gave Ryan just enough time to receive and finish just as Slavin was arriving. But the kids struck back again when Derek Ryan fed Foegele heading toward the net. Anderson stopped Foegele’s shot, but Zykov was there to find and finish the rebound staking the Hurricanes to a 2-1. Brock McGinn would later receive a Jordan Staal pass between the face-off circles with all kinds of time to label a shot for the corner of the net. That gave the Hurricanes a 3-1 lead heading into the third period.
The third period saw Cam Ward stand tall for a couple saves to hold the two-goal lead and then Sebastian Aho deposit a puck into an empty net to stretch his point streak to nine games in the waning minutes of the game.
Notes from the Carolina Hurricanes 4-1 win over the Ottawa Senators
1) Warren Foegele
His production on the score sheet will collect headlines and generate excitement, but on a simpler level, a simpler first read on Foegele’s NHL-readiness was also positive. Just like Zykov, he did not look out of place in terms of matching NHL pace and also did not look overwhelmed in terms of decision-making. Foegele brings another bigger body to the lineup but in the form of a player who skates well. He fared well in terms of using his speed and length to take away time and space defensively and also did well winning pucks on the boards. Throw in some scoring to boot, and he obviously receives high marks for his NHL debut.
2) Dahlbeck/Slavin
I guess maybe out of necessity with two right shot defensemen out of the lineup, Peters opted to move Dahlbeck to his off side despite the myriad of struggles with this deployment in the third pairing during the first half of the 2016-17 season. The results were maybe not surprising in that Dahlbeck and Slavin had multiple shifts where it took multiple tries to successfully move the puck from their own end mostly just trying to survive on some of their shifts together. The defense in total has garnered better results than I think they have deserved over the past few games, but I guess survival beats getting demolished as has happened recently.
3) Roland McKeown
Lost in the headlines of the forward goal scorers is the steady play of AHL call up Roland McKeown. He continues to mostly play an invisible brand of hockey in the good, Glen Wesley-like way that is desirable for stay-home defensemen. McKeown was sound and efficient in 16:20 of ice time on Monday night.
4) Cam Ward
He played well again. Facing only 20 shots, the game was light in terms of volume, but the Hurricanes defense again had its moments of looseness such that Ward faced a decent number of good chances.
5) A bigger test awaits
After a four-game run against NHL draft lottery entrants mostly with porous defenses, the schedule shifts abruptly. On Tuesday night, the Hurricanes will face a New Jersey Devils team that rested at home on Monday night. The Devils are in the thick of a playoff battle right now and are playing well. The team just wrapped up a six-game road trip against playoff caliber competition with a 4-2 record then returned home to beat Tampa Bay on Saturday. As I said leaving the arena on Monday night, the game has the potential to be a rude wake up call if the Hurricanes continue to be loose defensively and show up expecting more easy pickings offensively.
The puck drops just after 7pm on Tuesday against the Devils on Fox Sports Carolinas with John, Tripp and Mike.
Go Canes!
Well… Ottawa is terrible, but the TAZ line looks like a legit, dangerous first line. Zykov has been a threat multiple times every game and made some great plays again tonight. Foegele is as advertised. Fast, tenacious, and crafty. He won numerous board battles and was consistently noticeable. I like it. Bigger test tomorrow.
I thought the TAZ line had some timing issues this evening – but Zykov continues to play strong, hitting the boards and corners. Glad to see he was able to play his game and score.
Glad Aho kept his point streak going. He plays so smoothly even though players have the book on him now. And he doesn’t back down.
Brock and PDG were strong – put half of Brock’s posts in the net and he is at 20 goals. I won’t be questioning his offensive capabilities in the future.
Ward made some unbelievable stops.
And then there is Foegele. First, really happy he score the first goal for the team and got the assist for two points. At times I thought he was the best player on the ice – he impressed me more tonight on NHL ice than the 4 times I have seen him in Charlotte. And his family was in the stands – I love the “I love you, mom and dad” during the 1st star interview with Maniscalco.
Part of the reason I wanted AHL callups earlier this season wasn’t just for upgraded performance at various positions – but for that spark of energy. We saw that in November and December of the previous two season with players like PDG, McGinn, Ryan, Slavin, Pesce being called up and bringing the energy to turn the tide of the early season. And now we are seeing the energy from new call-ups and the roster players who are responding include Aho, Turbo, McGinn, PDG, Skinner (to a degree) even Ward who seems to be playing at another level the past few games. It almost seems like Williams and Staal are being bypassed by the young energy. In the end I think it could have been a different season if these guys had been called up a month or two and put into positions to succeed and brought that same energy.
Of course, NYI, AZ, and OTT are pretty poor teams so beating them isn’t necessarily a flag-waving event. But how many times has this team lost to pretty bad teams this season.
So put me on the Foegele bandwagon. We will see what happens tomorrow – and I hope both Foegele and Zykov stay the weekend to play in the challenges that both WAS and NYR bring to the table. I would hate to see either sent back because of some formulaic plan by old men in coaching and management. Let the boys play! They are having the times of their young lives.
raleightj, you hit the nail on the head on all points you covered. I want to especially second your thoughts expressed in your last paragraph. By the way, I’m used to having to get up before 7:00 AM to beat you guys (usually ctcaniac) to the punch with comments, but you and bwstanley26 now have set a new benchmark. 10:20PM and 11:39PM after the game, come on, give a guy a break. Well, the upside is you guys cover things pretty well so it saves me a lot of time.
I am currently up exchanging emails with our staff in India.
Of course – I actually have some canes hockey to be excited about! And I kept it short and sweet since it was past my bedtime lol
Every year we fall out of contention and then go on a winning streak to give us hope for next season. Fun games to watch. Love seeing the kids getting a chance. Lots to fix still if we are to make playoffs next season.
Yep. Just plays us out of a draft slot.
This time is different.
There are several reasons I say that. Yes under BP there is consistently an after-it-matters upswing that gets everyone excited for the next season–only to be disappointed.
However, watching Zykov (I will readily admit that Foegele’s success might have been the adrenaline of his first game, though based on how he ended in juniors and performed in Charlotte, I think he is for real), makes me think his skills have not been part of the perennial improvement. Basically TAZ is TSA with a player who is a better finisher, if significantly less of a defensive force.
Back to Foegele. Even if he isn’t a 50-point talent, he will produce more than the player he replaces whether Nordstrom, Di Guiseppe, or Ryan. In fact, Foegele could score as many goals next season as the entire fourth line scored this season (10-12 depending on how you calculate). So I see that as different than the past few years.
The two big concerns about the Canes, even after adding Darling and Williams, have been a center who drove the offense and more overall scoring.
Aho is the center. I understand the past few games have been against poor teams (though Arizona has been playing good hockey)–but combine the last few games with his success in international tournaments and I think the jury is in. I am not enough of a hockey fan to say how important the World Championships are to players. But as a tennis fan I can make the analogy to the Davis Cup, where success has given players (specifically Djokovic and Murray) the confidence to take the next step in their careers. In last year’s world championships Aho both produced as well as and looked as gifted as players like MacKinnon and Scheifele. In fact, those three were the best centers in tournament after Backstrom. I am not saying Aho will be a McDavid/Crosby level 1C. But watching the game last night, I am confident Carolina will be better off with Aho than had they traded for Duchene.
I am also convinced that Lindholm at center will make him more productive–so another significant and, I hope, lasting change to the identity of the team going into next season.
Everyone should also feel better about the scoring. Zykov, Foegele, and any other prospects that make the lineup next year will, as I mentioned above, very likely be more productive than the players they replace. I am not saying the Canes will challenge Tampa and Winnipeg for the most goals next season. But I really don’t see them struggling to get to 225 yet again.
All in all, the success on the ice the past week signifies that all the improvement elsewhere in the organization will finally make the team in Raleigh different in a good way.
One more point. If TAZ becomes a top-level scoring line, then I for one love the irony. As we discussed last week, the organization does not have a real success from the first round of the draft. But a second-rounder an two players acquired in other deals just might make up for that.
I said this eslewhere but Zykov, McKeown, and Foegele are making this organization look foolish for refusing to call the up much earlier. Especially while saying none are ready to play more than 6 minutes a night.
All these late season pointless winning streaks do is pull us out of a higher draft spot. We’ve proven multiple times it doesn’t provide a springboard for next year. I still maintain this team needs to either:
A. (My dream, and honestly something id try really hard to do as GM) Trade up into the top 3 in the draft for either Svechnikov or Zadina… not that it’s easy but it’ll be possible… or
B. Move out a couple players and play for 31st in 2018-19, or
C. Get Tavares… not that he’s likely to sign so maybe trade for a comparable top end piece this offseason. Also not exactly easy but it’s doable. Make a serious splash for ONCE!!
I know it doesn’t sound appealing to tank, but this team still needs a significant number of pieces to not not only get to the playoffs, but to actually threaten. Goalies, mainly. Another top four defenseman – we still really only have two, three at best, even extrapolating the development of Fleury, Hanifin, and McKeown. Jake Bean didn’t take the step forward this season I had hoped for, although he’s still going to be our future PP QB for a long time I think, it’ll take a few years. But back to my original point… this team NEEDS one more top six forward at least. Zykov’s addition on the top line has pushed some guys down into roles they belong in, and Phil Di Giuseppe and Brock McGinn seem to be playing the best hockey of their careers so that gives hope to a much improved bottom six next year with them two in, hopefully Wallmark as well, and Nordstrom and Ryan hitting the road. But how much of this positive play will continue into next season? Things seem to be clicking the last few meaningless games against bad teams. I do think TT and Aho could BOTH be point-a-game players, but we do not have any consistent scoring after that. Skinner doesn’t do anything until the season is over, I’ve been ready for him to go. Lindholm is a solid middle six player, really should be on the third line. Staal is the same. I dunno. It’s difficult to make a definitive statement on what this team needs, and maybe Saarela or Kuokkanen are ready next season and give us that other piece that’s good for 50 points and provides a massive, necessary boost. I just don’t wanna see this team sit back and do nothing again, because I do not think waiting for another year of development and rolling the dice that it is enough is the way to go. Again.
bw. I don’t disagree. However, building a team through trades and free agents is not a surefire method. Dallas was considered (ironically along with the Canes) as having made the “best” moves this past offseason. The Stars are basically where the Canes are right now. Montreal went out and got Drouin. No success.
Meanwhile Florida didn’t do much–other than allow their talent time to improve. Admittedly they have a first overall, a second overall, and a third overall–maybe tanking multiple years would work.
I tend to be overly sanguine, but based on AHL play (and while it is a few games against poor opponents the NHL play supports the AHL potential) Zykov, Foegele, and McKeown are upgrades to the team in Raleigh. I don’t know they will be consistent for 82 games in the NHL, that’s true. But I also don’t know Tavares will make Carolina any more of a winner than he has made the Islanders the past 7 weeks.
There were a few folks who said Teravainen was little more than a depth-scoring forward. He has moved up a level. Lindholm hasn’t yet–but may be one of the centers the team needs. We totally agree that I can’t make a definitive statement on what the team needs. I am going to be enthused about next season and the new players. It is a personal choice, but for me it beats being grumpy whenever I think about hockey over the summer.
Yeah very good points. But the top scoring list in the NHL is littered with top three picks and guys that dropped for outside factors like being Russian (Kucherov, Kuznetsov) and being knocked for size (Gaudreau, Giroux). Most of the best teams in the league have a Hall, Kopitar, Stamkos/Kuch, etc. a real needle mover would be a huge boon to our team that is already stocked with young talent waiting to breakthrough. And Aho could still be that player. He just needs help. And if we don’t get it he may not be in Raleigh for all that long.