Doug Weight played only 46 games in a Carolina Hurricanes uniform, split exactly equally between the regular season and the playoffs. Though his stay was short, he came with a bang and left with glory.
As the Canes moved into the second half of the 2005-06 season, the team was already playing well, winning and forging a path to clinching a playoff spot early. Next came a deal-driven statement from Hurricanes general manager Jim Rutherford. On January 30, 2006 more than a full month before the NHL trade deadline, Rutherford moved aggressively and traded for all-star Doug Weight. The price was expensive – a first round pick, two fourth round picks and three players/prospects. The move added arguably the best rental to be available at the trade deadline that season. Maybe most significantly, the trade made a clear statement that Rutherford thought his team could compete for the Stanley Cup and that he was going for it.
Along with Mark Recchi who was added one month later, Weight added depth and offensive fire power in the form of mature veterans who was willing to take a lesser role, put the team first and do whatever necessary to win it all. Weith tallied a modest four goals and nine assists in 23 regular season games while getting acclimated to his new team. He dialed up the offense a bit in collecting three goals and 13 assists in 23 playoff games. Weight was at his best in the Eastern Conference Finals against Buffalo notching one goal and five assists in the seven-game series. He had collected one goal and two assists through four and half games in the Finals when a punishing hit by Chris Pronger and Raffi Torres knocked him out of the series. Weight missed games six and seven with a shoulder injury. The game seven story for him was that he received a cortisone shot between the second and third periods of the game, not so he could play but so he could finally lift the Stanley Cup after 15 years in the league. Only in hockey…
Doug Weight did contribute to winning the Stanley Cup on the ice too, but I still think his most meaningful role in Canes history was his ‘wow’ acquisition on January 30, 2006 and the statement that Rutherford made by adding him.
Go Canes!
