Gästeforum » rolled around Wednesday, though, Nationals manager Mat

With the NHL regular season right around the corner, TSN.ca profiles each team leading up to puck drop. Next up is the Carolina Hurricanes, who have a fresh start with new general manager Ron Francis and head coach Bill Peters at the helm. Catch up on their summer moves and the issues they face this season, as well as Craig Buttons analysis of their top prospect and an analytical breakdown by TSNs Scott Cullen. Division: Metropolitan GM: Ron Francis Head Coach: Bill Peters 2013-14: 36-35-11 (7th in Metropolitan) Playoffs: Did not qualify Goals For: 205 (22nd) Goals Against: 226 (19th) PP: 14.6% (28th) PK: 81.7% (17th) That Was Then: The 2013-14 season stretched the Hurricanes run of early summers to five straight years. The last time the franchise missed five in a row was when they found themselves on the move from Hartford. The first half saw the Hurricanes fall into extended lapses. While the 15-16-9 record they posted as the calendar rolled over might that bad on paper, beneath it was three losing streaks of at least four games. The Canes seemed to be perfectly capable of equaling the opposition for 60 minutes, but of the dozen games they forced to an extra frame or shootout they only emerged with the bonus point in three. And one of the biggest issues for the Canes in 2013-14 was between the pipes. Long seen as a franchise pillar in net, Cam Ward may have had his worst year as a pro. He battled injuries all season long and missed 23 games with lower body injuries. When he was in net, the results were rarely stellar, as the 30-year-old posted a seven-year low .898 save-percentage and a goals-against average of 3.06. To make matters worse, back-up Anton Khudobin was hurt in early October, forcing Justin Peters into regular duty as the Canes starter for extended stretches in November and December. The Canes kept pace in the new Metropolitan Division through October. But once November struck, a steady downfall kicked in and despite a 10-4 January run, the team was out of playoff positioning for the rest of the season and earned its fourth Top 10 draft position in five years. Scott Cullens Analytics Hurricanes 2013-14 Stats by Quarter Games GPG GAA SH% SV% SAF% PTS% 1-20 1.85 2.45 5.3 .931 48.0% .500 21-41 2.76 2.95 7.5 .914 49.5% .500 42-62 2.43 2.38 6.9 .927 51.5% .550 63-82 2.65 2.65 7.4 .932 47.3% .500 NHL AVG 2.67 2.67 7.8 .922 50.0% .562 Key: GPG= goals per game, GAA= goals-against per game, SH%= even-strength shooting percentage, SV%= even-strength save percentage, SAF%= score-adjusted Fenwick percentage (differential of shot attempts faced vs. shot attempts, excluding blocked shots, adjusted for game score), PTS%= percentage of available points. Analysis: Games 1-20: Couldnt score, and every win was by a one-goal margin, yet goaltending kept them treading water. Games 21-41: Possession improved a little, scoring jumped, but goaltending fell as Cam Ward went through a rough patch. Games 42-62: Continued to improve possession, goaltending bounced back, but scoring was still subpar. Games 63-82: Continued their break-even ways, with below average possession and shooting, countered by above-average goaltending, thanks to Anton Khudobin. Key 2014 Additions: D Tim Gleason, LW Brad Malone, G Drew MacIntyre, C Jay McClement Key 2014 Subtractions: D Matt Corrente, C Manny Malhotra, G Justin Peters, LW Brett Sutter This Is Now: The dominos fell on the Canes front office and coaching staff in the spring. The only general manager the Hurricanes have ever known moved to a divisional rival in Pittsburgh. Jim Rutherford, who was there so long he may still have business cards kicking around that read, Whalers, stepped aside and former franchise player Ron Francis began his managerial career. Kirk Muller was also out as head coach, replaced by Bill Peters - a former Detroit Red Wings assistant who has never been an NHL head coach but was in demand this off-season. Francis didnt make any major moves over the off-season, leaving the core to kickstart the road to improvement. They arent lacking talent with scorers like Eric Staal, Skinner and Alexander Semin forming the front end of their ranks. Jordan Staal had a down year in 2013-14, posting 40 points despite logging 82 games for the first time since 2009-10. Jiri Tlusty, too, suffered a drop-off after enjoying a breakout season in the lockout-shortened 2012-13 campaign. After a career-best 23 goals in 48 games, Tlusty netted just 16 in 68 games with the Canes in 2013-14. If the two of them can lift their offensive games, it should provide a much needed second attack wave for the Canes. The Canes also have options from the point when it comes to scoring with 28-year-old Andrej Sekera enjoying a career-best 44 points last season while Justin Faulk continued to develop with 32 in his third NHL campaign. If Ryan Murphy can contribute full-time minutes for a whole year and John-Michael Liles can re-discover his 30-point form, the Canes could resuscitate their 28th-ranked power play. Of course, the team needs to keep goals out of the net, too. The addition of PK-specialist Jay McClement helps, but their defensive fortunes will come down to what kind of year they get in net. With two years left at a cap hit of $6.8 million, trading Ward is next to impossible. If he doesnt bounce back, Khudobin is ready. He was extended for two years at a total of $4.5 million after passing his one-year audition last season. His .926 save-percentage and 2.30 goals-against suggests the Canes can compete well with him. DEPTH CHART Forwards Left Wing Centre Right Wing Jeff Skinner Eric Staal Alexander Semin Jiri Tlusty Jordan Staal Elias Lindholm Nathan Gerbe Riley Nash Pat Dwyer Zach Boychuk Jay McClement Brad Malone Chris Terry Victor Rask Greg Nemisz Brock McGinn Phil Di Giuseppe Justin Shugg Defence Left Right Andrej Sekera Justin Faulk Ron Hainsey John-Michel Liles Tim Gleason Brett Bellemore Keegan Lowe Danny Biega Goaltenders Anton Khudobin Cam Ward Drew MacIntyre Craigs List TSN Director of Scouting Craig Buttons Top Prospect: Haydn Fleurys exceptional skating ability allows him to impact the game multiple ways. Turning and going back for the puck makes him very difficult to forecheck and thus less time in the defensive zone for his team. The ability to transition is so important and combined with very good sense and understanding of what is unfolding, Haydn can support the offensive attack also. A very calm player who plays with a competitive edge. Fantasy - Cullens Player to Watch - Elias Lindholm Coming off a rookie season in which he tallied 21 points in 58 games, spending some time with the Swedish National Junior Team (where he scored nine points in six tournament games), 19-year-old Lindholm has already shown a promising two-way game. With limited competition at the top of the Hurricanes roster, there should be a very good opportunity for Lindholm to play in a top-six role which, combined with the likelihood of improving his on-ice (shooting and save) percentages and hopefully something close to a full season of games, could result in a sizeable jump in production. Armani Watts Jersey .ca! Hi Kerry, Im sure youve received many emails wondering what your take is on the Spezza goal that looked like Neil blatantly kicked it in while standing directly in the middle of the crease where, you know, usually a goalie is to make a save but couldnt be due to Neil being there! Thanks! Jon - Westfield, MA Jon: Lets first ask Henrik Lundqvist what he thought of the scoring of the Sens second goal with . Terrance Smith Jersey . Ive said it before, Ive worked with top pros and I could have made my own program. http://www.officialkansascitychiefsfootball.com/authentic-eric-berry-jersey-womens . He still wanted out. "It just seemed like the direction they were going didnt fit what I thought my career was going to be," Kesler said. "At the end of the day I want to win a championship and I want to win it now, and four years is a little too long for me. Tyreek Hill Jersey . -- Chris Tillman paid no attention to the Baltimore bullpen as it started to stir in the ninth inning. Joe Montana Jersey . When the next inning rolled around Wednesday, though, Nationals manager Matt Williams sent Strasburg to the mound to face the top of the Dodgers order in what would become a 3-2 victory for Washington, the first time this season the No. BRASILIA, Brazil -- Ghana threw Sulley Muntari and Kevin-Prince Boateng out of its World Cup squad for disciplinary reasons on Thursday, plunging the African team into further chaos ahead of its decisive group-stage match against Portugal. Just a day after seeming to resolve a possible player mutiny over World Cup bonus payments, the Ghana Football Association released two separate statements saying two of the countrys stars had been "suspended ... indefinitely from the Black Stars with immediate effect." Muntari was suspended "in the wake of his unprovoked physical attack on an executive committee member of the GFA and a management member of the Black Stars, Mr. Moses Armah" on Tuesday, one statement read. The other statement said Boateng was dropped from the squad because of "vulgar verbal insults targeted at coach Kwesi Appiah" during a training session this week. "Boateng has since showed no remorse for his actions which has resulted in the decision," the statement added. Both players have had their World Cup accreditation withdrawn. Boateng, who plays for German club Schalke, told German newspaper Sport Bild that he accepted his suspension and wished his teammates well for Thursdays game against Portugal -- "but no one should think that I insulted the coach or did anything wrong." Boateng said he and Muntari had been joking with each other during training Wednesday. The coach asked why they were laughing, and then sent Boateng to the dressing room, he added. "After training I went to the coach and asked him if he had a minute for me. I asked him what he had agaainst me," Boateng was quoted as saying.dddddddddddd "Then he started shouting at me." Ghana, a quarterfinalist in 2010, must beat Portugal in Brasilia on Thursday to stand any chance of reaching the second round from Group G. Muntari was suspended for the match after collecting two yellow cards. Ghanas World Cup campaign was already in turmoil following a row over appearance-fee payments that squad members had been promised but had not yet received. The countrys cash-strapped federation had been forced to ask FIFA for an advance on the $8 million prize money it is guaranteed from playing at the World Cup to pay outstanding debts to players. FIFA said Wednesday that Ghanas request was "under evaluation." Ghanas deputy sports minister earlier had said that as much as $3 million in cash was being flown into Brazil from the West African nation to finally pay the bonuses to the unhappy players, averting a possible player strike. World Cup prize money -- which ranges in Brazil from $8 million for being knocked out in the group stage to $35 million for winning the title -- is normally paid after the tournament. Ghana midfielder Christian Atsu dismissed fears the team would boycott its final group game in Brasilia over the bonus-payment row. "We are not going to say we are not going to play because of the money," Atsu said. "We love our nation and we are going to play for our nation." Appiah said Wednesday that he had been having "sleepless nights" this week, and also said he had patched up his differences with Boateng after a training-ground altercation. 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