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Carolina Hurricanes Training Camp: 1st week - 10 questions

September 11, 2013, 1:14 PM ET [15 Comments]
Matt Karash
Carolina Hurricanes Blogger • RSSArchiveCONTACT
2 quick ones…In case you missed it yesterday, I put up a poll predicting who would make the Canes roster out of training camp. Click here to take survey. I will post the results in the next day or so. I have been busy today and have not had time to check thoroughly, but unless I missed it there is still no new news on Pitkanen post doctor evaluation. EDIT AT 2:30PM: JONI PITKANEN WILL MISS THE ENTIRE SEASON. Ugh!

Here is a quick list of the top 10 things (in no particular order) that I am watching for in the first 6 days of training camp leading into the 1st preseason game next Wednesday:

1) Does Eric Staal look comfortable/healthy in scrimmage and contact drills? All indications are that he is 100% recovered from his summer knee injury, but there can be a difference between being physically healed and trusting it in potentially dangerous contact situations.

2) When the team does line-oriented drills in LW/C/RW sets of players, what does Muller do with Victor Rask and Elias Lindholm? Lindholm is projected to be the 3rd line center, but has also played RW. Rask is a natural center, but if Lindholm plays center, it seems like the near-term opening at the NHL level for Rask would be at LW.

3) When the team works special teams, how does Radek Dvorak look playing PK? Related to that, which of the kids gets in the rotation playing PK, and how do they look? I think JStaal and Dwyer are givens at forward on PK. Last season the Canes burned a decent chunk of EStaal and Semin’s minutes and energy on PK partly because there just were not any other working options. Ideally, you want to have players who are not scorers excel at PK such that you can get your scorers more minutes in situations in which they can score.

4) Are there any early clues as to Muller’s initial thoughts on whether Skinner and JStaal play together or apart?

5) When the team works on PP, do we see anything creative (i.e. forwards) in terms of manning the point? If you assume the team is minus Pitkanen and then if Murphy looks like he needs some time in the AHL, I would argue that the Canes have exactly 0 pure power play point men. Sekera and Faulk are both well-rounded enough that they should be fine, but after that it gets dicey. Murphy will definitely get a look. I would venture a guess that a forward or 2 (Semin?) also get a look.

6) How does Ryan Murphy look defensively in scrimmages in terms of 1-on-1 battles and sorting things out defensively off the rush and in his own end? I look forward to watching him fly up the ice with the puck like he does as much as anyone else, but this skill has little to do with whether he makes the team this fall. It has everything to do with how he plays without the puck on his stick.

7) Do any of the “last call” players show up and look completely different? There is so much room on the roster that someone like Boychuk or Dalpe could win a spot simply by being decent and maybe little bit less risky than players minus any NHL experience. But a lukewarm win of this variety feels much more like a placeholder on a team that has no depth and will regularly lose the battle of the bottom 6 versus a new brand of determined, fired up, etc. player who digs down and just plays a different brand of determined hockey and takes the first step to being a long-term NHL player.

8) Does Brock McGinn look like he can adjust his game quickly to the faster NHL pace? I am on record as thinking that there could be an opening for McGinn if he can fast forward his development about 1-2 years. He is exactly the combination of pesky, determined and difficult to play against that the Canes need more of. In my blog awhile back, I called him Tuomo Ruutu-lite. The question that determines early on if he could be a factor this season is if he looks like he can hit the pace versus just being a half step behind and chasing the game a bit in terms of hitting, battling for pucks, forechecking, etc.

9) How does Cam Ward look? The hope is that Khudobin will prove to be a solid #2 capable of winning games and maybe even carrying the load for a short stretch or 2. But at the end of the day, I think that Cam Ward will need to have a career year or very close for this team to make the playoffs. The time line was fine for Ward to make full recovery from his knee surgery. And he is reported to be in the best shape of his career starting the informal skates a couple weeks ago. Next it needs to translate to the competitive level of real hockey.

10) What does a Kirk Muller-led training camp look like? He is 3 years into coaching the Canes but starting his first real training camp tomorrow. He joined mid-season in 2011-12 and had only a 1-week fire drill for training camp last year following the lockout. It will be interesting to watch the next few days.

What did I miss? What are your questions for the 1st week of camp leading up to the 1st preseason game next Wednesday?

It is finally here. Real hockey starts tomorrow. The team is split into 2 groups with practices at 9am and 12pm. You can find details and additional training camp information on the team web site.

For a quick heads up when I post a Canes blog and/or to be part of the occasional debate, please follow me on Twitter at CarolinaMatt63.

Go Canes!
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