Despite an unbelievable March, April has not been to kind to the Hurricanes. As they take on the Blues tonight, the Hurricanes come in struggling and have lost all four of their games this month. The last two against the Wild and Islanders weren’t too pretty either. The obvious question coming into the Hurricanes final home game is, “will this be the last time they see Ward at home in a Hurricanes jersey?”

It is no secret that both Ward and Lack had their struggles during stretches this year. While both goalies have struggled at times, Ward appears to be under the most scrutiny. This isn’t too surprising, as he is older and has been here his entire career. It goes without saying that the biggest role the Hurricanes need to fill is a legitimate starting goalie for next season.

Given this, the question really is: who returns next season as the Hurricanes back-up goalie? The good news about both Ward and Lack is that they are entering the last year of their contracts and both aren’t outrageously expensive. I really don’t see many teams taking Ward in a trade given his age/capabilities. Lack probably has more “tradability” given his age, however, I am not sure his March stretch was enough to garner any suitors.

If Ward were to get bought out or traded, I imagine his top two destinations would be Edmonton or Calgary. Ward could be a good mentor to Talbot, however, Brossoit has played very well in his limited role as a back-up. If the Oilers aren’t set on bringing him back, Ward could be a decent low risk back-up option.

Calgary could be an interesting landing spot too, as all their NHL goalies are set to be free agents. I imagine Elliot will be brought back but Johnson’s future seems a bit more questionable. He hasn’t seen much ice-time since February and Elliot went on an insane six week long hot-streak.

Both Calgary and Edmonton don’t have second round draft picks this year. Given the Canes have three second round picks and three third round picks, maybe they could find a deal that might make both sides happy.

As for Lack, I could see a team like Dallas biting on Lack as a short-term and cheaper solution for their back-up position. I’d be shocked if they don’t use a buy-out on a goalie, as they are spending close to $11 million for a worse tandem than Ward/Lack. Then again, they are probably looking to bring in a true starter too and whoever remains (Niemi or Lethonen) is set to be the back-up.

Another potential landing spot for Lack would be Vancouver. He was extremely well liked from my understanding in Vancouver and Miller is a UFA. Markstrom/Lack could be a good duo next year and give Demko another season to develop in the AHL. If Lack doesn’t work out, Demko should be ready to step into an NHL role.

The biggest challenge to moving either Lack/Ward is the FA market—as of now according to Spotrac, there are 24 UFA and 45 RFA goalies. If you add in the expansion draft and the speculation surrounding the movement it will create, I just don’t think too many teams will be enticed by Ward/Lack without the Canes being taken to the cleaners. Unfortunately, I think the one of them will have to be bought out, as GMRF is set on only making trades that benefit the long-term plan.

The Hurricanes have a decent amount of time to figure out their course of action. I know many STH and Canes fans will be irate if the goaltending tandem and scenery is the same come opening day next year. While it is unclear who will return, I do think the first thing GMRF should do to start the off-season on April 10th is to fire goaltending coach David Marcoux.

Speaking of coaching changes, I’ve heard rumblings that the Hurricanes Assistant Coach Brind’Amour could be leaving. Tom Anastos recently put in his resignation at Michigan State and Brind’Amour is speculated to be one of the top candidates to fill the position. This might be best for both parties, as Brind’Amour has gotten some scrutiny for the PP struggles and lack of goal production.

He is finishing his 6th year as an assistant, so it would not be surprising to see him leave for a HC opportunity. His role in player development would have him well suited to fill a HC position at the collegiate level. Given his ties to MSU hockey and the fact that his son is committed to MSU for the fall of 2018, I could definitely see this being a possibility.

So while the obvious question surrounding Ward and his final home game looms, one can also ask, is this also the last one for Brind’Amour? What I do know is that if the Hurricanes shot chart looks similar to the one against the Wild recently, then tonight will be another royal beat down. Go Canes!

Wild took the Hurricanes to the cleaners in shot quantity and quality. pic.twitter.com/JEfsKB4r7M

— Micah Blake McCurdy (@IneffectiveMath) April 5, 2017

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