Matt Karash: Long preamble for "1/2 full" followed by random notes

Is Eric Staal not available for Tuesday's game? Is he concussed, because I can't find any info on him anywhere. Has he been skating even?

Matt why are we paying a guy 7 million a year(Semin) to coast around the ice, miss defensive assignments, turnover the puck after fancy dangles, and generally get outplayed by AHL call ups? After Thursday's game I agee with benching him for OT. He obviously doesn't want to be here. Trade him.

Is Eric Staal not available for Tuesday's game? Is he concussed, because I can't find any info on him anywhere. Has he been skating even?
- Poolchamp

He's skating. He is not concussed. Simply being called an "Upper Body Injury" for the time being. Day-to-Day right now. Should be back in about a week or so, I would imagine.

Matt why are we paying a guy 7 million a year(Semin) to coast around the ice, miss defensive assignments, turnover the puck after fancy dangles, and generally get outplayed by AHL call ups? After Thursday's game I agee with benching him for OT. He obviously doesn't want to be here. Trade him.
- Haunski

Not Matt, but it's because he is by far the most talented player on the ice, offensively, when he wants to be. No one should be surprised by his lack of passing the eye test. It's the exact reason he left Washington. To be perfectly honest, I think Peters (Mueller too) is expecting so much from him that he's trying to do too much. You saw what he was able to do in the lockout shortened season where he really simplified his game. The only problem I have with the money is a lack of consistency. One shift he looks like the best player in the arena, the next three he looks lost. Just a matter of telling him to play his game and his game only. The problem with trading him is exactly why you question the salary, who's going to take him and who has the cap space, is his value worth trading? Carolina isn't a hotbed to draw free agents so I'd think any major ice time contributor would have to be traded with significant returns coming back.

Matt, i definitely agree that there's positives to this early season! Yesterday, there was a lot of hustle, and though it wasn't terribly artistic, i saw a lot of good things! Nash must've had more than a couple steals, faceoff wins, and an all-around good game! Terry has really shown he belongs, and several others worked hard all game! Dobby was stellar and the shootout just SUCKS!!!!

Matt, i definitely agree that there's positives to this early season! Yesterday, there was a lot of hustle, and though it wasn't terribly artistic, i saw a lot of good things! Nash must've had more than a couple steals, faceoff wins, and an all-around good game! Terry has really shown he belongs, and several others worked hard all game! Dobby was stellar and the shootout just SUCKS!!!!
- randycane

Right now Riley Nash is tied for 7th in the league in Take-aways with 5.

Brandon Sutter is tied for second in the league with 6.

Matt why are we paying a guy 7 million a year(Semin) to coast around the ice, miss defensive assignments, turnover the puck after fancy dangles, and generally get outplayed by AHL call ups? After Thursday's game I agee with benching him for OT. He obviously doesn't want to be here. Trade him.
- Haunski

So I am on record as not being impressed with Semin's inability to finish and also his general lack of looking like 1 of the best 2-3 players on the ice for the Sabres game. He was also incredibly quiet against NYR and generally has not been a difference-maker through 4 games like you would hope with so many other players out.

But 2 things on Alexander Semin:

1) His struggles have been mostly what he has not been able to do (generate offense) not so much what he hasn't done. It is not like he has been littering the ice with bad turnovers or incredibly poor defensive play. He has just underperformed offensively so far.

2) It is early. I am never shy to offer my opinion for how players have played in a single game when they stink, but I am slower to change my overall opinion of a player's ability, worth, etc. It has been only 4 games. Be it a slow start, adjustment to a new system, just general ups and downs that happen to everyone, Semin has not been great so far, but I am not ready to chuck him to the curb. I am giving it more time and not making rash stay or go decisions based on a few games.

There was a point last season where I was hoping the Canes would bench Nash completely. I believe he had a small streak of taking stick penalties that led to goals by the other team, and I was fed up. But this season... Man, is he proving himself. He's stepped up and been a real leader for this team as all of our veterans go down with injuries. I couldn't be more impressed with the guy, and he's obviously working hard to be an honest to god NHL player.

Two other young guys I've been impressed with this season are Chris Terry and Victor Rask. Terry is doing everything he can to earn himself a permanent spot on the Canes roster, and Rask just seems to do everything right. He isn't putting up big point numbers right now, but he's solid on the ice, and at his age, I can only imagine what he'll be like as he continues to improve.

And as someone who was quite disappointed in Khudobin during the pre-season and his first game of the actual season, I was beyond happy to see him play such a solid game last night. If I was in charge, I'd go forward with the idea of Dobby as our starter, until he or Ward prove otherwise.

I have to respectably disagree with you Matt, on Semin's play. In the last two games especially, he has missed his defensive assignments with frequency. If it wasn't for Anton standing on his head vs. NYR, Semin's miscues would have been more glaring. Too many times, I saw the D man come in from the point unmolested and had a great scoring chance. Its bad when Tripp Tracey is even pointing it out in-game. Semin to me, is battling confidence problems. Here's hoping he gets that first goal soon and cleans up his own end D responsibilities and just starts to do the little things right again. He has the talent, just needs to simplify and try Not do too much.

Bright spots are Rask, Terry and Boychuk. Anton looked strong and he needs to start on Tues. Sekera and Skinner possibly available soon will definitely help.

If you play sports, or really do anything, you know sometimes you just don't have it. Off days happen for whatever reason, and it's only a big deal because there are only 4 games to look at, and everyone else is hurt.

It's frustrating that it's smaller things like defensive zone coverages, but I've worn a shirt inside out for half a day before noticing, so I can relate to random days of mental struggling. As long as it doesn't become a trend, it isn't an issue.