Cardiac Cane - A Carolina Hurricanes Blog

Tuesday the hockey world learned that Washington’s captain and superstar Alexander Ovechkin would not be attending the All-Star Game or its associated festivities. In what I viewed as nothing more than a temper-tantrum, Ovi claimed that he should not be there because he is currently suspended. Like the rest of the world, I took to the Twitter to express my thoughts.

@Esbee92 I swear this is my last tweet about Ovi. If you want to be the face of the NHL you have to actually BE THE FACE OF THE NHL.

This tiny tweet generated a really great conversation with Calgary’s Flame for Thought’s Cait Platt about the “face of the NHL.” This was her response.

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The Charlotte Checkers seem to have a knack this season for taking games that they appear to have in their back pocket and then blowing the leads to allow their opponents a chance to get back in. Last night was no exception as the Rockford Icehogs took advantage of some Charlotte miscues to claw their way back into a game they had no business being in. In true nailbiter fashion, the contest went into a shootout where the Checkers were thankfully able to bring home the 4-3 victory. Continue reading this post »

Do you suffer from hockey withdrawal?  Did you wake up in the morning and check nhl.com and hurricanes.nhl.com knowing that the Canes did not play?  Are you already looking forward to Tuesday when the Canes return to action against the New York Islanders?  Are you excited to see Justin Faulk play in the All Star Game?  If you answered yes to any of these questions, I may have your medicine to get you through the weekend.  Side effects may vary. Continue reading this post »

The RBC Center decked out for All-Star Weekend (Photo: Dan MacLachlan)

As the NHL gears up for it’s All-Star weekend in Ottawa, it got me thinking about last year’s All-Star festivities hosted by the Hurricanes and held in Raleigh, North Carolina. Raleigh was put on the world stage and the city came through with flying colors. The RBC Center was decked out in All-Star glory, everywhere around town you could find All-Star banners, posters and other promotional material. Downtown Raleigh was transformed into hockey central for the Fan Fest activities, which included everything a hockey fan could handle. Fan Fest included several highlights including the Fantasy Draft, but most Caniacs remember the expansion of “Skinnermania.” Thousands of fans showed up to his hour-long autograph session to see the (then) 18-year old freshman phenomenon for the Carolina Hurricanes. The ‘Canes were represented well in the All-Star game festivities, with Eric Staal being a captain, Cam Ward being the first overall pick in the fantasy draft, Jeff Skinner creating a mania around Raleigh and Jamie McBain participating in the skills competition as a member of Team Staal’s rookies. The whole weekend created so many memories for throngs of fans who took part in the weekend, but I want to recollect my weekend and why it was awesome.

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With an assist tonight, Chris Terry now has 12 points in his last 6 games (Photo: Renee Kalicicki)

The storyline from the first 40 minutes of the Checkers’ game tonight in Norfolk seemed eerily similar to their previous one in Abbotsford. Road team jumps out to a 2-0 lead. They’re unable to put the game out of reach as they let some power play opportunities slip away with no results. Opponent cuts the lead in half with a goal late in the second period. Thankfully tonight’s story involved a much better third period with a very different ending as Charlotte brought home a 4-2 victory. Continue reading this post »

(Photo by Gregg Forwerck/NHLI via Getty Images)

The past few days have been filled with some very interesting headlines.  The first one I would like to discuss is the Carolina Hurricanes will to win.  I don’t know about you, but I feel like I am watching the birth of a new team.  The Hurricanes have been able to skate away with points in 7 of their last 10 tries.  Currently their last 10 games sit at 5-3-2.  Last night the Canes were able to move into 12th place, now only 8 points behind Washington for the last playoff spot in the East.

Splashing into the headlines also was Boston Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas.  The Boston Bruins were invited to visit the White House on Monday to meet President Obama.  Thomas refused the invite stating:

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In their third game in four nights, the Carolina Hurricanes notched another victory in their home barn this time over the Winnipeg Jets. Both teams came out strong in the first, and the period had a pretty quick tempo. Only 3:55 into the period, Jeff Skinner got the Canes on the board. Skinner headed up the left side of the ice and attempted to make a pass to Zac Dalpe waiting in front of the net. The pass was deflected off the skate of Ron Hainsey which turned out to be a blessing in disguise. It bounced right back to Skinner and he was able to sneak the puck in the left side of the net on Chris Mason. Hearing “SKINNER!” after the goal horn was music to the ears of many Caniacs including this one. Skinner would not go it alone in scoring in the first. Almost nine and a half minutes in, Tim Brent and Anthony Stewart battled a Jets defender on the boards for the puck. Getting the puck to Stewart, Brent sprinted off towards the goal where Stewart shoveled it back to him and he popped it in past Mason. While this goal may not have been as flashy as Skinner’s it was a great play starting with the battle and turned out to be the game winner. The clubs went to the locker rooms and Winnipeg had nothing to show for their six shots on Cam Ward.

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Jussi is hot! Two Canes helpers away from 100! (Photo: KP Kelly)

The Winnipeg Jets  are in Raleigh and looking to defeat the Canes for a fourth consecutive loss, whereas Carolina is aiming for their third straight home victory. Carolina has gone 7-2-1 over 10 games played at the RBC Center.

These Eastern Conference teams are 7 points apart in the standings. Jets are in 10th place with 50 points while Canes are playing the caboose with 43 marks. Last season the Hurricanes went 5-0-1 against then Thrashers’ team. No doubt, we are due for a victory this year.

When it comes to goaltending against Winnipeg, it is the Curse of the Crease. Cam Ward has not done well against the fellow Southeast Division team with a meager .898 SV% and 3.99 GA. Brian Boucher has played in one game this season and allowed 5 goals on 24 shots. Yikes. Boucher remains on the injured reserve list, alongside Joni Pitkanen. Usual Charlotte Checkers’ goalie,  Mike Murphy, appears to be the only tendy untouched by the Jets’ black pipe magic. He played over 27 minutes in Winnipeg and didn’t allow a goal on 7 attempts. Ok, that was my shameless Checkers’ plug for today. Continue reading this post »