February 9, 2013; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Carolina Hurricanes center Jiri Tlusty (middle) celebrates his goal with teammates left wing Alexander Semin (left) and center Eric Staal (12) against the Philadelphia Flyers during the first period at the Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

With the fifth overall pick in the upcoming draft it will be interesting to see who the Hurricanes take. It has been said that the upcoming draft is deep enough that the third, fourth, and fifth picks could have potentially been the first, second, and third overall picks in an average draft. It is almost a certainty that Seth Jones, the star defenseman for the Portland Winterhawks of the WHL, will be selected first overall by the Colorado Avalanche. Although the Hurricanes lack a solid core of defensive defensemen, it is likely that Jamie McBain will be traded in order to address that need before next season gets underway. That would defeat the need for the Canes to call a defenseman’s name during the first round of the draft. With the draft being one of the deepest, if not the deepest in years, the Hurricanes should look to follow GM Jim Rutherford’s approach of drafting the best player available.

The best player available when the Hurricanes get their chance at the podium could come in the form of Valeri Nichushkin of Russia. The 18 year old Nichushkin is the second ranked European prospect in the draft and should be there for the taking with the fifth pick. He is classified as a playmaker with excellent skating ability. He also boasts a big body at 6’4 and 202 pounds. With those qualities and size he has the potential to be a lot like the Hurricanes star forward Eric Staal who stands at 6’4 and 205 pounds. If Nichushkin can be half as good as Staal has been for the Canes over the years, expect him to be a mainstay in Raleigh from day one.

Tlusty originally started to play well towards the end of the 2011-12 season and ended up with 17 goals and 19 assists. It was a breakout year for the Czech Republic native, who had problems scoring since his second year with the Toronto Maple Leafs.

With the NHL in a lockout, Tlusty played overseas for Kladno in the Czech league with Jaromir Jagr and Tomas Plekanec, where he really started to break out, scoring wise, putting up 23 points in 24 games. When Tlusty returned after the lockout, the scoring transitioned into the NHL. Playing overseas may have given Tlusty some confidence and after this season, Tlusty should have even more.

Alexander Semin (left), Jiri Tlusty (middle) and Eric Staal (right) formed one of the top lines in hockey last season. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

The left-winger should also be on Staal and Semin’s line again, which will help Tlusty continue to score. A full training camp should also help the trio create more chemistry.

But Tlusty was also an inconsistent scorer. His longest goal streak was three games and in the last 13 games of the season, Tlusty scored in three. In all three of those games Tlusty had two goals. Of course, it’s nice for Tlusty to have those games, but the Hurricanes may want to see Tlusty score over multiple games, rather than having hot and cold games.

At the rate Tlusty was scoring last season, he would have put up close to 40 goals in a full 82-game season. It would be surprising if the 25-year-old could keep that pace up over a full season.

For the 2013-14 season, do not set the bar too high for Tlusty. He will most likely not be a top-five scorer in the league, but 20-30 goals next season should not be a ridiculous amount to expect. Tlusty should also help expand on the success the first line had from this past season.

Semin’s Time In Washington

In 2003-04 Semin played his first games in the NHL scoring 22 points in 52 games for a dreadful Washington Capitals team. During the lockout Semin returned home to play in Russia and did not return to the NHL until the beginning of the 2006 season. The six-foot-two forward formed a deadly pair with Alex Ovechkin scoring 73 points that season.

Semin has always been known as a streaky player since his early days with the Capitals. In his last two seasons there Semin put up 54 points both years, a marginal drop from his 79 and 84 point campaigns in the 08-09 and 09-10 seasons, respectively. Midway through the 2010 season Semin signed a one-year extension through the 2011 season.

After last season the Capitals chose not to re-sign Semin allowing the right-winger to enter the free agency market for the first time. Semin signed with the Hurricanes almost a month after free agency started prompting plenty of rumors that the skilled forward would be heading back to Russia instead of staying in the NHL.

This Year

Semin started the season slowly scoring two goals in the first 10 games, but at the end of February Semin went on a tear when he was put with Staal and Tlusty. Between February 24 and March 9 Semin recorded four goals and 11 assists in eight games and moved into the top scorers of the NHL.

The line of Tlusty, Staal and Semin have fallen off since being one of the league’s best lines. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-USA TODAY

The 29-year-old also surprised some fans by his strong defensive play after being labeled as ‘lazy’ and ‘not caring’ while he was with the Capitals organization.

Since signing the extension, Semin has dropped off in a big way. He has two goals and six assists in nine games, but still sits at eighth in the NHL for assists. While the whole Carolina offense is having a tough April, Semin could have been relied on to get the offense going. For $7 million a year that should not be too much to ask for.

It is doubtful the Rutherford is regretting signing Semin to a contract – he plans to fit into the team’s future by forming the top line and is only 28-years-old, but the GM may be wishing he was able to talk down the contract price. A more reasonable price for Semin should be in the $5-$6 million range rather than the salary of Joe Thornton and Jarome Iginla.