Carolina Hurricanes: A Look Back at the 2015-2016 Season
Like clockwork it’s April, the Carolina Hurricanes missed the playoffs, and there is no hockey being played at PNC Arena. Buried beneath what looks like another lost season though is hope, and lots of it.
The Canes are on the outside looking in, but for the first time in what feels like a decade (because it is) there is wild optimism in the Triangle. After years of promises that the end is near, that there is a dawn coming, Caniac Nation can finally start to see some light peaking over the horizon.
Back in October when this season began it was expected the Canes would be better than the year before, but not much. Canes fans couldn’t be that lucky. The Hurricanes started dreadfully.
In many respects it looked worse than parts of the 2014-2015 season. Weak goaltending from both Hurricanes netminders and non-existent special teams made all the terrible bounces even worse. If Justin Faulk wasn’t pounding home powerplay goals, Carolina might have been in the cellar for much longer.
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When people look back on this year they will recall a season that changed in December. What a lot of people don’t remember is that as December got rolling Carolina was dead last in the NHL and #1 draft prospect Auston Matthews was going to be a Hurricane.
To think Carolina went from dead last to only a few games out of the playoffs by early April is remarkable. It’s nearly one of the greatest season reversals in recent NHL history.
Courtesy of the brilliant coaching and system of Bill Peters, Carolina stuck with it and forged onward. Their luck started to change and their goaltending improved slightly. More and more the Canes picked up wins and by the All-Star break the Hurricanes were flying, and showing the rest of the league by dominating the defending Stanley Cup Champions Chicago Blackhawks 5-0.
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The definitive moments of the year came when the Canes called up defensemen Brett Pesce and Jaccob Slavin. Along with fellow rookie Noah Hanifin the young D-men came in and well surpassed expectations. Their seamless inclusion into the lineup was truly remarkable. Few teams this year had breakout seasons from rookie defensemen and Carolina had three.
At the trade deadline the team had improved from their slow season start, but it still didn’t seem like Carolina was playoff bound. It was feared that the departures of Kris Versteeg, John-Michael Liles, and captain Eric Staal would stall (sorry) their momentum.
Somehow though Carolina continued to pick up points, going unbeaten in six games after their captain moved to New York. Those few games were symbolic of the season as a whole…out with the old and in with the new.
The Hurricanes managed to stay in the playoff hunt well into April, their latest push since 2010-2011. Perhaps they could have made the postseason with some more lucky bounces, consistent netminding and a couple more pucks in the net instead of ringing off posts.
The team led the NHL in overtime/shootout losses, which was an improvement over the frequent one goal losses from the previous season, but also a great number of potential points lost.
The Hurricanes improved in the season’s second half by using smart trades, plugging in young prospect players and utilizing an excellent coaching system to create an inspiring finish. Fans can look at what happened at PNC Arena and say they’re proud that the team is building a Carolina culture, identity and team rather than going out and buying one. The increased wins and point totals don’t hurt the feeling of pride and excitement either.
Despite the common theme of missing the playoffs, this season was great for the future of the Hurricanes. The rise of Slavin, Pesce, and Hanifin was just spectacular and Justin Faulk was an NHL All-Star once again.
Jeff Skinner was nearly a 30 goal scorer again and Jordan Staal stepped up as a great leader.Bill Peters proved he is one of the best new head coaches in the NHL and knows how to cultivate new talent and get the most out of them. In all parts of the rink Caniacs saw the potential and October can’t come soon enough.
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It has been a roller coaster season for sure. From the bottom of the valley to climbing higher up the mountain Canes fans have seen a lot. Thankfully much of what they saw was drastically different than previous seasons.
After years of sticking with the ‘process’ and waiting for the rebuild to take hold, fans are starting to see results. With such optimism to in 2016 reaching the playoffs in 2017 is a very realistic goal.
What do you think were the biggest moments of the season? Let us know in the comments section below or on Twitter and Facebook.