We’re witnessing the beginning of the Scott Darling era in Raleigh. With Eddie Lack gone and Ward now officially moved into the backup role, this starting job is Darling’s for the taking. That is something he never got the opportunity for in Chicago behind Corey Crawford.
While Darling had some very solid efforts in eight starts in October, he does need to step it up in November. The NHL average in save percentage right now is .909. Darling has a save percentage of .897 so far.
The Canes need a goalie to at least finish with a save percentage above .910 to get a real boost into playoff contention. He does not need to play at the level of Sergei Bobrovsky, Carey Price, Martin Jones, etc., but at least be above average.
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General manager Ron Francis put his trust in Darling, bringing him over from the Blackhawks and signing him to a major contract extension during the off-season. You can see Darling getting more comfortable with the Canes, which hopefully continues in the coming weeks.