Carolina Hurricanes: The Panic Button
Is it time for the Carolina Hurricanes to hit the panic button? Here’s a look at where the Canes are right now and why fans should not panic.
A situation begins as the plot of a joke. Two men walk into a bar; displaying their Hurricane colors in their own unique ways. One is wearing the black jersey. You know, the one that looks like a droopy rose. The other is sporting the red, eye-of-the-storm jersey.
As they sit there, and hours go by, both of them become gradually angrier. Finally, the game is over. The Toronto Maple Leafs dispose of the Canes 8-1. Raleigh has been through a lot with their NHL team. A move from Hartford, a Stanley Cup, now and everything else in between.
One of the pair decides to take a look at the standings. His eye twitches in a sudden flash of rage.
“We’re dead last in the metro!”
“Behind Philly?”
“Behind Philly.”
“Ugh, BWAH!”
Everyone else in the bar stares. Them and their Wolfpack, them and their Panthers. They will never truly comprehend how hard it is to be a Canes fan, or a hockey fan in general. One moment, you can be hoisting the Stanley Cup in glory; the next, you’re on a decade-long playoff drought. It’s simply the way of the game.
“I just- I can’t take this anymore. Management is failing us. They put us through this 10-year ‘Rebuild,’ and what do they have to give us? This… excuse for talent?”
“Yeah. Times are pretty rough. Things aren’t going great. But you know what? We’re not even half way through the season, and I have confidence in our managem-”
“In Peters?”
“Well… mostly Francis. But even if things continue this way, we have a lot of talent in the pipeline. Teravainen looks great, Nedeljkovic is coming up soon-“.
Part 2: Pushing the Panic Button
“Oh, quiet you. If you’re honestly buying that, you’ve been fooled. We are currently (as we have been) being stunted by incompetent management and under-performing players. This is happening, year after year, and no one is doing anything about it. It’s time to-
“Don’t say it!”
“It’s time to push the panic button.”
Lightning strikes in the background. Glasses tip ov- oh wait. Uh, a hurricane roars in the background. Glasses tip over, and people are screaming. Something big is taking place. An age-long debate is occurring. Is it time to push the panic button? The bartender, who rarely speaks looks into the direction of the two men. The bartender proceeds to talk.
“The panic button you say?”
The original speaker rises.
“The panic button!”
The bartender walks over to this mysterious man. His strange black jersey possesses a strange resemblance to a droopy rose, thinks the bartender.
“So… what do you mean by, the panic button?”
“Well the Carolina Hurricanes-”
“Hockey!”
A disappointed murmur arises from the rest of the crowd, and the roar of the hurricane subsides. Increasingly angry, black jersey guy turns back to his comrade.
“Look. I don’t want to sound like an old traditionalist here, but these decade-long rebuilds just don’t work. Look what this brilliant rebuilding pla
n brought the Edmonton Oilers. This is the fate of our team. A bottom-dweller, who remains a bottom-dweller, pretending we’re rebuilding in an invalid attempt to please our shrinking fanbase.”
“You make a good point.”
Part 2 Extended
“You also argued we have prospects in the pipeline. Well, who? I’m sorry, but I just don’t see Nedeljkovic as our star goalie of the future. Do you think Carrick and Van Riemsdyk are future top-two defensemen? Face it red shirt guy-”
“I have a name.”
“Face it red shirt guy, we’re in a bad position. We have a sub-.500 record, and no prospects to look forward to.”
“Well, even if you are correct, how are you so positive management can’t get us out of this ‘Mess.'”
“Name one great move Francis had made.”
“Well.. uh…
he traded for Teravainen!”
“And that’s it. We’re coming off a decade of rebuilding; ten years to draft, trade for and sign good players. Francis has one good move to show for it. This gives me absolutely no confidence in our management.”
“Well how do you think we can become better? You’re just complaining.”
“I don’t really know. I guess we can sign grittier and experienced guys and wait for draft picks to come. If we’re lucky, our surplus of experience will pay off. But for now, it’s time to push the panic button.”
“Come on man, trust the management, here. They have a plan.”
“Oh yeah? What would that be, red-shirt?”
“What’d you call me?”
Red shirt!”
Part 3: Don’t push the panic button
“Your statements are ridiculous. Do you think management is just waddling around without any plan whatsoever?”
“Yup.”
“Look here.”
Red shirt guy pulls out a tablet and shows his opponent in debate the roster of the Carolina Hurricanes. They just stare at the screen for a while, until the angrier of the two breaks.
“What’s your point?”
“We have two sustainable talented forwards in Teravainen and Skinner. But look at our defense. It’s over-powered. Slavin, Pesce, Hanifin, hopefully Faulk eventually; these are all top-two defensemen on your average team. Do you know what will happen inevitably, at some point?
“I don’t like this.”
“We are going to trade one or two of them. We are going to trade them to a team desperately in need of defensemen. In exchange, we are going to get the star forward or goaltender that we need. We are going to improve our all-around depth and become a contender.”
“How is that supposed to work?”
Part 3 Extended
“Don’t you see? This year is just a test; a play thing. This is the year we show everyone just how lethal our defenders are. We slowly bait our prey: this being teams that are desperate for good defensemen. Then, we strike. We trade someone and become better. This is how it was meant to happen. If we make the playoffs this year, great. It further proves how effective our defenders are.
But if we don’t, it doesn’t matter too much in the grand scheme of things. We are second in the league in shots allowed. If we end up in a poor position by the end of the season, it will be because of a lack of scoring or bad goaltending. The plan is functioning perfectly.”
“Are you really turning an 8-1 loss into a positive thing?”
“You bet!
Conclusion
“Look. I don’t know what crazy conspiracy you’re believing in, but it’s unrealistic. It’s obvious we have no plan in site. It’s time to push the panic button.”
“No, we have a clear plan in sight. We just have to be patient with our team. The desired results will come. Now is not the time to push the panic button.”
Suddenly, a man walks out of the shadows, a large hat creating a cloud of darkness over his eyes. He pulls out a notebook, and speaks.
Next: 3 players Justin Faulk should be traded for
“Thanks for this.”
The dark, mysterious man walks out of the bar.
It’s getting to be crunch time for the Canes. A three-game winning streak was just ended and they have another tough test against the Nashville Predators on tap on Dec. 21.