Charlotte Checkers: Could Pay a Price for Carolina Hurricanes’ Success

Making the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time in a decade has presented the Carolina Hurricanes with a dilemma that could impact their top minor league affiliate, the Charlotte Checkers. But it’s a good problem.

NHL roster rules allow teams to carry extra skaters after the trade deadline and throughout the playoffs. The Carolina Hurricanes now have the option to draw from the Charlotte Checkers to boost their roster for the playoff run.

The 23-man active roster is still in effect, but players can easily be moved on and off the active roster without being subject to waivers, which would allow head coach Rod Brind’Amour to make adjustments as injuries and circumstances dictate.Extra bodies would provide more depth in practice, ostensibly lightening the workload on the veterans.

For most of the stretch run, the Hurricanes carried one extra skater. Over the final few weeks, forwards Warren Foegele, Saku Maenalanen, and most recently Greg McKegg took turns being the healthy scratch. On occasion, the club added Hadyn Fleury to the 23-man roster for road trips to provide insurance in case of an injury to a defenseman.

The Charlotte Checkers have dominated the AHL and are getting ready for a run at the Calder Cup. Would prospects Alex Nedeljkovic, Jake Bean and Martin Necas, among others, be better served staying in Charlotte and getting more playing experience, or would they benefit more from practicing with the Hurricanes and experiencing firsthand the pressure-packed Stanley Cup atmosphere?

This is the dilemma facing GM Don Waddell and Brind’Amour. The Charlotte Checkers players would probably love to stay with their teammates and finish a dominating season with some hardware. Then again, their ultimate goal is to make it to the NHL, and any experience they get with the Hurricanes will benefit their development.

Nedeljkovic and Bean, in particular, would be an injury away from being added to the 20-man roster. If a spot opened on one of the forward lines, Maenalanen would probably get added before Necas, depending upon the position of the injured player. That doesn’t mean he wouldn’t get a call up however.

Bean has already been recalled up to the Carolina Hurricanes this morning and will be joining the team for their playoff run.

When I covered college football many years ago, a head coach once told me that a back-up player getting on the field for a series at the end of a blowout was more worthwhile to that player than a week of practice. The same could be said for the prospects.

Bean, Nedeljkovic and Necas figure to play major roles for the Hurricanes next season. Practicing and traveling with the Hurricanes for however long the playoff run lasts would give them a taste of what to expect and how to prepare themselves for the grind that is the NHL, even if they don’t get to play in a game.

It’d be hard to imagine the Canes not going with at least a full 23-man roster through the playoffs. Adding Bean and Nedeljkovic would provide depth on defense and in goal. And whenever the Carolina Hurricanes season ended, they could always return to Charlotte and help the Checkers.