Revisiting the 1998-99 Carolina Hurricanes
After a dismal first season in Greensboro, the Carolina Hurricanes managed a 12-point bump in Year Two. All-in-all, it was a year that featured drama, success, and tragedy.
This is the second installment in my “Revisiting the Past” series. You can check out the first installment here.
Once the dust settled on the Carolina Hurricanes inaugural season, one thing was painfully clear: the team needed more offense. General Manager Jim Rutherford added Martin Gelinas and Ray Sheppard during that first season to add some depth, though neither could right the ship for the first-year team.
In February of 1998, with the Hurricanes floundering, Rutherford made a surprising move (and one that hits close to home after the events of this summer): he prepared an offer sheet. The GM, following the “Go Big or Go Home” credo, targeted disgruntled Russian superstar Sergei Fedorov. Fedorov had a 1996-97 that was, by his standards, subpar, putting up 30 goals and 63 points. This was following a monster 1995-96 that saw the Detroit center notch 39 goals and 107 points.
The offer sheet, which was initially rejected by the NHL, was eventually matched by the Red Wings. Fedorov ended his holdout and suited up for the final 21 games, scoring 17 points. In the playoffs, he matched his previous years’ 20 points en route to Detroit winning their second consecutive Stanley Cup.
The Hurricanes had swung for the fences and come up short.
As the NHL free-agent period opened in the summer of 1998 Rutherford looked to make amends. This time, he knocked it out of the park. Coming off of an 87 point season, Ron Francis hit the open market. Despite being 35 and having his best years firmly in the rearview, Francis was a sought after commodity.
Thankfully for the Hurricanes, he decided to return to the franchise that he had begun his career with, a team that he never should have been traded from. Not only did the Francis signing give the Hurricanes a respected, veteran playmaker but it served to put them on the map as a viable free-agent destination.
With Francis on board, Rutherford set about adding another goaltender to split time with Trevor Kidd. While Kidd had been the best of the 5 goalies to see ice time for the Hurricanes during their first season, support was needed. This search dragged on until the middle of September when veteran netminder Arturs Irbe was signed.
Irbe, coming off a solid season with the Vancouver Canucks, proved to be a godsend (more on that later).
Key Offseason Additions:
- C Ron Francis (FA from PIT)
- G Arturs Irbe (FA from VAN)
So let’s take a look at how the offense, defense, and goaltending fared for the 1998-99 Carolina Hurricanes.
The Offense
The second-year Hurricanes closed out the 1998-99 season with 210 goals for, good for 15th out of 27 teams. This was ten goals more than the prior season and six positions higher. They scored 5 or more goals in 7 games, winning all but one (a 5-5 tie against the Phoenix Coyotes).
On the opposite end of the spectrum, they were held to 1 goal or less 16 times (one less than the prior season), including being shut out on 6 occasions (two more than in their first year). There were improvements, but things were far from ideal.
The Hurricanes were once again led by Keith Primeau and Sami Kapanen. The top-5 scorers were:
- Keith Primeau – 30g; 32a; 62p
- Sami Kapanen – 24g; 35a; 59p
- Ray Sheppard – 25g; 33a; 58p
- Ron Francis – 21g; 31a; 52p
- Gary Roberts – 14g; 28a; 42p
The blueline didn’t offer much offensive support, with Glen Wesley (7g,17a,24p) being the only defenseman to break the 20-point mark. Steve Chiasson, who had led the defense in scoring the year before, missed all but 28 games due to injury, limiting his output to 1 goal and 8 assists.
The biggest area of concern was once again the power play. Yikes. The Hurricanes finished the year with a 10.99% conversion rate, almost 3% lower than the year before and dead-last in the NHL by nearly a full percentage point. Unlike the previous season, this ineptitude didn’t keep the Hurricanes from qualifying for the postseason, as they finished first in the newly formed Southeast Division.
The Hurricanes also suffered a slight drop in shots for, finishing the season with 2142 (26.12 per game), putting them 23rd in the league. They were led by Kapanen (254), Sheppard (188), Primeau (178), Roberts (138), and Robert Kron (134).
The Hurricanes made up for the lower shots by finishing 7th in the NHL in shooting percentage, capitalizing on 9.8% of their shots. Andrei Kovalenko (28.6) led the way, followed by Primeau (16.9), Francis (15.8), Bates Battaglia (13.5), and Paul Ranheim (13.4).
The Hurricanes added 5 shorthanded goals, led with 2 by Ranheim.
The Defense
The 1998-99 Carolina Hurricanes cut their goals against by 17, finishing 19th in the league with 202. More importantly, they finished the season with a +8 goal differential. This represented a huge swing from the -19 they posted in their first season. The offense was (somewhat) better and the defense helped hold the fort.
Glen Wesley led the way on all fronts, topping the D-corps in goals (7) and points (24) while finishing 2nd in +/- (14) and ice time (22:31). With Steve Chiasson missing the majority of the season, offense from the blueline took a noticeable dip, though 4 defensemen other than Wesley posted 10 or more points:
- Nolan Pratt – 1g; 14a; 15p
- Marek Malik – 2g; 9a; 11p
- Paul Coffey – 2g; 8a; 10p
- Sean Hill – 0g; 10a; 10p
Despite having future Hall of Famer Coffey, this wasn’t a star-studded blueline. Instead, the Hurricanes had a largely blue-collar, hard-working defensive philosophy, relying on steady play from guys like Adam Burt and Curtis Leschyshyn. Rounding out the 11 defenders who suited up for the Hurricanes were Steve Halko, Dave Karpa, and Mike Rucinski.
The Hurricanes did surrender 133 more shots against than they had in year one, ended up at 2399 (29.25 per game). Thankfully, they got some very solid goaltending.
The Goaltending
Trevor Kidd had a strong season with the Hurricanes in 1997-98, setting career marks in goals-against-average (2.17) and save percentage (.922). He had been the most consistent goaltender for the team, prompting the only other NHL-proven options (Sean Burke, Kirk McLean) to be moved for other assets.
Needing serviceable depth in goal, Rutherford signed Arturs Irbe, who was coming off of a solid season with the Vancouver Canucks. Irbe had established himself as a folk hero in San Jose, a fighter who had led the underdog Sharks to a 7 game upset of the Detroit Red Wings in 1994. After a 5 year stint in the Bay Area, Irbe spent one season each with the Dallas Stars and the Canucks.
When he landed with the Hurricanes, Irbe had shown himself to be a gifted but inconsistent goalie. The diminutive Latvian set about earning his place, setting career-highs in goals-against-average (2.22), save percentage (.923), and shutouts (6, which he duplicated in 00-01).
Kidd, meanwhile, appeared in on 25 games, posting a 7-10-6 record. His goals-against went up and his save percentage went down though, to be fair, neither number was horrendous (2.69; .905). Kidd also notched 2 shutouts, stopping 36 shots in each.
Irbe’s arrival stabilized the Hurricanes’ goaltending situation, a far cry from the carousel that we saw during the first season. This also marked the beginning of Irbe adding to his lore:
[@RexHealthcare 20th Anniversary Team: Arturs Irbe]
— Carolina Hurricanes (@Canes) February 2, 2018
"A lot of goaltenders earn the moniker of 'workhorse,' but playing in 214 games in three seasons left little doubt that Arturs Irbe was the Hurricanes' workhorse in net." pic.twitter.com/cJKXONyPEG
Like wall, indeed.
Playoffs
Chalk it up to whatever you like, the Carolina Hurricanes qualified for the postseason in 1998-99, destined for a first-round matchup against the Boston Bruins.
Game 1 saw a lackluster effort by the Hurricanes, managing only 19 shots, each of which was turned away by Bruins’ keeper Byron Dafoe. Future Hurricane Rob DiMaio netted the game-winner early in the 3rd period. Irbe stopped 27 out of 29 in a losing cause.
- Boston leads 1-0
Game 2 featured a much stronger game by Carolina as they beat Dafoe 3 times on 30 shots. Ray Sheppard picked up 2 goals, including the game-winner in overtime. Martin Gelinas added 2 assists while Irbe turned aside 22 shots in the 3-2 victory.
- Series tied 1-1
The Hurricanes carried the momentum into Game 3 at the FleetCenter in Boston. Gary Roberts opened the scoring early in the first period. Sergei Samsonov, another future Hurricane, tied the game for Boston some 8 minutes later. The teams traded power-play goals in the 2nd before Robert Kron put away the game-winner 2:54 into the 3rd period. Irbe was solid again, turning away 24 shots in another 3-2 win.
- Carolina leads 2-1
Then the wheels started coming off. Sheppard opened the scoring early in Game 4, picking up his 4th goal of the series. That was all the Hurricanes would get. Boston scored 3 unanswered goals while Dafoe refused to yield. DiMaio sealed the 4-1 Bruins’ victory with an empty netter.
- Series tied 2-2
Game 5 looked promising for the Hurricanes, back on their adoptive home ice in Greensboro. Steve Chiasson opened the scoring and Sheppard added his 5th of the playoffs, staking Carolina to a 2-0 lead after 2 periods.
Unfortunately, Boston threw everything they had at the Hurricanes in the 3rd, scoring 3 straight goals in the first 2:26 of the period. Sami Kapanen tied the game with just under 2 minutes left, sending the teams to overtime for the first time since Game 2.
The first overtime provided action but no deciding goal. Fatigue was setting in as the two teams prepared for the start of the 2nd overtime period. With a little over 5 minutes remaining, Anson Carter (yet another future Hurricane) beat Irbe and gave Boston the victory. Shots favored the Bruins 52-40.
- Boston leads 3-2
The Hurricanes threw everything they had at Dafoe in Game 6, but the UK-born keeper stopped it all. Joe Thornton opened the scoring on a first-period power play and Anson Carter added an insurance goal midway through the 2nd, sealing the game and the series. The Hurricanes had fought and fallen short.
- Boston wins 4-2
Ray Sheppard led the playoff scoring effort with 5 goals and 1 assist, but he proved to be the only reliable performer. The 4 other top scorers from the regular season combined for 2 goals and 6 assists in 6 games. While it was a disappointing end, fans got their first taste of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Tragedy Strikes
A few hours after being eliminated by the Bruins, the Hurricanes gathered at the home of Gary Roberts for a team party. Sometime later, Chiasson left in his pickup truck, headed home. Sadly, he never made it.
In the early morning hours of May 3rd, 1999, Chiasson was involved in a single-vehicle accident and succumbed to his injuries. Just 32, Chiasson left behind a wife and three children. The Hurricanes haven’t retired Chiasson’s #3, but no player has worn it for the team since his death.
For the 1999-2000 season, the Carolina Hurricanes established the Steve Chiasson award, annually given “to the Hurricanes player that best exemplifies determination and dedication while proving to be an inspiration to his teammates through his performance and approach to the game.”
The list of winners is populated by fan favorites:
- 1999-00: Sean Hill
- 2000-01: Rod Brind’Amour
- 2001-02: Ron Francis
- 2002-03: Kevyn Adams
- 2003-04: Sean Hill
- 2005-06: Rod Brind’Amour
- 2006-07: Rod Brind’Amour
- 2007-08: Bret Hedican
- 2008-09: Rod Brind’Amour
- 2009-10: Rod Brind’Amour
- 2010-11: Tim Gleason
- 2011-12: Eric Staal
- 2012-13: Tim Gleason
- 2013-14: Manny Malhotra
- 2014-15: Jordan Staal
- 2015-16: Jay McClement
- 2016-17: Bryan Bickell
- 2017-18: Jordan Staal
- 2018-19: Justin Williams
Closing Thoughts
The Carolina Hurricanes took a step forward in the second in North Carolina (and final season in Greensboro). They landed a marquee free agent, signed a goalie who would be instrumental for them, and fans of the fledgling team got their first taste of the postseason.
The 1998-99 season was a building block for a team that was in transition 2 years after being relocated. Subdued by the loss of a teammate, the team had much to address as they prepared to move to their new home in Raleigh.
Must Read. Here's to you, Cam Ward.. light
What are your thoughts on the 1998-99 iteration of the Carolina Hurricanes? Stay tuned for a look back at the 1999-2000 squad.