This past season the Carolina Hurricanes forward group scored 80% of the organization’s goals. How much will the forward group produce this upcoming season?
The Carolina Hurricanes’ forward group will look significantly different than last year. Captain and Hurricanes legend Justin Williams has “stepped away” from the game for the time being. Williams will be a significant loss to the forward group, as he produced 53 points for the team last season.
The Hurricanes have also lost forwards Micheal Ferland, who produced 40 points, Greg McKegg, who posted 11 points, and Saku Maenalanen, who produced 8 points.
The forward group has lost significant production, but has also added players that can contribute significantly right away. The Carolina Hurricanes added Ryan Dzingel from the Columbus Blue Jackets. Dzingel posted 56 points for the Columbus Blue Jackets and the Ottawa Senators last season.
The Canes also added Erik Haula, a forward from the Las Vegas Golden Knights, who is coming off of a knee injury that cut his season short after 15 games last year. Erik is a player that has a lot of potential as in the 2017-2018 season, Haula produced 55 points including 29 goals.
The Canes have also added a forward from the AHL in Martin Necas. Necas didn’t have a great preseason; his potential, however, is through the roof. Necas had 52 points last season with the Charlotte Checkers with 16 goals and 36 assists in 64 games played.
With that being said, let’s discuss where I think each forward will end up in the stat sheet this season.