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Three Early-Season Stars for the Carolina Hurricanes

By Jeb Bohn

RALEIGH, NC - OCTOBER 11: Erik Haula #56 of the Carolina Hurricanes leads teammates in a Storm Squad following a victory over the New York Islanders during an NHL game on October 11, 2019 at PNC Arena in Raleigh North Carolina. (Photo by Gregg Forwerck/NHLI via Getty Images)
RALEIGH, NC - OCTOBER 11: Erik Haula #56 of the Carolina Hurricanes leads teammates in a Storm Squad following a victory over the New York Islanders during an NHL game on October 11, 2019 at PNC Arena in Raleigh North Carolina. (Photo by Gregg Forwerck/NHLI via Getty Images) /
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Andrei Svechnikov, Erik Haula, and Dougie Hamilton of the Carolina Hurricanes
RALEIGH, NC – OCTOBER 6: Erik Haula #56 of the Carolina Hurricanes celebrates after scoring a goal with teammates Andrei Svechnikov #37 and Dougie Hamilton #19 during an NHL game against the Tampa Bay Lightning on October 6, 2019 at PNC Arena in Raleigh North Carolina. (Photo by Gregg Forwerck/NHLI via Getty Images) /

3rd Star (tie): Erik Haula and Andrei Svechnikov

Yep, right off the bat, I am going with a tie.  Why?  I can’t in good faith keep either of these guys off of the list.  Both players have served the team extremely well so far this season and without their contributions, the Hurricanes would not have experienced their historic start.

Let’s start with a look at Erik Haula:

A+.   <ul> <li><strong>Games Played:</strong> 9</li> <li><strong>Goals:</strong> 7</li> <li><strong>Assists:</strong> 1</li> <li><strong>Points:</strong> 8</li> </ul>. C. Carolina Hurricanes. ERIK HAULA

Shrouded in uncertainty after a gruesome knee injury cost him 67 games in 2018-19, Haula has acquitted himself incredibly well with his new team.  Three of his team-leading seven goals have come on the power play where Haula sets up shop in front of the opposition net.

Haula’s speed has also been key in meshing with the Hurricanes’s system, showing no ill effects of last season’s injury.  On top of that, he’s won 54.9% of the faceoffs that he’s taken, a number that places him first on the team among players who have taken at least ten draws.

While his 28% shooting percentage will inevitably fall off, Haula has already proven himself a perfect fit with the team.  If he settles in around his career shooting percentage (13.2%), continues his modest shots per game (2.77), and stays healthy, Haula projects to score 26 goals over the remainder of the season.

Not too shabby.

https://twitter.com/Canes/status/1183168973765931008

Now, let’s take a look at our other third co-star.

A+. <ul> <li><strong>Games Played:</strong> 9</li> <li><strong>Goals:</strong> 1</li> <li><strong>Assists:</strong> 7</li> <li><strong>Points:</strong> 8</li> </ul>. RW. Carolina Hurricanes. ANDREI SVECHNIKOV

How do you follow up a 20 goal rookie season?  Well, if you’re Andrei Svechnikov, you start the season on pace for 73 points.  Okay, okay, the young Russian will likely experience some highs and lows during his sophomore season, nothing controversial there.  It is, however, worth noting that just nine games in and Svechnikov is 41% towards his assist total from last year.

Another interesting tidbit is that his current shooting percentage (4%) is well below the 10.6% mark he posted in his rookie year.  Were he to get back around that mark and keep up the pace with shots, he could very well finish the season with 22-25 goals.

We’ll carefully bypass the fact that his one goal so far was an empty netter, if for no other reason than he hasn’t slowed down and has continually found ways to contribute.

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