Carolina Hurricanes: 5 Unanswered Questions after a Stellar October

After a Stellar month of October, the Carolina Hurricanes are sitting pretty with 17 points. However there are still several unanswered questions.

The Carolina Hurricanes had a great month of October. 8-3-1, 17 points, 0.666% wiin percentage, 0.708% point percentage. Sitting second in the Metro Division. 38 goals for and only 30 goals against. Two Shutouts. Four comeback wins. This team answered a huge question that loomed after last year’s trip to the Eastern Conference Finals: “Is this team for real or was last year a fluke?”

By the way, the answer to that question is simple; this team is for real. But that wasn’t the only question that was answered in the twelve games that spanned the month of October. Several more questions that we did or did not know we had were ceremoniously answered as well.

When will Haydn Fleury score his first NHL goal? Against the Anaheim Ducks on the 18th of October, 2019. What will Andrei Svechnikov do for an encore after a 20 goal rookie season? How about five goals and seven assists in twelve games? That’s a point per game performance so far that puts him on pace for 34 goals this season.

Even questions that we never knew we had were answered. How will the Carolina Hurricanes finish games? Try only four goals allowed in the third period for the entirety of the month. If you include the single OT goal allowed, the Carolina Hurricanes have only allowed a total of five goals after the first 40 minutes across twelve games. That’s closing games solidly.

While that is all great, there are still unanswered questions after one of the bests starts to the season in franchise history. Some are small. Such as; “When will Jordan Martinook return to the lineup?” But others are pretty big. Lets take a look at some of these larger ones as we break down the five unanswered questions after a stellar October.

Who is going to score first, Warren Foegele or Brock McGinn?

Warren Foegele and Brock McGinn are both still looking for their first goal of the season. Both have come close to getting it. Both have pinged shots off the goal posts. Both have three assists. Both have played top minutes with guys like Sebastian Aho and Jordan Staal. So what is the hold up? They are the only forwards who have played all 12 games that have yet to score.

Right now its Foegele who is getting the time on the top lines with Aho and Andrei Svechnikov. The line is working, Svechnikov has score the last three goals for the Carolina Hurricanes, including an epic goal for the ages. But more on that later. For now, It seems like you can put anyone with Svechnikov and Aho and those two will figure out a way to score. Foegele is more of a third wheel there.

McGinn also felt like a third wheel with Staal and Svechnikov and later Nino Niederreiter. While granted, Nino also struggled to get one past the goalie as well, he was eventually granted one once Teuvo Teravainen joined the line.

Its not really either of their faults for the most part, they are contributing as best they can, and sometimes, having the flash and speed of Svechnikov can sometimes make you want to take a step back and let him do his thing with style.

But even on the fourth line with Lucas Wallmark, who owns the opening goal of the 2019-2020 Carolina Hurricanes season, they have yet to fully stretch their legs and get anything going. Perhaps November will be a different story. Perhaps tonight one or two of them will finally net their first tally of the season. The question isn’t really “if” but “when”.

So who do you think will be the first of the two to lead a train of first bumps as the horn sounds.

Can Brian Gibbons remain continue to fill in for Jordan Martinook?

When Jordan Martinook will return is unclear. For now Brian Gibbons remains with the big team filling in his role. But in four games with the Carolina Hurricanes Gibbons has failed to get on the board in any way possible. He has only registered a disappointing total of three shots on goal during that time.

Now granted, Martinook also only registered three shots on goal in the four games before his injury. He did however earn himself a point on an assist to Lucas Wallmark’s season opening goal. His real value comes from his attitude and leadership. The “A” on his chest was given to him for his leadership on and off the ice. Gibbons has some massive skates to fill.

Perhaps that is putting some pressure on him to perform. So far the best takeaway from Gibbons in the four games that he has played is that he is excellent on the defensive side of the puck. While the fourth line has yet to score with him in the lineup they have also yet to allow a goal either. That has given him a nice crisp clean zero plus/minus.

But the line has attempted to score several times, and have gotten close several times with linemates McGinn or Foegele. Perhaps Gibbons needs to shoot more. Perhaps he needs to change nothing. After all as long as the other lines are contributing to the scoring and he can help hold the line defensively, the Hurricanes will skate happily into the locker room with a win.

Gibbons should stay for now. Obviously 11 forwards and 7 defenders is not the way to go, considering the team went winless with that strategy. Julien Gauthier, hero of the preseason, needs time to develop and simply isn’t ready to take a larger role with the Carolina Hurricanes.

With Martinook still around four weeks away from returning to the lineup, Gibbons might have a chance to prove his worth with the month of November. It starts tonight against the Red Wings and continues tomorrow against the Devils. Both teams with soft defenses that might be what he needs to get himself rolling. Will he take advantage of it?

Is Haydn Fleury ever going to see any ice time again?

The Carolina Hurricanes have a Haydn Fleury problem they need to solve. With Trevor van Riemsdyk back and healthy the Carolina Hurricanes now have seven healthy NHL caliber defencemen. With previous question marks like Joel Edmundson and Jake Gardiner proving their worth in multiple ways, Haydn Fleury has become the odd man out.

Lets be real, Fleury is an excellent defender that is being outshined by his incredible teammates on the best defense in the league. Its not really his fault. He would be a top pairing defender on many teams in this league. There is no way Carolina tries to put him on waivers to send him to the AHL, he belongs in the NHL.

We already mentioned how 11 forwards and 7 Defenders is not a good look for this team, so that’s not on the table. At least it shouldn’t. When Martinook gets back to being healthy it absolutely wont be.

So that means that he either remains a healthy scratch or gets placed on the trading block. Either way, as long as his teammates remain healthy, there seems to be no room for him on the Carolina Hurricanes roster.

With three sets of back to backs in November starting tonight, perhaps we will se Fleury back in the lineup sooner rather than later to allow this excellent defense to stretch out their legs and stay healthy. But with Carolina winning with him out of the lineup, perhaps its best to leave well enough alone. The question is; which path will they choose with the young defender?

Does Justin Williams Need to Come Back?

The 38 year old elephant in the room, Justin Williams has been quiet since his announcement to take a step back from the league. Not retire, but just take a step back. That opens up an opportunity for him to sign with the Carolina Hurricanes and return at any point before the deadline this season. The first question is, will he?

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That is still up in the air. There is no evidence that he doesn’t have the intention to return. He ahs been seen skating and working out on his own time. But he also seems to be a mainstay around the Raleigh and North Carolina region including being caught at a Checkers game. So it seems that he has the intent to be a part of the Carolina Hurricanes family in some form.

But do the Carolina Hurricanes need him to return in a jersey? His leadership last season was phenomenal and his ability to single handedly change the culture in Carolina is still underrated. But the Carolina Hurricanes are doing just fine without him. Bringing him back into the fold might force a forward into the awkward position of being a consistent healthy scratch like Fleury.

Honestly this question deserves its own article. Perhaps as the season goes by we will have enough statistics from this team to give it a serious answer. But there are other factors to take into consideration. Is there enough cap space to sign Justin Williams for what he is worth? Is he in the right condition to pick up where he left off?

Perhaps the answer to this question is a bit more complex than that. Perhaps Justin Williams is ready to come back to the Carolina Hurricanes in a much diffrent role behind the bench instead of sitting on it. The options here are practically limitless, for now the question remains unanswered.

Question for CC Readers: What Questions do you have for the Carolina Hurricanes after October?