Cardiac Cane
Fansided

Rewind: Revisiting the 2001-2002 Carolina Hurricanes

By Jeb Bohn

30 Nov 2001: Center Rod Brind''Amour #17 of the Carolina Hurricanes skates on the ice during the NHL game against the Washington Capitals at the MCI Center in Washington, D.C. The Capitals defeated the Hurricanes 6-2. Mandatory copyright notice: Copyright 2001 NHLI Mandatory Credit: Doug Pensinger /NHLI/Getty Images
30 Nov 2001: Center Rod Brind''Amour #17 of the Carolina Hurricanes skates on the ice during the NHL game against the Washington Capitals at the MCI Center in Washington, D.C. The Capitals defeated the Hurricanes 6-2. Mandatory copyright notice: Copyright 2001 NHLI Mandatory Credit: Doug Pensinger /NHLI/Getty Images /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
3 of 10
Next
Winger Erik Cole of the Carolina Hurricanes
23 Oct 2001: Eric Messier #29 of the Colorado Avalanche fights for possession of the puck with Erik Cole #26 and Aaron Ward #4 of the Carolina Hurricanes during the game at the Pespi Center in Denver, Colorado. The Avalanche defeated the Hurricanes 5-1.Mandatory Credit: Brian Bahr /Allsport /

The Offense

The Carolina Hurricanes saw a slight improvement in their offense, finishing with 217 goals scored, good enough for 13th place in the 30 team league.  Captain Ron Francis led the way with 77 points, 12 points higher than his previous season total.  This marked the second time in four seasons that Francis led the team in scoring since returning to the franchise in 1998.

Jeff O’Neill, the previous season’s leader, saw a drop from 67 to 64 points, though his goal output dropped from 41 to 31.  Speedy winger Sami Kapanen continued to produce, setting career highs in goals, assists, and points.  This was the high water mark of the Finn’s career as Kapanen wouldn’t come close to this output again.

After Shane Willis’ breakout year, another rookie was set to make waves for the Hurricanes in the person of Erik Cole.  Teaming up with Rod Brind’Amour and Bates Battaglia to form the vaunted BBC Line, Cole racked up 16 goals and 24 assists in his first NHL season.  Battaglia benefited greatly, seeing a 19 point jump in his performance as the gritty winger set career highs across the board.

There wasn’t a ton of offense from the backend, though it is worth noting that Sean Hill picked up 7 goals and 23 assists for 30 points in only 49 games after being reacquired by the Hurricanes.

The Hurricanes managed 5 or more goals in 10 separate games, posting a record of 8-1-1 in those contests.

Home/History