Carolina Hurricanes: 3 Players That Could Rebound in 2021
The Carolina Hurricanes have a few players that are set to rebound in a big way in 2021.
The 2021 NHL Regular Season will be upon us in a few short days, and the Carolina Hurricanes need to make every game count; every single point matters in this truncated season, and every single point will be hard-fought to attain.
The Carolina Hurricanes are more than well-equipped to get the job done and finish toward the top half of the new Central Division, but for now, there are a few slight question marks on the roster that still remain.
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These question marks aren’t large or looming in any way, shape, or form, but could spell the difference between the Carolina Hurricanes having a good season or a fantastic season.
Now, I’d like to preface this list with a couple of caveats. Firstly, I do not expect any of these guys to blow our minds with production. Instead, I expect them to ‘rebound’ from their previous season’s production and impact.
Secondly, I do not think any of these players are ‘bad’ or that they don’t belong on the Carolina Hurricanes’ roster. Each and every one of these guys are here for a reason, and if Don Waddell and Rod Brind’amour trust them, we as fans have no reason not to as well.
That being said, let’s jump right into the list of three players I believe could rebound in the shortened 2021 NHL Regular Season.
3. Ryan Dzingel
Ryan Dzingel kicks off my list of Carolina Hurricanes that could rebound in a big way in 2021.
For starters, Dzingel has an insane offensive upside that didn’t necessarily make itself known in the way I expected during the 2019-20 season. To be fair to Dzingel, Rod Brind’amour’s system of hockey essentially requires a player to be effective at both ends of the ice in order for the player to receive any meaningful levels of ice-time.
This lack of trust from Rod was most evident in the 2020 NHL play-in round versus the New York Rangers; Dzingel was benched in favor of up-and-coming phenom Morgan Geekie, despite Dzingel’s reported phenomenal camp performance and almost daily flashes of brilliance.
That being said, if Dzingel can earn a bit more of Rod’s trust and Rod decides to deploy him on a scoring line with players like Martin Necas, Vincent Trocheck, or any combination of the coveted TSA Line, we could finally see Dzingel’s offensive prowess unleashed.
If this does indeed happen, Dzingel will be more than just impactful this season; I believe he has the ability to be one of the team’s leading scorers. This kind of rebound would be amazing to see and would be surely pivotal in allowing the Carolina Hurricanes to secure one of the top 4 spots in the Central Division.
Having yet another goal-scorer is never a bad thing, especially in a 56-game regular season. We’ll see what happens, but I wholeheartedly believe Dzingel has it in him to rebound in a big way and impress us once again with his lethal sniping talent.
2. Petr Mrazek
Okay, I already know what you’re saying. “Petr Mrazek was fine last season, he has nothing to rebound from!”
Typically, I’d agree with you, but I believe Mrazek has a whole other level of goaltender in him that he hasn’t quite accessed since his absolutely blistering run (“We’re in, we’re in!!! Yes!! Yes!!! WOOO!!”) leading up to the 2019 NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Petr Mrazek’s stats from 2019-20 fell just a bit from his 2018-19 debut season with the Carolina Hurricanes. In 2018-19, Mrazek registered a .914% save percentage, 2.39 goals-against average, and sported a record of 23-14-3 in 40 games played. In 2019-20, Mrazek registered a .905% save percentage, 2.69 goals-against average, and his record was 21-16-2 in 40 games played (38 games started).
While this is by no means a massive drop-off in performance, Mrazek has shown us that he has the capability to be a more-than-capable starting goaltender who can provide better-than-league-average goaltending.
If Mrazek does, indeed, rebound and ends up finding that other level of elite goaltending, the Carolina Hurricanes are sure to be set for another deep playoff run.
1. Nino Niederreiter
I’m sure every single one of you reading this saw this name coming at the top of the list.
Nino Niederreiter probably had the biggest drop-off of any Carolina Hurricane in stats from the 2018-19 season to the 2019-20 season.
For most of last season, Nino looked ‘snakebit’; it seemed like he had himself in the right places at the right times, but just couldn’t quite capitalize and put the puck in the back of the net.
In 2018-19, Nino put up 23 goals (14 with the Carolina Hurricanes) and 30 assists (16 with the Carolina Hurricanes, for a total of 53 points in 82 games played (36 with the Canes).
That’s right, in Nino’s first 36 games as a Carolina Hurricane, he put up 30 points. This was an unreal pace, and Nino was a huge reason the Carolina Hurricanes ended up breaking a decade-long playoff drought that season.
In 2019-20, however, Nino registered just 11 goals and 18 assists for a total of 29 points in 67 games played.
This is by no means meant to say Nino is a bad hockey player, but that drop-off in point production was massive. Nino still has every chance to rebound and get back to putting up serious points, especially if given ice-time on a line with other playmakers and goal-scorers.
The Carolina Hurricanes are sure to have a solid season if these guys even stay on the same trajectory as last season. I believe they all will rebound and get back to performing the way we know they can. This new Central Division won’t be quite as much of a dogfight as the Metropolitan Division is; if you ask me, there is no better time or opportunity for these guys to reawaken and reclaim their respective games.
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Question for CC Readers: Do you think any of these players will rebound, or do you think they’ll continue on their current trajectories?