Cane Says
11-07-2005, 10:49 AM
Hurricanes chasing history
Whalers compiled win streak in 1984-85; Canes aiming to better it Wednesday
By LUKE DECOCK, Staff Writer
RALEIGH -- The wins keep coming for the Carolina Hurricanes, with two decades of history on the brink of becoming their next victim.
Saturday's 2-0 win over the Florida Panthers was the Canes' seventh in a row, tying a franchise record set back in March 1985. This team's leading scorer, Eric Staal, was five months old.
The Canes have a chance to surpass the record set by the then-Hartford Whalers on Wednesday, when they face the Buffalo Sabres in the first game of a two-game road trip.
Carolina has been winning with offense, outscoring the opposition 30-17 during the streak. The Canes are fourth in the NHL in scoring at 4.08 goals per game. They've done their most damage in the third period, though, with a 24-8 advantage, one reason why they're battling for first place in the Eastern Conference.
"We're not really playing to score," Carolina captain Rod Brind'Amour said. "Whether it's 1-1 or 5-5, we're trying to get the lead. We can win 1-0 or 10-9, we don't care."
Much like the Canes hope this one will be, 1984-85 was a watershed season in franchise history. Although the Whalers missed the playoffs, they assembled the core of the team that would, one year later, become the franchise's first to win a playoff series -- a feat that would not be repeated for 16 years.
A 22-year-old Ron Francis was in his fourth NHL season, a point-per-game player who scored 24 goals. After winning only eight of their first 23 games, the Whalers called up a group of youngsters who would play critical roles for many years: Ulf Samulesson, Kevin Dineen and Ray Ferraro, among others.
Francis was the only future Hall-of-Famer on the team, but it was a roster full of hockey minds. Dave Tippett and Joel Quenneville went on to become NHL head coaches, Dean Evason and Steve Weeks NHL assistants, Dineen an AHL coach, Marty Howe an AHL assistant and Paul Fenton and Greg Malone became NHL executives. Ferraro is a broadcaster, Mike Liut an agent.
After Francis was named captain in late February, the Whalers lost four straight in early March, then tied two before going on their seven-game tear. They were unbeaten in 10 before it was all over, also a franchise record.
These Hurricanes have not only won seven straight, but have taken points in 10 straight. Only an overtime loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Oct. 20 has marred their record in the past four weeks.
Their streak has been built not on hope for the future but on a belief that the future is now.
There's no better example of that than the Canes' third-period prowess. Certainly some of their success is due to their surprising streak of comebacks. In five of the seven wins in the streak, they've had to come back from two or more goals down, and in three games they've been trailing heading into the third.
In those situations, the Canes have thrown caution to the wind and defense out the door entirely, pounding away on offense with nothing to lose.
But there have been games like Saturday, too, when Carolina's Martin Gerber and Florida's Roberto Luongo took a scoreless game into the third period and the Canes couldn't break through until the final nine minutes of the game.
Carolina coach Peter Laviolette, in his first full season in charge is clearly becoming accustomed to his surroundings, because he used a football analogy to account for his team's late-game success.
"You think about football games when defensive players are out there the whole game and you see them in the fourth quarter and they kind of wilt," he said. "I guess that's the mentality. If we can keep going at them and grind it out, eventually something will give, whether it's a power play or a scoring opportunity."
Saturday, it was both -- a power play that produced a scoring opportunity for Brind'Amour to put the Canes into the lead and bring them to the brink of franchise history.
Staff writer Luke DeCock can be reached at 829-8947 or ldecock@newsobserver.com
Streaking to franchise record
With a win over the Florida Panthers on Saturday, the Carolina Hurricanes tied a franchise record with their seventh straight win. They also extended another franchise record with their seventh straight home win and at 10-2-1 have 21 points, smashing the old mark of 15 after the team's first 13 games. Their next game is at the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday.
2005-06
OCT. 22: 4-0 win at Washington
OCT. 24: 3-2 win vs. Ottawa
OCT. 26: 4-3 win vs. Boston
OCT. 28: 8-6 win vs. Philadelphia
OCT. 29: 5-3 win at Pittsburgh
NOV. 3: 4-3 win vs. Toronto
NOV. 5: 2-0 win vs. Florida
COACH: Peter Laviolette
LEADING SCORER: Eric Staal (26 points in 13 games)
GOALIES: Martin Gerber, Cam Ward
CURRENT RECORD: 10-2-1
1984-85
MARCH 16: 5-0 win at St. Louis
MARCH 17: 4-3 win vs. Pittsburgh
MARCH 20: 3-2 win vs. St. Louis
MARCH 23: 5-2 win vs. Boston
MARCH 24: 2-1 win vs. Quebec
MARCH 27: 3-1 win at Washington
MARCH 29: 8-7 win vs. Edmonton
COACH: Jack Evans
LEADING SCORER: Ron Francis (81 points in 80 games)
GOALIES: Mike Liut, Greg Millen, Steve Weeks
FINAL RECORD: 30-41-9, did not qualify for playoffs
LUKE DeCOCK
Whalers compiled win streak in 1984-85; Canes aiming to better it Wednesday
By LUKE DECOCK, Staff Writer
RALEIGH -- The wins keep coming for the Carolina Hurricanes, with two decades of history on the brink of becoming their next victim.
Saturday's 2-0 win over the Florida Panthers was the Canes' seventh in a row, tying a franchise record set back in March 1985. This team's leading scorer, Eric Staal, was five months old.
The Canes have a chance to surpass the record set by the then-Hartford Whalers on Wednesday, when they face the Buffalo Sabres in the first game of a two-game road trip.
Carolina has been winning with offense, outscoring the opposition 30-17 during the streak. The Canes are fourth in the NHL in scoring at 4.08 goals per game. They've done their most damage in the third period, though, with a 24-8 advantage, one reason why they're battling for first place in the Eastern Conference.
"We're not really playing to score," Carolina captain Rod Brind'Amour said. "Whether it's 1-1 or 5-5, we're trying to get the lead. We can win 1-0 or 10-9, we don't care."
Much like the Canes hope this one will be, 1984-85 was a watershed season in franchise history. Although the Whalers missed the playoffs, they assembled the core of the team that would, one year later, become the franchise's first to win a playoff series -- a feat that would not be repeated for 16 years.
A 22-year-old Ron Francis was in his fourth NHL season, a point-per-game player who scored 24 goals. After winning only eight of their first 23 games, the Whalers called up a group of youngsters who would play critical roles for many years: Ulf Samulesson, Kevin Dineen and Ray Ferraro, among others.
Francis was the only future Hall-of-Famer on the team, but it was a roster full of hockey minds. Dave Tippett and Joel Quenneville went on to become NHL head coaches, Dean Evason and Steve Weeks NHL assistants, Dineen an AHL coach, Marty Howe an AHL assistant and Paul Fenton and Greg Malone became NHL executives. Ferraro is a broadcaster, Mike Liut an agent.
After Francis was named captain in late February, the Whalers lost four straight in early March, then tied two before going on their seven-game tear. They were unbeaten in 10 before it was all over, also a franchise record.
These Hurricanes have not only won seven straight, but have taken points in 10 straight. Only an overtime loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on Oct. 20 has marred their record in the past four weeks.
Their streak has been built not on hope for the future but on a belief that the future is now.
There's no better example of that than the Canes' third-period prowess. Certainly some of their success is due to their surprising streak of comebacks. In five of the seven wins in the streak, they've had to come back from two or more goals down, and in three games they've been trailing heading into the third.
In those situations, the Canes have thrown caution to the wind and defense out the door entirely, pounding away on offense with nothing to lose.
But there have been games like Saturday, too, when Carolina's Martin Gerber and Florida's Roberto Luongo took a scoreless game into the third period and the Canes couldn't break through until the final nine minutes of the game.
Carolina coach Peter Laviolette, in his first full season in charge is clearly becoming accustomed to his surroundings, because he used a football analogy to account for his team's late-game success.
"You think about football games when defensive players are out there the whole game and you see them in the fourth quarter and they kind of wilt," he said. "I guess that's the mentality. If we can keep going at them and grind it out, eventually something will give, whether it's a power play or a scoring opportunity."
Saturday, it was both -- a power play that produced a scoring opportunity for Brind'Amour to put the Canes into the lead and bring them to the brink of franchise history.
Staff writer Luke DeCock can be reached at 829-8947 or ldecock@newsobserver.com
Streaking to franchise record
With a win over the Florida Panthers on Saturday, the Carolina Hurricanes tied a franchise record with their seventh straight win. They also extended another franchise record with their seventh straight home win and at 10-2-1 have 21 points, smashing the old mark of 15 after the team's first 13 games. Their next game is at the Buffalo Sabres on Wednesday.
2005-06
OCT. 22: 4-0 win at Washington
OCT. 24: 3-2 win vs. Ottawa
OCT. 26: 4-3 win vs. Boston
OCT. 28: 8-6 win vs. Philadelphia
OCT. 29: 5-3 win at Pittsburgh
NOV. 3: 4-3 win vs. Toronto
NOV. 5: 2-0 win vs. Florida
COACH: Peter Laviolette
LEADING SCORER: Eric Staal (26 points in 13 games)
GOALIES: Martin Gerber, Cam Ward
CURRENT RECORD: 10-2-1
1984-85
MARCH 16: 5-0 win at St. Louis
MARCH 17: 4-3 win vs. Pittsburgh
MARCH 20: 3-2 win vs. St. Louis
MARCH 23: 5-2 win vs. Boston
MARCH 24: 2-1 win vs. Quebec
MARCH 27: 3-1 win at Washington
MARCH 29: 8-7 win vs. Edmonton
COACH: Jack Evans
LEADING SCORER: Ron Francis (81 points in 80 games)
GOALIES: Mike Liut, Greg Millen, Steve Weeks
FINAL RECORD: 30-41-9, did not qualify for playoffs
LUKE DeCOCK