Complete Guide to the 2015 Offseason for the Carolina Hurricanes

Despite having won just 30 of 82 games in the 2014-15 season, the young and growing Carolina Hurricanes enter the 2015 NHL offseason with prevailing optimism.

General manager Ron Francis, approaching just his first anniversary of holding the position, has a great opportunity to continue developing his youth-oriented, defense-focused vision of the future 'Canes.

Francis is currently set to receive five of the top 96 picks in June's draft. Then he will get to enjoy July's free-agency period without having a single key player in jeopardy of leaving the 'Canes.

How can the Hurricanes build moving forward from a challenging 2014-15 campaign? Where does the team stand entering some of the offseason's most important events? How will the team's summer activity affect its outlook heading into 2015-16?

A complete guide to the 'Canes offseason lies ahead on the coming slides.

Top Performers

Justin Faulk emerged as a long-term centerpiece for the Hurricanes to build around. His record-setting 49-point performance—to go along with reliable defensive play that has become the norm for No. 27—solidified the 23-year-old as one of the NHL's elite young blueliners, especially when it continued even beyond partner Andrej Sekera's trade deadline departure.

The growth of younger forwards like Elias Lindholm (39 points) and November arrival Andrej Nestrasil (18 points) stood out as the bright spots in a dry year for the 'Canes offense. Jordan Staal (24 points), meanwhile, was a consistent impact player, albeit not a superstar, in his best half-season since coming to Raleigh. 2014 offseason additions Jay McClement (21 points) and Brad Malone (15 points) helped the fourth line improve upon previous dreadful years.

Cam Ward posted the best GAA (2.40) of his decadelong career and re-established himself as a decent short-term option for the 'Canes in goal.

Biggest Disappointments

Flashy plays proved a rarity for the 'Canes this season as both Alexander Semin (19 points) and Jeff Skinner (31 points) stumbled through expensive season-long slumps. The impossible-to-forget presence of both in the NHL depth chart (and salary payroll) made their lack of productiveness harder for coach Bill Peters to remedy.

Additionally, Riley Nash (25 points) faded into near irrelevancy after a strong autumn, and Nathan Gerbe (28 points) suffered from historically absurd bad luck.

The majority of the 'Canes defense suffered mightily, though expectably, after being gutted in the season's second half for an AHL-resembling lineup.

Final Analysis

A winless October followed by a demoralizing December ruined any playoff hopes for the 2014-15 season early, so Carolina's mediocre finish to remain in the league's bottom five may well have been for the best. As TV announcer John Forslund noted following the team's season-ending home shutout loss, entering the offseason without a false sense of success may be a bitter but necessary aftertaste for the far-from-battle-tested 'Canes to suffer through all summer.

Nevertheless, Peters' squad improved noticeably over the course of the season and can still pull a number of positives from the 2014-15 campaign. Excluding empty netters, the Hurricanes' last five games of the season were all decided by a single goal—a strong representation of the team's demonstrated ability to compete with any caliber of opponents from January on.

Eric Staal's Future

Staal was a hot topic at Wednesday's press conference, as Peters and Francis praised No. 12 for playing through an injury and revealed mutual interest in discussing a contract extension.

The latter will be a oft-discussed topic this summer, as Staal is down to just one season left on his seven-year, $57.75 million contract, per Spotrac. Staal still led the team in scoring in 2014-15 despite tallying his lowest full-season point total since 2003-04, and would be the target of enormous trade rumors next year if he is not extended beforehand.

Alexander Semin's Future

In a rare interview earlier this week, Semin revealed to the The News & Observer's Chip Alexander that his mere six-goal season was "not great" but that he felt better in the year's second half after recovering from wrist surgery and adjusting to Peters' new system.

It wouldn't hurt Semin to learn more English—for better communication on the ice and to defend himself from prevalent criticism—and Francis was surprisingly open about the uncertainty of Semin's future in Raleigh and, really, in the NHL as a whole. It seems likely that Semin's slump can't continue (at least in this severity) forever, though.

'Canes at the Draft

Ron Francis has made the NHL draft the center of his rebuilding program, focusing both last year and this year on regenerating organizational prospect depth and young NHL talent through the selection process.

Thus, his performance at the event on June 26-27 in Florida will be of upmost importance. The first mile marker in the road occurs this Saturday night when the 'Canes put their 8.5 percent chance at the No. 1 selection and Connor McDavid on the line.

The crop of 'Canes potentially hitting this summer's unrestricted free-agent (UFA) market is relatively small, but it still contains several NHL regulars.

RW Patrick Dwyer (2014-15 cap hit: $900,000)

Dwyer's production dropped from 22 to 12 points this season, and given that he'll turn 32 before the calendar turns to July, the ceiling for Dwyer as a mediocre fourth-line winger is pretty well-cemented. He'll be easily disposable this summer.

D Brett Bellemore (2014-15 cap hit: $600,000)

Bellemore will never be anything more than a physical third-pairing defenseman, but he's good at what he does and consistently fills a role in the team's otherwise largely mix-and-match back end. The 26-year-old had the highest hits-per-game rate on the team, which earned at least a point in 29 of the 49 games in which Bellemore played and only 11 of 33 in which he didn't.

RW Chris Terry (2014-15 cap hit: $600,000)

Terry's career NHL goal total jumped from one to 12 over the course of the season, and he had a number of impressive all-around performances late in the season in particular. His shootout prowess also proved a vital ace in the hole for the 'Canes. Both he and Bellemore, a pair of longtime AHL teammates, will be cheap to re-sign.

Notable RFAs (if given conditional offers): Riley Nash, Andrej Nestrasil, Michal Jordan

Contract information per NHLNumbers.com.

D Christian Ehrhoff (2014-15 cap hit: $4.0 million)

Ehrhoff has the ability to be a strong offensive defenseman, but his one year in Pittsburgh has been both unproductive and injury-laden. The 32-year-old blueliner, a former 50-point scorer in 2010-11, had just 14 points in 49 games in the regular season.

Former Buffalo blueliners (see Andrej Sekera) tend to play well with Faulk, though, and Francis has noted his No. 1 free-agency priority is to find a new partner for Faulk, per Chip Alexander. Ehrhoff could be had for a salary in the $3-4 million range.

D Francois Beauchemin (2014-15 cap hit: $3.5 million)

At age 34, Beauchemin will begin his eighth playoff run with the Anaheim Ducks on Thursday—a wealth of experience that could prove invaluable on a 'Canes team with exactly one postseason appearance over that time span.

Beauchemin led the Western Conference regular-season champions in average ice time, finished second in blocked shots and shattered his previous career high with 11 goals to boot. His career is certainly in its latter half, but the effects have yet to show.

C/LW Shawn Matthias (2014-15 cap hit: $1.75 million)

The 27-year-old Matthias emerged as a strong secondary scorer for the Vancouver Canucks this season, recording 18 goals (compared to just nine assists) in 78 games. Although he averaged just over 13 minutes per game, Matthias' unheralded finishing ability boosted the Canucks' rebound season.

Although he's bound for a significant pay raise this summer, Matthias could be a quietly impactful addition to Carolina (especially if Dwyer, Terry and/or Nash depart).

Free-agent information per Spotrac.com.

Assuming Saturday's NHL draft lottery odds are not in the Hurricanes' favor and they remain stuck with the No. 5 or 6 selection, a plethora of dynamic young options should be available for Francis to pick through.

RW Mitchell Marner

Marner is the ultimate hit-or-miss prospect, but the "hit" upside is colossal: He is an elite scorer and playmaker capable of challenging for the NHL scoring title every season. After all, his 126 points (44 goals, 82 assists) with the London Knights this year was the third-highest total in the OHL since 2006-07, far higher than now-superstars like John Tavares, Steven Stamkos, Tyler Seguin and Jeff Skinner.

But Marner is alarmingly underdeveloped physically at 5'11" and a mere 164 pounds, 14 less than Nathan Gerbe. Serious questions exist about how effective he could be, and how long he could last, in the NHL.

Is Marner's immensely superior talent worth the bust risk? That's for Francis to decide.

LW Lawson Crouse

On the absolute other end of the spectrum from Marner (but also hailing from the OHL) is Lawson Crouse, a 6'3", 212-pound Amtrak train in the mold of Brent Burns or Dustin Byfuglien.

Crouse, however, scored only 51 points (63rd in the OHL) in 56 games for Kingston, a far cry from Marner's 126. If he ends up being only the next David Clarkson, the 'Canes might regret using a top-six pick on the Canadian winger.

C/RW Mikko Rantanen

International draft prospects are always hard to judge in Scandinavian professional leagues, and Rantanen's projected rank within the first round is highly variable as a result. The Finnish forward, already standing at 6'4", would enjoy a smoother NHL transition than most and could put his well-rounded game to use quickly.

A 'Canes selection of Rantanen would compare closely to the Elias Lindholm pick at No. 5 overall in 2013.

Other Options: C Pavel Zacha (OHL), C Mathew Barzal (WHL), RW Timo Meier (QMJHL), D Zach Werenski (NCAA), D Ivan Provorov (WHL)

In this time of rebuilding, almost every 'Canes player outside of Justin Faulk, Elias Lindholm and perhaps a few others could presumably be traded. Two of the franchise's most recognizable faces, however, could become particularly common on the rumor wire.

Cam Ward

Ward's strong 2014-15 campaign moved him out of the doghouse, but his save percentage was a still unremarkable .910. He's experienced far more wear and tear than a typical 31-year-old goaltender.

If Francis is prepared to trust Anton Khudobin and a lower-profile free-agent addition with the netminding duties, this summer could be a wise "sell high" moment on Ward.

Jeff Skinner

Concussions are threatening to fully derail Skinner's once-promising career before he even turns 24, and No. 53 is coming off a decidedly disappointing campaign.

Now would not be a sell-high moment for Skinner, but the star winger could fetch a large return on the trade market regardless if the Hurricanes want to pass along his injury risks.

John-Michael Liles

If Francis does indeed bring in a new partner for Faulk, the 'Canes defense would suddenly be rather crowded.

The presences of Faulk, Hainsey, Bellemore, Michal Jordan, Ryan Murphy, a free agent and potentially Haydn Fleury could crowd Liles out.

Peters noted Wednesday that a large portion of the Hurricanes' future defense could come from their current prospect system, headlined by 2014 seventh overall pick Haydn Fleury—who, along with several others, will likely make his NHL debut next autumn.

D Haydn Fleury

The former top-10 pick mostly grew defensively in his 2014-15 campaign for the WHL's Red Deer Rebels, although his sheer box-score numbers took a step backward. Fleury has since appeared for one game for the AHL Charlotte Checkers, scoring his first professional goal.

He'll have high expectations to live up to in September's training camp, but an NHL roster spot is likely reserved for him.

D Trevor Carrick 

Carrick's stock has escalated quite a bit since being selected in the 2012 fourth round. He stood out in a talented field at the Hurricanes' development camp last July and then emerged as Charlotte's best defenseman in his first professional season (scoring 28 points in 73 games on the blue line).

It's hard to know yet how much potential Carrick possesses, and thus he should be one of the most interesting prospects to watch in the year ahead.

LW Brock McGinn

McGinn had an underwhelming first season at the AHL level after entering the season with soaring expectations, tallying just 25 points. The fiery winger is still only 21, however, and could be ready-made for the NHL when he finally gets his first call-up.

It seems unlikely that free agency will produce too much change in the Hurricanes lineup this summer, but a few departures and new additions are inevitable.

The real focus will be on the club's crowd of youngsters—which new prospects will be added in the draft, and which existing prospects will break into the NHL depth chart come opening day?

Numerous important events lie between now and that day next October, but the lineup below might be the best hypothetical guess for Carolina's 2015-16 depth chart at the moment.

Forwards

Defensemen

 Goaltenders