Carolina Hurricanes

The Carolina Hurricanes have seemingly become the popular final stop in the downward career spirals of many NHL players.

In recent years, free agents not re-signed by the Hurricanes have rarely managed to find work for any of the NHL's 29 other franchises.

The 2013 offseason sent a collection of former 'Canes packing to Europe in hopes of keeping their respective hockey careers alive.

Now, more than two months into the 2014 offseason, another small Raleigh-to-Russia exodus seems inevitable.

Where did the Hurricanes' 2013 Free Agents End Up?

Seven NHL-level players who finished the 2012-13 campaign with Carolina—forwards Tim Brent, Chad LaRose and Tim Wallace, defensemen Joe Corvo, Bobby Sanguinetti and Marc-Andre Bergeron and goaltender Dan Ellis—entered the 2013 free-agent market.

Only two signed NHL contracts by summer's end.

Ellis landed in Dallas originally but struggled in a fill-in role for starter Kari Lehtonen and was eventually traded to Florida. He finished the season with a 5-11-1 record and shockingly woeful .836 save percentage.

Corvo signed with Ottawa, albeit at less than half the annual salary of his previous contract. He played just 25 games for the Senators in 2013-14, however, and finished the season with the AHL's Chicago Wolves.

The majority of the others played overseas this past season.

Brent landed with the Nizhny Novgorod Torpedo of Russia's Kontinental Hockey League, where he made 18 appearances before being moved to Magnitogorsk Metallurg. The 30-year-old's stat line of 29 points in 51 games would've been an NHL career high by a wide margin.

Wallace found a home with Orebro HK of the Swedish Hockey League, where he actually led the team with 32 points in 55 appearances. Nevertheless, Orebro HK finished second to last in the SHL.

After several months of unemployment, Sanguinetti signed with the KHL's Moscow Oblast Atlant for 2013-14 yet was limited to 15 appearances due to injury. He found a path back into the NHL this past July, signing a two-way contract with Vancouver.

Bergeron took his strange skating style to Zurich of the Swiss National League (also the current home of former Oilers player Robert Nilsson and Stanley Cup-winning coach Marc Crawford); he led all team defensemen with 33 points in 46 games and helped Zurich win the league title.

LaRose spent a year completely out of work after skipping his exit meeting with then-general manager Jim Rutherford in spring 2013. He began an attempted comeback by signing with the Charlotte Checkers in July.

Hurricanes 2014 Free Agents Experiencing Similar Lack of Success

Again, just two of the seven unrestricted free agents unsigned by Carolina this offseason have inked stable contracts elsewhere.

Justin Peters, long past his welcome in Raleigh, signed with the team he has always played best against: the Washington Capitals. As a Hurricane, Peters recorded a 4-3-0 record with a .938 save percentage and two of his three career shutouts against the Caps.

Manny Malhotra, meanwhile, was snagged off the open market by Montreal. On Tuesday, Drayson Bowman joined him with the Canadiens via a professional tryout contract, according to Sportsnet's Josh Rimer.

The rest of the crop remains unemployed.

Radek Dvorak and Mike Komisarek are almost certainly done with their NHL careers (if only due to lack of demand) and are presumably contemplating retirement. They're both Europe-bound, at best.

Aaron Palushaj's once-decently promising career has derailed despite a respectable 2013-14 campaign with AHL Charlotte.

Andrei Loktionov, the most surprising player whom Carolina GM Ron Francis chose to not re-sign, is also lingering in free agency. On July 31, his agent claimed of several NHL opportunities to Russian sports website R-Sport (via Sports Rumor Alert), but the 24-year-old has evidently not yet accepted any offers.

Why have the 'Canes become the last resort opportunity, the succeed-or-bust Oregon Trail, of the NHL? 

The team's perennial mediocrity should certainly shoulder some of the blame. It's easy to understand why a player dumped by a franchise with five consecutive postseason non-appearances wouldn't be exceedingly enticing to another general manager.

Nonetheless, market size and exposure—or, in Raleigh and the Hurricanes' case, the lack of market size and exposure—undoubtedly contributes to the curse, as well.

North Carolina's capital city, in terms of metropolitan population, ranks 21st out of the 27 markets with NHL franchises, according to Ice Hockey Wiki. Additionally, the 'Canes appeared on national television only once in 2013-14 and are scheduled to do so merely thrice in 2014-15; by next April, no other NHL team will have received less TV exposure over the course of the two seasons than Carolina.

'Canes players simply don't get the same level of attention as many of their colleagues, and it hurts them across the board in each year's competitive free-agent market.

Mark Jones has been a Carolina Hurricanes Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report since 2009. Visit his profile to read more, or follow him on Twitter.

After years of falling short of the playoffs, expectations for the Carolina Hurricanes' 2014-15 season have now dropped so low that falling short may no longer be possible.

Last season's 12th-place finish in the 16-team Eastern Conference, coupled with a lethargic and unproductive free-agency period, has dropped the 'Canes to second to last in the East in current betting odds, per Vegas Insider.

Outside of depth additions Tim Gleason, Jay McClement and Brad Malone, little has been done to improve a 2013-14 roster that, despite substantial on-paper talent, crumbled in the spring en route to the team's fifth consecutive postseason non-appearance.

Except for Bill Peters.

The Hurricanes' new head coach comes to Raleigh direct from the Detroit Red Wings—a franchise that boasts 23 straight (and counting) playoff berths—and sports a legacy of success almost everywhere he's been.

It may seem unlikely that a new coach alone can drastically transform the exact same team on the ice, but one must only look back to last season, when Patrick Roy took the Colorado Avalanche from 15th to second in the West in one season, to find a perfect example.

Outside of Roy, the Avs' only significant additions of the 2013 offseason were first-round selection Nathan MacKinnon and free-agent bargain Andre Benoit. Yet the three were evidently enough to improve Colorado in 2013-14 by 45 points (prorated) and 13 spots in the standings. The Avalanche ended a three-year playoff drought, and Roy won the Jack Adams Award as NHL coach of the year for his efforts.

Is it likely that Peters will prove to be the second coming of the beloved Avs bench boss? 

Hardly.

But it is possible.

The goals Peters has set for his new squad are indeed ambitious.

In his address to fans at the Summerfest event in July, the 48-year-old coach stressed the importance of improving the power play, suggesting that Alexander Semin may move back to the point and calling out Eric Staal's lack of man-advantage productivity in 2013-14.

He also noted an extremely ambitious desire to get Jeff Skinner to 40 goals with a positive plus/minus rating.

The Hurricanes offense ranked a lowly 22nd in the league under Kirk Muller last season but enters 2014-15 with the fourth-highest average salary per forward, according to CapGeek.com. The responsibility to get the unit performing equivalent to its cost falls largely on Peters.

Potentially helping the cause may be the inevitable regression of Semin's and Jordan Staal's shooting percentages, which have plummeted to 9.7 and 9.0 percent, respectively, over the last two seasons after standing at 14.1 and 13.1 percent in their respective careers through 2012.

Better luck from those two—along with an all-around comeback campaign from Eric Staal, sustained scoring from Skinner and a more effective season from young Elias Lindholm—could make the Hurricanes' offensive attack a formidable force.

It's up to Peters, however, to oversee such a much-needed turnaround and keep it sustainable until spring 2015. 

The Hurricanes won't have the slimmest of postseason chances without it.

Unless otherwise noted, all quotes obtained firsthand.

Mark Jones has been a Carolina Hurricanes Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report since 2009. Visit his profile to read more, or follow him on Twitter.

Haydn Fleury, the No. 7 overall selection in the 2014 NHL draft, took the first step forward in his NHL career on Thursday.

However, his campaign to become a regular defenseman for the Carolina Hurricanes in 2014-15 remains a difficult one.

According to Terrell Williams of the team's website, he signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the 'Canes on Thursday. The 18-year-old blueliner will earn roughly $2.5 million if he plays at the NHL level for the entirety of the deal, and he received an additional $277,500 signing bonus.

Both monetary values are fairly standard for a top-10 pick.

Speaking with Williams, general manager Ron Francis referenced Fleury's upcoming participation for the Hurricanes at the annual NHL prospects tournament in Traverse City, Michigan.

"We feel very strongly that Haydn is an important part of our team’s future. He performed very well at our development camp and we are looking forward to seeing him in Traverse City and during training camp in Raleigh," he said.

Naturally, Fleury has big dreams in mind for the future and touched on them in an interview with Chip Alexander of the News & Observer in July:

When you get drafted so high and you see top 10 picks make it the next year, that’s kind of one of your goals in the summer. I think at the same time I need to keep a level mind and realize not many 18-year-olds play in the NHL and it’s a big step, especially on defense.

Thursday's announcement does indeed guarantee Fleury will take part in the Hurricanes' training camp in September as well as at least a few of the team's seven preseason games, which run from Sept. 21 through Oct. 5.

He might even play for the 'Canes during the October portion of the regular season, as Michael Smith of Hurricanes.com notes the 6'3" blueliner can make up to nine NHL appearances without the season counting officially as the first of his three-year contract.

Come Carolina's ninth regular-season game, however—Saturday, Nov. 1 vs. the Arizona Coyotes—a decision will need to be made if it hasn't been already.

And it's highly unlikely that Fleury will remain a part of the NHL roster by the time the Los Angeles Kings roll into Raleigh on Nov. 2.

After all, the Alberta native may well enter training camp as the No. 9 defenseman on the depth chart.

Justin Faulk, Andrej Sekera, Ron Hainsey, Tim Gleason and trade speculation-plagued Jay Harrison and John-Michael Liles all sport one-way contracts.

Ryan Murphy is a former top-15 pick himself and will be hoping to build on his 48 NHL appearances from a season ago. Brett Bellemore, who made 64 appearances in 2013-14, was also brought back on a two-way contract last month.

The 'Canes finally have the defensive depth that they've sought and needed for years, but it may be at Fleury's expense.

Instead, the WHL product will join a number of AHL veterans (including Michal Jordan, Keegan Lowe, Rasmus Rissanen, Danny Biega and possibly others) and perhaps fellow recent entry-level contract signee Trevor Carrick in the cast of players hoping to break into that upper tier.

Fleury will undoubtedly surpass all of them in the long run, and his standout performance at July's prospects development camp did nothing to slow the pace of his fast-rising stock.

In fact, in Carolina's back-end rosters of old, earning a full-time NHL role at age 18 would've been very doable for a player of Fleury's pedigree.

In 2014, though, Carolina is a different team, and Fleury will encounter a different situation. Eight players with one or more seasons of NHL experience have legitimate arguments to be included in the opening-night starting lineup, and only six or possibly seven will achieve that goal.

The odds seem stacked against a full-length 'Canes campaign for Fleury in 2014-15.

Contract information courtesy of CapGeek.com.

Mark Jones has been a Carolina Hurricanes Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report since 2009. Visit his profile to read more, or follow him on Twitter.

Two years after the blockbuster trade of the 2012 NHL draft, the Carolina Hurricanes are still searching for the Jordan Staal they thought was coming to Raleigh.

When then-general manager Jim Rutherford pulled the trigger to send Brandon Sutter, Brian Dumoulin and the No. 8 overall pick to the Pittsburgh Penguins for Staal, he thought he was making a bold move to complete the offensive core of the new-look Hurricanes.

To Carolina:	To Pittsburgh:
C Jordan Staal	C Brandon Sutter
	D Brian Dumoulin
	No. 8 Pick (D Derrick Pouliot)

Twenty-six months later, the situation and the outlook has, in some ways, changed drastically—and, in others, stayed very much the same.

Rutherford has followed Sutter and Co. to Pittsburgh, fatigued into departure by years of criticism with Carolina.

Staal has been less productive than he was with the Penguins and has also—amazingly—been used less, as well.

He and brother Eric haven't found much brotherly chemistry together, although new head coach Bill Peters may soon try to get the two together again.

Yet, the two teams remain in very similar states as they were two years ago.

The 'Canes are still chained near the bottom of the Eastern Conference, still searching for that elusive first postseason appearance since 2009, still hoping a young coach and depth-lacking roster can convert on its potential.

The Pens are still one of the best on-paper teams in the NHL, still frustrated by perennial playoff disappointment, still longing for consistency in the goaltending unit.

Back on June 22, 2012, I wrote the following analysis of the trade: "The Penguins' acquisition of Brandon Sutter, Brian Domoulin and the pick that became Derrick Pouliot in exchange for Jordan Staal is one of the biggest Draft Day deals in modern history.

"It's also one of the most lopsided.

"The brotherly combination of Jordan and Eric Staal will certainly be frightening in Carolina, but it's yet to be seen whether the 'Canes will really gain an overall benefit with their best defensive center and two A-grade prospects now out of the system."

My initial take has proven largely accurate, albeit overdramatized, in the time since.

The hockey universe now has the opportunity, though, to evaluate both of the assets exchanged and also the effects resulting from the much-discussed trade. 

Looking back, what has each club gained from and spent because of the Staal-Sutter trade?

	Hurricanes	Penguins
Salary Paid:	$10.0 million	$9.6 million
Total Cap Hit:	$10.0 million	$4.1 million
Future Salary Owed:	$54.0 million	$11.4 million
NHL Appearances Made:	130	135
NHL Goals Scored:	25	24
NHL Points Produced:	71	46

In the standings, however, the difference has been largely negligible.  

Carolina ranked 12th in the East in 2011-12 and has fallen to 13th in each of the two seasons since; Pittsburgh ranked 4th in 2011-12 and has risen to 1st and 2nd, respectively, in the two years since. 

Nonetheless, optimism that more impact will eventually come from those involved in the trade lingers on both sides.

Staal's shooting percentage, a statistic that typically regresses to the mean over time, has plummeted from 13.1 percent in his last four Penguins seasons to 9.0 percent in two years with the Hurricanes. It's likely that the 25-year-old will get somewhat luckier in 2014-15 and at least return to the 20-goal plateau.

However, much of the production increase expected to result from his move south was based on the assumption that his playing time would increase, too, on a less-talented Carolina team.

It hasn't.

On Tuesday, Sutter signed a two-year, $6.6 million contract to remain with the Penguins after a month-long holdout as a restricted free agent, as reported by the team's website. Six years into his NHL career, his ceiling as a strong third-line center is becoming more and more certain, but he fills his role effectively.

Meanwhile, the Pens are eagerly anticipating Dumoulin's first NHL season this fall after two solid campaigns with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton of the AHL. 

Derrick Pouliot will also play in his first professional season in 2014-15, although recovery from May shoulder surgery will probably hold him out of the first month or two. His development has been relatively slow: Of the top 22 selections in the 2012 draft, Pouliot is one of just six without an NHL appearance to date.

To say that the deal has been a failure for both teams would be naive, but certainly neither side has yet gained much satisfaction from their respective return.

The Hurricanes will hope that Staal will finally rediscover his star qualities. The Penguins, and the GM who made the trade for the Hurricanes, will hope that their pair of defensive youngsters can start to make an impact at the NHL level.

Two years later, the jury is still undecided on the trade's winner.

It's very possible that, in the end, neither team will come out truly ahead.

Mark Jones has been a Carolina Hurricanes Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report since 2009. Visit his profile to read more, or follow him on Twitter.

Rumors have run rampant recently surrounding a possible trade of Carolina Hurricanes captain Eric Staal, but the organization should realize the value of the player and keep him on the roster as long as possible.

As one of the greatest players in the history of the franchise and a cornerstone of the organization, moving Staal now would indicate that Carolina is throwing in the towel for the 2014-15 season and starting the rebuilding process.

According to Doug Mittler of ESPN.com (subscription required), “The name of Eric Staal has been floated in trade rumors for months” and “there was some buzz earlier this summer that the New York Rangers could make a move for Staal, but the cap hit makes that very unlikely.”

Making a possible deal even more difficult is the core-muscle injury and subsequent surgery Staal is recovering from, according to the team’s website. Staal suffered the injury during offseason workouts but should be ready by September.

When asked about Staal’s injury, general manager Ron Francis told Terrell Williams of the team’s official website, “Eric notified us of the injury late last week, and flew to Raleigh and then Philadelphia to be evaluated. By having this procedure now, Dr. Meyers believes Eric will be able to return to action for training camp and be at full health for the start of the regular season.”

The reason the rumors began in the first place was the lackluster play of the veteran center last season. He amassed 61 points in 79 games, and while that would be good for a second- or third-line player, Staal reached the 100-point plateau once and has racked up 70 or more points in seven different seasons.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eVMcobDdV_8

For Staal, the biggest drop has been his goal production. He eclipsed 30 or more goals in a season five times over the course of his 10-year career, but the 29-year-old hasn’t scored more than 25 since 2010-11.

One of the biggest issues is the lack of talent around him, though.

Having his brother Jordan Staal on the roster is a comforting notion, but both men play center and are on two different lines. While Jeff Skinner and Alexander Semin are talented players, neither is the playmaker that the older Staal needs on his line to be effective.

Instead of Staal being a distributor to his teammates, Carolina should be bringing in players with elite ice vision and the ability to thread passes in order to capitalize on the sniper abilities of the team’s captain.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zPfmt6y5y0k

Even if the franchise eventually decided to move Staal, his contract would be a speed bump all parties would have trouble getting over. Not only does he have a no-trade clause, per CapGeek.com, but he also has an average salary-cap hit of $8.25 million and will make $9.25 million this season and $9.50 million next season before becoming an unrestricted free agent in 2016.

Few teams in the NHL have the salary-cap room to absorb such a monster contract.

With Staal’s injury putting the trade talk on the shelf temporarily and the center’s contract causing serious holdups along the way, the franchise’s best option would be to bring in better players to help the captain succeed.

Whether it’s on the power play, shorthanded or even strength, the Hurricanes need more talent across the depth chart and better players to bolster the top line. There are a few players left on the free-agent market (veterans Dustin Penner and Saku Koivu) who would be ideal additions to the team and would likely make Staal perform at a higher level.

The hope for the franchise is that it understands the value of keeping Staal long term and continues to build the franchise around the captain for the foreseeable future.

*Stats via NHL.com.

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In a Carolina Hurricanes prospect development camp laden with former high draft picks and major junior top scorers, 22-year-old Patrick Brown's resume and background hardly fit in.

Brown is only a few months removed from his college graduation, capping off a successful four-year hockey career at Boston College.

The majority of his 26 peers at last week's camp, meanwhile, never attended a day of college. Haydn Fleury, the seventh overall pick in last month's NHL draft, actually noted not having to attend school as his favorite part of "being in the NHL" in an interview Friday.

With that said, Brown has never followed the typical path of a promising NHL prospect anyway.

In 2010, Brown had just graduated from Cranbook-Kingswood in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, where he scored 48 points in 30 games during his senior year.

He cracked—barely—the Central Scouting Service rankings for North American skaters, labeled the No. 202 player out of 210 ranked players. He wasn't drafted, but that wasn't too surprising: Only one player ranked below No. 181 that year was eventually selected.

Brown went to Boston College, his dream university since childhood, expecting to play hockey but not expecting to be a star.

Indeed, he recorded just two points in 42 appearances during his freshman and sophomore years.

"Like most freshmen coming in, BC is an outstanding team and there is a lot of competition. I struggled at first finding my role," he told Nancy Marrapese-Burrell of the Boston Globe this past February.

At last, last autumn, Brown's career began to expand beyond the ordinary. He was voted team captain for his 2013-14 senior campaign. According to Mike Cole of NESN, coach Jerry York said he was picked not because he was Boston College's best player, but because of his "work ethic" and "how respected he is."

Brown thrived in the leadership role, leading the Eagles to their second Frozen Four appearance in four years.

Off the ice, he posted a GPA of 3.0 or higher for the fourth consecutive year, earning him Distinguished Scholar status and a spot on the Hockey East Conference All-Academic team.

The most eye-catching aspect of his season, however, proved to be his offensive improvement. Brown exploded for 15 goals and 15 assists in 40 games, nearly tripling his previous career high (11 points in 2012-13).

The performance caught the eyes of even then-Hurricanes Vice President Ron Francis. On April 12, the 'Canes signed Brown to a two-year, $1.175 million entry-level contract. Francis spoke about Brown in the press release:

Patrick showed tremendous leadership and character while serving as Boston College’s captain this season. He has an excellent work ethic and made great strides during his college career. We look forward to his continued development as a professional.

Francis didn't end up having to look too far forward.

Brown's impressive performance at last week's development camp surely gave the new general manager all the visual justification he needed.

Age:	22
Height:	6'1"
Weight:	207 lbs
Position:	Center
Shoots:	Right

"I’m a hard-nosed, gritty, power forward. I block shots, play hard defense. All the things that some guys may not be as willing to do, I love doing all that stuff," Brown told Peter Koutroumpis of TriangleSportsNetwork.

At 207 pounds, Brown was heavier than all but two other prospects in attendance (Dennis Robertson and Brendan Woods) and his sturdy frame and physical aptitude played to his advantage.

Above all else, though, Brown's oft-referenced work ethic stood out most readily. He appeared eager to take on even the most tedious of drills and happy to help his teammates make good impressions of their own.

In Saturday's scrimmage, all three of the former first- or second-round picks at the camp (Fleury, Brock McGinn and Phil Di Giuseppe) were assigned to the White team, which seemed to have a significant skill advantage on paper.

Brown, however, scored the game's opening goal just 24 seconds in and helped lead the Red team to a 5-3 upset win.

His play was enough to make new 'Canes head coach Bill Peters take notice.

"I thought Brown had a really good week throughout, Monday through Saturday," Peters told Hurricanes.com's Michael Smith. "He’s a guy who opened some eyes, and now I can put a name to a face."

One way or another, against the odds, Brown—once an 18-year-old barely given a glance in his draft year, a 20-year-old on the fourth line for an American university team, a 21-year-old looking ahead to a potential post-graduation career in economics—will be playing professional hockey in 2014-15.

He'll likely earn an invitation to the Hurricanes' NHL training camp in September. Few will expect him to actually make the team, as most players of Brown's pedigree spend at least one bridge year in the AHL between the NCAA and NHL.

Expectations for Brown haven't proven very accurate in the past, though, and perhaps they'll again be shattered by the prospect who raises his own projected ceiling with every passing season.

"[Hockey] never came naturally to me," he told Marrapese-Burrell back in February.

"I do it just by working hard."

Quotes and paraphrases obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted.

Mark Jones has been a Carolina Hurricanes Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report since 2009. Visit his profile to read more, or follow him on Twitter.

The Carolina Hurricanes and shootouts have, historically, not mixed well.

Over the past three seasons, the 'Canes are 4-11 in the controversial tiebreaking skills competition, having been outscored 10-18. 

Meanwhile, the Detroit Red Wings are a more respectable 16-17 over the same time span, having outscored opponents 31-30. New Hurricanes coach Bill Peters hails from that background, and he will certainly need to overhaul his new team's shootout tactics soon.

At his introductory press conference last month, Peters didn't name shootouts as one of his three focus areas for improvement, but he easily could have.

Peters discussed shootouts at a Saturday Q&A session with fans, noting that one of the next items on his agenda would be to gather career shootout success rates for each 'Canes player.

He also said that most coaches are too rigid with their shootout selections, expressing a willingness to change the cast of three shooters frequently and consider defensemen for selection as well.

Peters will find, for the most part, very little to work with.

Player	Goals	Attempts	Conversion Rate
Alexander Semin	15	47	31.9%
Jeff Skinner	6	21	28.6%
Eric Staal	4	19	21.1%
Nathan Gerbe	4	11	36.4%
Riley Nash	2	4	50%
Jay McClement	2	4	50%
Jiri Tlusty	0	3	0%
Chris Terry	2	2	100%
John-Michael Liles	1	2	50%

For reference, the league-wide conversion rate in 2013-14 was 31.6 percent, a mark only Nathan Gerbe and Alexander Semin top—and neither have yet scored their first shootout goal in a 'Canes jersey.

Peters will discover it isn't much prettier on the goaltending side.

Among active NHL netminders who have faced more than 100 career shootout attempts, Cam Ward's .617 save percentage and 11-25 record are third-worst and worst, respectively. Anton Khudobin has faced just six attempts in his blossoming career, and he has saved five of them.

However, if Peters digs deeply, he'll also see that Chris Terry, longtime star for the AHL Charlotte Checkers and an expected training camp contender for an NHL job, is 16-of-35 on shootouts attempts with Charlotte over the past four years (and was four of six in 2013-14).

Terry also attempted two shootout attempts for the 'Canes in 2013-14...and scored on both.

Should Terry gain a leg up on his competition—likely composed of Zach Boychuk, Brock McGinn, Brad Malone and others—because of such a specialty? In today's NHL, it's justifiable.

Throughout the Hurricanes' weeklong prospect development camp, it was clear that shootouts were a significant part of the on-ice work. It was also clear that the next generation of NHL stars, who grew up more familiar with shootouts (which were introduced to the NHL in 2005) than their predecessors, will be better than ever at the skills competition.

Camp invitee Brady Vail, a 2012 fourth-round draft pick of Montreal who became a free agent this spring, excelled in the one-on-one situation. Vail converted five of seven attempts over the course of Friday and Saturday alone, including a goal on his attempt at Saturday's Summerfest scrimmage.

Peters was surprisingly heavily involved in the camp and surely noticed Vail's skill. Alex Aleardi, Bryan Moore and Clark Bishop (2014 fifth-round pick) also scored in the post-scrimmage shootout, while 2012 second-round selection Phil Di Giuseppe (who scored twice in regular play) pulled a nice move but hit the post.

If the future of the 'Canes holds shootout promise, though, the present still needs work.

Out of all remaining free-agent forwards, only Devin Setoguchi has been consistently reliable in shootouts in recent years, converting nine of 17 attempts over the past three seasons.

With outside help seeming unlikely at this point, improvement will be achieved solely through practice, coaching and experience.

Quotes and paraphrases obtained firsthand, unless otherwise noted.

Mark Jones has been a Carolina Hurricanes Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report since 2009. Visit his profile to read more, or follow him on Twitter.

The first professional season for Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Ryan Murphy began strong, faltered late and answered few questions about the former first-round pick's future.

Murphy, the 12th overall selection in the 2011 NHL draft, appeared in 48 games—but only 10 in the second half of the season—for Carolina in 2013-14.

His final NHL total of 12 points fell far short of expectations for the offensive defenseman and power-play specialist, especially considering his 48 points in 54 OHL games in 2012-13.

Despite the benefit of starting 60.9 percent of his shifts in the offensive zone, Murphy still fell in the negatives in shot-attempt differential (Corsi rating), per Extra Skater data.

GP	Goals	Assists	Points	PIM	+/- Rating
48	2	10	12	10	-9

Murphy blossomed as a blue-line playmaking machine in the AHL, scoring at a point-per-game pace as he spent the majority of the spring with the Charlotte Checkers.

But a worrisome trend is emerging: The undersized 5'11", 185-pound defenseman consistently dominates against lesser competition, but such success has not yet been duplicated or even briefly flashed in the big leagues.

Murphy played in 21 'Canes wins and averaged 16 minutes, 32 seconds of ice time in those games. Murphy also played in 27 'Canes losses and averaged 19:38 of ice time.

Clearly, the larger the role and greater the responsibility given to Murphy, the worse the team as a whole fared.

Even the power play, touted as Murphy's greatest strength entering last fall, proved more effective when No. 7 was out of the lineup.

	Goals	Attempts	Conversion Rate
With Murphy in Lineup	22	162	13.4%
Without Murphy in Lineup	19	119	16.0%
Total	41	281	14.6%

Interestingly, through March 16, the opposite was actually the case: The Hurricanes' power-play conversion rate was 13.9 percent with Murphy in the lineup and 9.9 percent without him.

The unit finally found its stride in the season's final stretch, however, scoring 11 goals out of 42 opportunities (a whopping 26.2 percent conversion rate) in the season's final 14 games. Murphy appeared in only two of the 14, and the 'Canes did not score a power-play tally in either contest.

Murphy's struggles and inefficiencies of 2013-14 will be quickly forgotten if he can grow from his experiences in 2014-15.

The 'Canes desperately need him to.

Beneath first-pairing studs Andrej Sekera and Justin Faulk, Carolina appears again destined for second-pairing turmoil: It has only a vast but star-lacking cast of depth defensemen to choose from.

Ron Hainsey likely enters training camp as the most highly regarded player of the bunch, but it's implausible that any of John-Michael Liles, Jay Harrison or Tim Gleason will also emerge as a viable 20-minutes-a-night rearguard.

While a few free-agent options remain—Michael Del Zotto, Andre Benoit and Derek Morris stand out as the most worthwhile—the Hurricanes' best hope may be for Murphy to at last grow into a second-pairing role.

Unfortunately, Murphy hasn't shown much chemistry with Hainsey in the past. The youngster spent 23.5 percent of his 2013-14 ice time paired with Hainsey (he was paired with only Harrison more often) but registered zero points in those 165 minutes of shared ice time, according to HockeyAnalysis.com.

The question may ultimately rest on No. 7's ability to add more bulk to his small frame. While his excellent skating ability is well-suited to be used as a hockey-style "point guard," Murphy can't be sufficiently trusted in his own zone until he shows more strength in board and net battles.

The power play remains a priority as well and perhaps one where Murphy could really make his presence felt.

New coach Bill Peters stressed the power play as one of his major points of focus entering 2014-15. Murphy has the ideal skill set to play quarterback in an umbrella-style formation, if the 'Canes do switch up their man-advantage tactics.

For a variety of reasons, a breakout season from Murphy could provide a much-needed boost to the Hurricanes in the coming year.

Mark Jones has been a Carolina Hurricanes Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report since 2009. Visit his profile to read more or follow him on Twitter.