Walt Ruff @ Hurricanes.com
TAMPA, FL. - Trying to predict the Carolina Hurricanes' lineup on Tuesday is comparable to attempting to predict the winning lottery numbers.
Well, kind of.
You can get the Martinook - Staal - Fast line and the Slavin - Burns defensive pairing correct, but that won't land you the million-dollar recipe.
Stumpy's Thoughts:
Did we all learn nothing last year from the Pacioretty predicament?
Don't rush these guys back from injury . It's a long ass season. And, IDK about you, but I'd rather watch Aho feeding Svech breakaways in June rather than October.
Aho, Anderson, Pesce, Svech...? Keep all these MFers on ice (for lack of a better word) until New Years if need be. He'll, Svech tore his ACL like 6 months ago, sit his ass until the playoffs if needed.
We have one of the most loaded talent pipelines in all of hockey. What better way to discern if any of them are ready, than to let them play with the big boys.
Let's be real, we already know who this team is. They will be cup contenders at seasons end. I don't think I'm going out on any limbs by predicting that.
The difference between a contender and a winner are usually those unheralded grinders and unexpected bloomers that round out the stars on the roster. A young goalie with the sophmoric confidence to turn a regular season hot streak into a historic playoff run. A 4th line winger who finds his shot playing on the top line for 10 games, scores the game winner that sends a team to the Finals.
Early season struggles/injuries are often the catalysts that breed postseason success!
All that said, I really don't like the Orlov/TDA bottom pairing.
Might as well put 5 forwards on the ice at that point. Considering the strengths of our 2-way wingers, it might be our best option while Pesce is out... lmao
