The historic first week of BEARD Hockey's inaugural season has passed, so let's discuss how your Carolina Hurricanes and Chicago Wolves faired.
The Hurricanes first game of the season was against the Columbus Blue Jackets and was also the Canes home opener. It was a close contest with the Canes losing in overtime. Sergei Bobrovsky stopped 38 of 42 shots and John Tavares had a goal and assist.
The second game of the season saw the Hurricanes take to the road to face off against the New Jersey Devils. Again it was another close contest that saw the Canes lose 2-1. Bobrovsky had the start again and stopped 34 of the 36 shots faced. This game saw the Canes take 8 penalties to the devils 0 and they killed all of them successfully.
The Canes finally got their first win of the season in their third game against the New York Islanders. Jack Campbell got the start as Bobrovsky got played the night before and stopped 26 of 27 shots. Torey Krug led the way with a power play goal and an assist.
Management was hoping for a better start but is overall content with the performance so far.
The Hurricanes biggest success has come with their special teams. The Canes on the Penalty Kill have gone 12/12 with 100% success rate and their Power Play has a success rate of 44%, going 4 for 9 with the man advantage. These stats put the Canes in 1st and 2nd in these categories respectively lead wide.
GM Jay Williams would like to see more production out of Andrei Svechnikov, who has yet to tally a goal in the preseason or regular season. Torey Krug was a concern going pointless in the preseason, however; leads the Canes defense corps with 3 points (2G/1A) in three games.
Chicago Wolves Update
The Wolves have been successful in their start to the season going 2-0 in their first week of play.
Game one saw the Wolves dominate the Manitoba Moose 5-1, with veteran forward Dale Weise netting 3 goals to secure the win. Adin Hill stopped 24 of 25 shots and like their pro team counterpart went 100% on the penalty kill.
Game two saw the Wolves win their home opener against the Moose, winning both games in the home in home matchup. This time, the game was a closer one and it took a shootout to decide the game. Adin Hill got the start again, stopping 30/33 shots and both Boo Neives and Dale Weise scored in the shootout.
Even though the farm squad isn't packed full of young gun prospects, the team seems to work together well and are able to play a full 60 minutes. Dale Weise leads the team with 3 points (3G) in 2 games.
NOTES: The Carolina Hurricanes organization also named John Tavares as Team Captain, with Marc Staal and Brent Seabrook being the Alternates. The Wolves gave Dale Weise the C, with young stars Morgan Geekie and Haydn Fleury getting assigned as Alternate Captains.
The Canes currently sit in 3rd place in their division and 7th in the Eastern Conference with 3 points. Week two will see the Canes face the Washington Capitals and New York Rangers at home, along a game in Jersey against the Devils.
The Wolves will take on the Milwaukee Admirals in a home in home series and a match against the Grand Rapids Griffins at home. The Wolves are tied for first place in their division and the Western Conference with 4 points.