Annual "Where will the Canes finish" Poll

[Brock Anton]

Going with #5. Just don't see anywhere near enough offensive firepower to keep this team in the hunt.

 

[tarheelhockey]

Bunch of negative nancies in here.

I don't like being a negative nancy, but I can't look at this roster and objectively say it's a playoff team.

I think they have a shot if things really fall into place, but IMO we're still a bit of development and a major signing/trade away from having a surefire playoff team here.

 

[tarheelhockey]

If the Canes are WC contenders at the deadline, I think they will push for the Playoffs.

How on earth can they hope to be World Championship contenders? Let's start with the NHL playoffs and go from there.

 

[Anton Dubinchuk]

How on earth can they hope to be World Championship contenders? Let's start with the NHL playoffs and go from there.

cfb playoff team confirmed

 

[GoldiFox]

How on earth can they hope to be World Championship contenders? Let's start with the NHL playoffs and go from there.

I know you know this, but I guess I should clarify that I meant Wild Card.

 

[Roboturner913]

#dead last

 

[geehaad]

The allure of making the Playoffs after an unacceptable Playoff drought is strong for management and ownership. It's a lot easier to sell tickets in the offseason if real tangible progress is being made. If the Canes are WC contenders at the deadline, I think they will push for the Playoffs.

I disagree with this. If Lack/Ward get them into the mix, RF will give them the shot to bring it home rather than spend assets on a changing of the (net) guard...a move that could just as easily backfire and prevent them from making the playoffs.

 

[GoldiFox]

I disagree with this. If Lack/Ward get them into the mix, RF will give them the shot to bring it home rather than spend assets on a changing of the (net) guard...a move that could just as easily backfire and prevent them from making the playoffs.

I agree with the sentiment about not wanting to give up any assets, but any scenario involving Ben Bishop "backfiring" and causing the Canes to miss the Playoffs (versus riding Cam/Lack) seems highly unlikely.

 

[cptjeff]

I voted for comfortably in. I'm always on the optimistic side, but last year, after the slow start, they were at a pace that would have put them in the top four or so in the east over a full season until the deadline, but we then obviously traded a few guys playing key roles, even if they weren't producing well, and we went down to a pace that would have been bubbleish over a full season. We've replaced Staal and Versteeg with good young players who should add a decent amount of scoring. Lindholm has apparently worked harder than he ever has, and if he breaks out, it'll be a big help. Our defense was already good, and will be better- one of the young defenseman may slip, but the others will continue to grow. Pesce and Slavin are older- they're not the kid who gets thrown in too early and stalls out developmentally, which is where you typically see those slumps. I expect them to be better this year. Hanifin, maybe, but he's got a lot of skill. Fleury is the wild card in replacing Liles, we're losing a vet and adding a rookie. But he'll be better than Murphy.

As for goaltending, Ward played very well at the end of last season, and has apparently really been working hard to start the season in good form. I'm sure Lack is working hard too. I'm cautiously optimistic that the goaltending will be better overall, even if not exactly the best in the league.

There's a lot about this team that was headed in the right direction already, and Francis has made a couple very good offseason moves- I really think Teravainen and Aho will make a big splash, and I kind of hate to say it, but I think losing Eric Staal strengthens Peters and helps this team get out of the gates a lot faster than they have in recent years. I think this is the year they finally make the leap into the playoffs, and I don't think they'll just squeak in. I don't think we'll be in the top ranks of the league, but our defense is elite, our offense looks like it's going to be a good bit better, and I think our goaltending will be serviceable. Not a recipe for a cup, but a recipe for a 5-6 seed, I think.

 

[A Star is Burns]

I feel like I typically vote optimistically and it doesn't work out, so I went with bubble and miss. But this team has a lot of things that could go right or wrong. I could see them finishing anywhere from dead last to middle of the playoff pack. That said, I as a fan am actually optimistic and expect them to make it in spite of my vote.

 

[HisIceness]

We all know that no matter what happens from October through the All-Star Break, this team will find a way to go on a hot streak late in the season. Maybe this is finally the year they actually make use of that run. We can only hope.

So with that in mind, I'm picking option Bubble Team but makes the Playoffs.

 

[tarheelhockey]

cfb playoff team confirmed

Hey, Carolina might actually win a bowl game!

 

[My Special Purpose]

I think most of us are still underestimating the massive talent gap we've got to close with the better teams in the NHL. To put it in perspective, we will have the absolute least participation in the upcoming World Cup. We'll have two players (Aho and Teravainen, who, by the way, have *never* played for us) deep on Finland's depth chart and Michal Jordan (who technically doesn't play for us anymore) probably manning the seventh d-man position for Czech Republic.

We've got a long way to go, especially in goal. I just don't think Ward/Lack are good enough to keep us close with the way we're going to struggle to score consistently.

 

[Boom Boom Apathy]

I think most of us are still underestimating the massive talent gap we've got to close with the better teams in the NHL. To put it in perspective, we will have the absolute least participation in the upcoming World Cup. We'll have two players (Aho and Teravainen, who, by the way, have *never* played for us) deep on Finland's depth chart and Michal Jordan (who technically doesn't play for us anymore) probably manning the seventh d-man position for Czech Republic.

We've got a long way to go, especially in goal. I just don't think Ward/Lack are good enough to keep us close with the way we're going to struggle to score consistently.

I agree with most of what you wrote, although I wouldn't say most of us are underestimating the deficiencies. Pretty much 1/2 of the voters are saying the Canes won't make the playoffs so to me, that says we/they fully recognize the talent gap and holes that exist on this team. Even the half of the voters that think the Canes WILL make the playoffs have them squeaking in and very few, if any think the top out as more than a bubble team.

 

[DaveG]

To be fair, it's a total ****ing joke that Buf and Jack Johnson are on the US team over Faulk, and I guarantee that wouldn't be the case if Faulk wasn't coming off that injury late last season.

 

[NotOpie]

I think most of us are still underestimating the massive talent gap we've got to close with the better teams in the NHL. To put it in perspective, we will have the absolute least participation in the upcoming World Cup. We'll have two players (Aho and Teravainen, who, by the way, have *never* played for us) deep on Finland's depth chart and Michal Jordan (who technically doesn't play for us anymore) probably manning the seventh d-man position for Czech Republic.

We've got a long way to go, especially in goal. I just don't think Ward/Lack are good enough to keep us close with the way we're going to struggle to score consistently.

I agree with most of what you wrote, although I wouldn't say most of us are underestimating the deficiencies. Pretty much 1/2 of the voters are saying the Canes won't make the playoffs so to me, that says we/they fully recognize the talent gap and holes that exist on this team. Even the half of the voters that think the Canes WILL make the playoffs have them squeaking in and very few, if any think the top out as more than a bubble team.

Not me, I disagree with both of you (not the math part, though BBA). As I surf down my rainbow and saddle up my unicorn, our ride through the lollipop jungle has gotten me pumped for inordinate optimism.

I voted comfortably in. As a matter of fact, just like Chris Terry was gonna put up 40+ points, I have us finishing 3rd in the Metro.

 

[Anton Dubinchuk]

i STILL think chris terry will score 40 pts this year

for the hurricanes

 

[Boom Boom Apathy]

In fairness, Terry is getting close. He's up to 34 NHL points now for his career, so only 6 points away.

 

[My Special Purpose]

I agree with most of what you wrote, although I wouldn't say most of us are underestimating the deficiencies. Pretty much 1/2 of the voters are saying the Canes won't make the playoffs so to me, that says we/they fully recognize the talent gap and holes that exist on this team. Even the half of the voters that think the Canes WILL make the playoffs have them squeaking in and very few, if any think the top out as more than a bubble team.

Yeah, I know, but if it weren't for Bill Peters, I honestly think we're bottom 5 on talent alone. Thank heaven we got that guy. I don't know if I'd be half as excited about the rebuild if we didn't have the right coach.

 

[Ole Gil]

Yeah, I know, but if it weren't for Bill Peters, I honestly think we're bottom 5 on talent alone. Thank heaven we got that guy. I don't know if I'd be half as excited about the rebuild if we didn't have the right coach.

Do you worry at all Peters is setting up a Mo-style system, where it's built to make scrubs overachieve and finish 11th instead of 14th by accumulating loser points?

 

[tarheelhockey]

I'm gonna go ahead and call it now. Chris Terry will score 40 goals this year.

 

[Boom Boom Apathy]

I'm gonna go ahead and call it now. Chris Terry will score 40 goals this year.

Terry has 20 NHL Career goals so he is ahead of Boychuk who has 12, Dalpe who has 11, Bowman who has 15, Samson who has 2, and Welsh who has 1 (LOL).

We just hooked our carriage to the wrong horse all those years ago as Terry was nothing but an afterthought compared to those guys and he ended up being better than all of them. And S4C was really right when he coined Riley "The future" Nash, who currently had 31 NHL goals and is the best player among all of them.

 

[Boom Boom Apathy]

Bump. Always fun to go back and look at our predictions.

 

[Finnish Jerk Train]

"Bubble team - but will miss the playoffs"

Nailed it... as long as "bubble team" can refer to where they were at for, say, game 76 rather than game 82.

 

[tarheelhockey]

I'm gonna go ahead and call it now. Chris Terry will score 40 goals this year.

I feel like this help up pretty well.