The calendar year of 2016 has been one of big changes for the Carolina Hurricanes. The overall theme of these changes has been a transition to a younger, quicker team. The return of young players such as last year’s trio of rookie defensemen Brett Pesce, Noah Hanifin and Jaccob Slavin, the expected promotion of Finnish prospect Sebastian Aho and the trade for young forward Teuvo Teravainen give this year’s new roster a decidedly youthful appearance.
However, transitioning to youth means moving out several veteran players counted on for leadership in the past year, none more so than Eric Staal, the team’s former captain of seven years, who was shipped to the New York Rangers at last year’s trade deadline and signed with the Minnesota Wild as a free agent this July. That leadership void will have to be filled, and the team’s returning veterans are ready to join together and fill it.
“There’s increased responsibility all over the place,” Hurricanes center Jordan Staal, Eric’s younger brother said. “He’s [Eric] such a big hole in our room, and there’s definitely going to be a lot of other guys that have to step up and fill that part of the role, that leadership role. It’s not only going to be myself; it’s going to be a lot of other guys. There’s no question there’s going to be more responsibility, and it’s something that I’ve prepared myself for, and hopefully I can do a good job.”
In addition to Teravainen and Aho, the team also added Bryan Bickell from Chicago (part of the Teravainen trade) and signed veteran winger Lee Stempniak. The Hurricanes could possibly see more rookies, such as 2014 first-round defenseman Haydn Fleury make the team. The players already in place know it is on them to help ensure a smooth transition for the new faces.
“Whenever there’s new guys, you try and make it easy on them as much as you can as a guy that’s been around a little longer with the same coaching staff,” defenseman Justin Faulk said. “But at the same time, I’m in a little bit of a different position than I was three or four years ago. I probably talk a little bit more in the room. If guys need help with anything, you’ve just got to help them out and make sure things go smoothly from coaches to players and things like that just to make sure we’re doing our part on our end and letting the coaches do theirs.”
Some of the leaders guiding the young players may have been in the same positions not long ago themselves.
“I feel like I’m somewhere in the middle,” forward Elias Lindholm said. “I don’t feel like a rookie anymore, but it’s fun. I remember when I came into the league a couple years ago; you just try to treat the new guys well and help them out.”
Another factor the players remarked on is that this year’s Hurricanes team is so young, players that would be looked at as youngsters within the league will be looked to as wily vets within the Hurricanes locker room.
“That’s an interesting question, because when I started to play in the NHL I was 23 in Detroit, and I was the youngest guy on the team,” forward Andrej Nestrasil said. “Coming here, 23 was like the average age. Obviously, I am one of the older guys now, and I don’t mind taking a step forward and being a bit more of a leader. I just try to lead by example. I prepare for the games, I prepare for practices and I just try to be positive around the locker room and help out the younger guys who don’t have a lot of experience; that’s something I try to do every day here.”
One thing the team has not done yet is fill Eric Staal’s shoes at captain. Whether a captain is named or not prior to the season, there are players ready to step up and lead the way.
“There’s a lot of guys in the room that lead,” Faulk said. “If that’s the way it is [not naming a captain], I don’t think it changes much. Guys are still going to do the same thing whether there is a captain or not. I think that’s what we had the last couple years, even with some of the older guys; it’s been good. Whenever you have that, it’s nice. There is always the one guy who usually is the captain, but there always is more than one guy that’s doing their part to step up and do their thing in different ways. Not everyone leads the same way, and it’s good when you have a bunch of guys that have differing opinions and you can all come together on something.”
The Carolina Hurricanes are a very different looking team going into this season due to changes general manager Ron Francis has made in the past several months. The new Canes roster will certainly not be lacking in youth, talent or speed. If the returning veterans have anything to say about it, they won’t be lacking in leadership either.
Defenseman Justin Faulk carries the puck through the neutral zone looking for an open pass. Faulk, who served as an alternate captain last season, is a strong candidate for the captaincy, left open after the trade of former captain Eric Staal.
