All-Time Teams: Hurricanes

Today's team is one of four former WHA franchises that entered the NHL via merger in 1979. Here's the All-Time roster for the Carolina Hurricanes:

Carolina reached their first Stanley Cup final in 2002, losing to the Detroit Red Wings. The 'Canes defeated Edmonton in seven games for the Cup in 2006.

1st Line

 

Left Wing - Geoff Sanderson A two-time NHL All-Star, Sanderson is seventh in Whalers/Hurricanes history with 196 career goals and ninth with 369 points. His 46 goal output 1992-93 is the third-highest single-season total in team history. Geoff's son Jake Sanderson was drafted fifth overall by Ottawa in 2020.

Center - Ron Francis "Ronnie Franchise" leads the franchise in most offensive categories including goals, assists, points, power play goals, game-winning goals, and games played. The Hall of Famer was infamously traded to Pittsburgh in 1991, whereupon he won back-to-back Stanley Cups. Francis captained Carolina to their first finals appearance in 2002.

Right Wing - Blaine Stoughton The Whalers' first superstar, Stoughton scored 56 goals in Hartford's inaugural NHL season, setting a single-season franchise record that still stands. Four consecutive 40-goal seasons accounts for much of his 219 goals for the franchise, good for fourth among all Whalers/'Canes.

2nd Line

Left Wing - Ray Whitney Well-traveled forward played for nine teams in his 22-year career, including five seasons in Carolina. His 215 assists and 0.90 points per game average rank seventh in Whalers/Hurricanes annals, and only Stoughton scored more points in fewer games for the franchise.

Center - Eric Staal The second overall pick in the 2003 draft, Staal scored more goals and points than any Carolina-only player in team history. He's the team record holder in career hat tricks and short-handed goals, and ranks second to Ron Francis in several other categories.

Right Wing - Pat Verbeek The original "Little Ball of Hate", Verbeek played slightly more games for New Jersey but had more success in Hartford. His 192 goals rank eighth in franchise history and his 522 career markers are second only to Keith Tkachuk among non-Hall of Famers who are eligible for enshrinement.

3rd Line

Left Wing - Jeff Skinner Won the Calder trophy in 2010-11 after scoring 63 points as an 18 year-old rookie, a career high he has since tied twice. The current Sabre sits fifth in Whaler-canes history with 204 career goals and seventh with 379 career points.

Center - Rod Brind'Amour The 'Canes current coach, "Rod the Bod" captained Carolina to the Cup in 2006. A two-time Selke winner as the league's best defensive forward, Brind'Amour scored 473 of his 1,184 career points for the Hurricanes - good for fourth on the franchise's all-time list. His 299 assists are the third-highest total in team history.

Right Wing - Kevin Dineen A fan favorite and two-time 40-goal scorer in Hartford, Kevin Dineen holds the franchise record for penalty minutes with 1,439. His offensive output has kept him in the team's all-time top five for goals (3rd), assists (4th), power play goals (4th), and points (3rd). He served as captain for the franchise's last season in Connecticut and the first season in Carolina.

4th Line

Left Wing - Erik Cole A key member of two Wales-winning Hurricanes squads, Cole is tenth in team history with 363 career points and fifth with 34 game-winning goals.

Center - Ray Ferraro The franchise leader in career shooting percentage, "Chicken Parm" led the NHL with a 28.1 accuracy rate in 1986-87. His Whalers total of 351 points in 442 games is a nearly identical total to fellow center Andrew Cassels. The fourth line spot goes to Ferraro for his forty-goal advantage at 5-on-5 and a better (but still negative) plus/minus rating.

Right Wing - Jeff O'Neill The fifth overall pick in the 1994 NHL Draft (which Hartford hosted, btw) O'Neill is fifth in Whalers/Hurricanes history with 416 career points. His games played, goals, assists, and power play goals totals are sixth in team annals.

 

Spares - Andrew Cassels, Justin Williams

This franchise has a fair amount of forward depth, enough that I had two tough choices to make. As mentioned above, Cassels and Ferraro were very close. I strongly considered selecting Sami Kapanen, who is ninth in franchise history with 203 assists. You won't find Williams in the team's career top ten lists but "Mr. Game Seven" means more to the franchise than what shows up on a stat sheet.

Defense Pair 1

Justin Faulk - Glen Wesley

Faulk is the leading point-scorer among defensemen in Whaler-canes history, though he's 19th overall among skaters. For those of you who value plus/minus, his -100 rating is dead last in franchise history. But, as you'll see, there aren't many options on the Carolina blueline. Wesley, a stalwart stay-at-home defenseman, is second to Ron Francis in games played for the franchise and leads all 'Canes with a 44 DPS ratings. His jersey #2 hangs from the rafters of Raleigh's PNC Arena.

Defense Pair 2

Jaccob Slavin - Ulf Samuelsson

The only current Hurricane on this roster, Slavin has scored 30+ points in each of his last four NHL seasons. He set a career high with 36 points and a +30 rating in 2019-20, earning him a fifth-place finish in Norris trophy voting. Slavin's 58 career penalty minutes pale in comparison to Samuelsson, who ranks fourth in franchise history with 1,110. Ulf's DPS score ranks second to Wesley, and his +71 rating with the Whalers is tops in team history.

Defense Pair 3

 

Dave Babych - Adam Burt

Babych had greater success in Winnipeg, but the Jets/Coyotes were loaded with quality blueliners. He ranks tenth among all skaters in Hartford/Carolina history with 196 assists, dishing out at least 30 helpers in each of his five full seasons with the team. Burt played eleven solid seasons for the franchise, placing eighth in team annals with 626 games played. His 28.3 Defensive Point Shares rating is third in team history.

Spare - Sean Hill

Sean Hill scored slightly more points for the Hurricanes than Jaccob Slavin has (so far) in slightly fewer games. He ranks seventh among Whaler-canes blueliners in points and ninth in DPS with a 21.3 rating. Add his positive plus-minus to the equation and you have the most well-rounded rearguard remaining.

Goalies

 

Starter - Cam Ward

Backup - Arturs Irbe

Ward, the 2006 Conn Smythe trophy winner as a rookie, leads Carolina goalies in games played, wins, and shutouts. He led the NHL in games played, minutes played, saves, and point shares in 2010-11. NHL Network analyst Kevin Weekes is the franchise leader in goals against average and save percentage, but he only played 119 games for the 'Canes. Irbe is second to Ward in games played, wins, and shutouts, and he's second to Weekes in goals against average.

 

Head Coach: Paul Maurice** Captain: Ron Francis

Paul Maurice became the second-youngest head coach in NHL history when the Whalers hired him in 1995. At age 28 he was younger than seven of his players (including Sean Burke - by one day.) 25 years and 1,600 games later he's the best bench boss in the history of two franchises - including his current employer.

 

**also head coach of another All-Time Team

I hope you'll join us tomorrow for our next All-Time Team, the Chicago Blackhawks.

Thanks for reading!

 

 

 

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