CAROLINA HURRICANES NEWS CLIPPINGS October 5, 2013

Transcription

1 Red Wings spoil Hurricanes opener with 3-2 win in overtime Published: October 4, 2013 Updated 8 hours ago By Jack Daly Correspondent RALEIGH With 81 games still to go, the Carolina Hurricanes took solace in all that they liked Friday night about their effort in their season opener against the Detroit Red Wings. Newcomers Radek Dvorak and Nathan Gerbe scored goals. Justin Faulk and the revamped defense looked relatively solid, negating many of the Red Wings most dangerous chances. And when Detroit s forwards got past the defense, goaltender Cam Ward generally looked confident while making 35 saves. I thought we did a lot of good things, Hurricanes coach Kirk Muller said. Alas, there s a significant asterisk attached to any discussion about what the Hurricanes did well Friday night. Just as Carolina was trying to put the finishing touches on what would have been a satisfying first-game victory, Detroit s Henrik Zetterberg scored with 16.4 seconds remaining to send the game to overtime. And then, 3:13 into the extra session, Stephen Weiss scored the winner to allow the Red Wings to come all the way back from a two-goal deficit and sneak away with a 3-2 victory at PNC Arena. I think there are a lot of positive things to take away from this game, Carolina defenseman Jay Harrison said. I think we skated very well, and we controlled a good portion of that hockey game. I think we were in pretty good control of that game. I don t think too many people would argue with that. I think it s a good start for our club. We re not satisfied obviously with dropping the lead in the third period, but there were a lot of good things to build on. For the longest time, it appeared Dvorak and Gerbe or maybe Faulk and the defense or even Ward would be the stories of the game. Newcomers were something of a theme for the Hurricanes on opening night, with Dvorak, Gerbe, first-round pick Elias Lindholm, defenseman Andrej Sekera and defenseman Ron Hainsey all making their Carolina debuts (defenseman Mike Komisarek, a free-agent signing, was a healthy scratch.) Dvorak, who is playing in his 18th NHL season, came into training camp without a contract, but he played well enough to earn a one-year deal Wednesday. Even though he no longer had to play for his immediate future, Dvorak scored the Hurricanes first goal, putting the finishing touches on a well-developed play from Faulk and Jeff Skinner. After taking a pass from Riley Nash, Faulk skated out of the zone and found Skinner along the boards. Just as he crossed the blue line, Skinner skidded the puck beyond Detroit defenseman Kyle Quincey toward the Red Wings net. Dvorak swiped at the puck just before it got to goaltender Jimmy Howard, knocking it above Howard s shoulder. Gerbe, meanwhile, played in Buffalo last season and was signed by the Hurricanes in July. The diminutive winger had a strong training camp, building a rapport on a line with Jordan Staal and Patrick Dwyer. And while that relationship could pay dividends as the regular season progresses, Gerbe actually scored on the power play in the second period, quickly sweeping the puck past Howard after a Faulk shot from the point was deflected right to him. Gerbe s goal gave the Hurricanes a 2-0 lead through two periods, but the Red Wings scored 42 seconds into the third period when a Zetterberg pass from the left boards deflected off the stick of Faulk and ricocheted directly to Justin Abdelkader, who beat Ward between the legs from near the right faceoff circle. Oftentimes last season, a goal allowed by the Hurricanes in the opening minutes of the third period would open the floodgates for opponents. But that wasn t the case Friday Carolina didn t allow many Detroit chances until the final seconds when the Red Wings pulled their goaltender for an extra skater. Moments before Zetterberg scored, Daniel Alfredsson actually had a golden chance for the Red Wings, causing Ward to lose his stick. The puck came out to Zetterberg at the top of the slot; spinning around, Zetterberg managed to get the puck on his forehand and snap it past the sprawling Ward. We had the numbers, we had the guys in front we just weren t able to get a handle on it and get it out, Muller said. The winner then came when a streaking Weiss found the puck open in the crease. With the team we have, I think we re going to be in opportunities to close games out like that and have leads going into the third, Faulk said. Along the way, we re going to have to learn how to win those games, I think. Game 1 I think that s something we can learn from. DeCock: The more things change for the Canes, the more they stay the same Published: October 4, 2013 Updated 8 hours ago By Luke DeCock - staff columnist ldecock@newsobserver.com

2 RALEIGH They were 16 seconds away 16.4 to be exact from the kind of season-opening win that would provide justification for everything Kirk Muller has tried to preach since arriving here. All the Carolina Hurricanes had to do was hold a one-goal lead with the Detroit Red Wings net empty and a minute to go, and they would walk away with the win, the points and the kind of positive reinforcement that only winning can deliver. And then the Red Wings did what the Red Wings do, putting six uber-talented skaters on the ice, and with Cam Ward down and without his stick, Henrik Zetterberg gathered up a loose puck in the slot and scored. The eventual overtime game-winner seemed inevitable at that point. Stephen Weiss tapped in a loose puck at the post after Ron Hainsey was unable to clear the crease. Instead of the optimism of a new season, there was that old sinking feeling. Unable to hold a two-goal lead going into the third, the Hurricanes lost 3-2 in overtime, getting a consolation point that provided little consolation on a night when they appeared headed for a resounding, crowd-pleasing victory. Those are games we need to close out and win, said Hurricanes defenseman Justin Faulk, who had a spectacular game despite the result. It s something to learn from. You d think the Hurricanes, even with all the new faces, would have had enough blown leads to learn from, but this one particularly stung. They fought through a first period when the Red Wings had the edge and came away with the early lead, thanks to a strong opening performance by Ward and an opportunistic goal by newcomer Radek Dvorak. They dominated large swaths of the second, tacking on a power-play goal. It was the style, the tenacity, that really distinguished those two periods from so many others over the past few years. Whatever message Kirk Muller wanted to get across in his first real training camp, it was coming through on the ice. In the second period, we came out and saw what kind of team we are, said Nathan Gerbe, who also scored in his Hurricanes debut. We re quick, we get it in and we outwork opponents. The Red Wings scored early in the third to make a game of it, then piled on the pressure in the final three minutes, getting chance after chance, with first Faulk and then Ward disarming the best of them. It came down to the final faceoff, Jimmy Howard on the bench, Detroit s six best skaters on the ice: Daniel Alfredsson, Pavel Datsyuk, Zetterberg, Niklas Kronwall, Weiss, Johan Franzen. Those trump cards did the trick. It was reminiscent, in a way, of the game-tying goal in Game 3 of the 2002 Stanley Cup finals, when the Red Wings put six Hall of Famers on the ice for a crucial faceoff in the final minutes. Steve Yzerman to Nicklas Lidstrom to Brett Hull to three overtimes to posterity. That s ancient history now. The present offered reasons for optimism, a game that demonstrated the kind of reliable goaltending and opportunistic offense that will bring the Hurricanes whatever success they will have this season. It also raised the same old questions about this team s mental toughness its ability not to get a lead, but to hold it. Muller still has so much work ahead of him there. DeCock: NC State, Hurricanes reach scheduling agreement Published: October 4, 2013 By Jack Daly Correspondent RALEIGH N.C. State and the Carolina Hurricanes have settled their cold war over winter sports scheduling. The two sides announced a scheduling agreement Friday that gives the Wolfpack the priority to schedule games at PNC Arena on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays during the ACC basketball season defined as Jan. 1 through the second week in March. In return, N.C. State will release all but three Fridays from the last week ofaugust through the second week of March to Gale Force Holdings, the parent company of Hurricanes. That gives Gale Force the ability to schedule hockey games and concerts heading intoweekends during the ACC season. The Hurricanes also will be able to schedule Saturday home games during the Wolfpack s nonconference season. We worked out a pathway for us to schedule that we both think benefits both of our organizations, N.C. State chancellor Randy Woodson said. And makes it easier for us and frankly more consistent year-in and year-out for us to be able to set our schedules. The relationship between the two sides grew testy this summer when Hurricanes general manager Jim Rutherford complained in a letter to the Centennial Authority, which oversees the arena, that N.C. State wanted to hold out 129 dates in a 214- day span for 23 basketball and football games. A string of communication between Rutherford and authority officials suggested the relationship had grown contentious. In those letters, Rutherford appeared to be particularly frustrated with Wolfpack athletics director Debbie Yow and men s basketball coach Mark Gottfried. Woodson and Rutherford began negotiating directly in the summer against that backdrop. Progress in the discussions followed in relatively short order. At the end of the day, this is a partnership, Woodson said. It s in our own best interest and the city s interest and the county that this building be successful. For the Hurricanes, one of the primary benefits will be receiving clarity during the schedule-making process. Another key condition of the agreement is that N.C. State will release three dates from Nov. 1-April 1 at Gale Force s request to allow for concerts or other single-day events that gross in excess of $500,000.

3 With the agreement in hand, Rutherford appeared to be more at ease than he was this summer, when the Hurricanes faced potential fines from the NHL for turning in the availability of PNC Arena late. When the Hurricanes first moved here, and the building was being built and we were trying to make it work for both teams and the colors in the building, there were certainly some tough times, Rutherford said. I remember the seat color. That had to be fixed. The fact of the matter, for a long time, going back maybe after a year or two that we ve been here, we ve had a great relationship with the university. Some people like to create a controversy of some kind. It s not there. It hasn t been there since the early going. Staff columnist Luke DeCock contributed to this report. Canes, NC State come to agreement over PNC Arena scheduling By Aaron Schoonmaker Yesterday at 8:40 p.m. Raleigh, N.C. After months of conversations that had seemingly yielded no compromise, North Carolina State University Chancellor Randy Woodson and Jim Rutherford, president of Gale Force Holdings and the Carolina Hurricanes announced a new agreement Friday designed to prevent conflicts in the scheduling of events at PNC Arena. The arena serves as the home to both the NHL team and the Wolfpack men's basketball team. Rutherford and Woodson each signed a document Friday, building on a 1997 contract agreement that outlines how the teams will balance arena time. As part of the agreement, NC State gets priority for scheduling events at PNC Arena, the venue the teams have shared since 1999 when it opened, although a best-interest compromise has been put in place. This is an ongoing agreement, said Woodson, adding that the roughly half a dozen meetings he and Rutherford had were constructive. According to the agreement, Gale Force, who operates the Hurricanes, will not schedule events on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays between Jan. 1 and the second week of March to accommodate the ACC basketball season. If the ACC decides to change their prime nights, we will have conversations at the appropriate time, Rutherford said. Also as part of the deal, NC State will release by Nov. 1 each year to the Hurricanes all but three Fridays between the final week in August and the second week of March. Gale Force will then have until July 15 of the following year to fill those dates. All unused dates after that deadline will then be available for NC State s usage. Gale Force will be required to submit proposed dates for Carolina Hurricanes games to NC State that they will offer to the National Hockey League by May 15 of each year. Subsequently, NC State will offer to Gale Force preferred dates for non-conference basketball games. The two sides will then confer to identify potential conflicts. The dates align to prevent any potential discipline handed down by the NHL to the Canes for failing to meet outlined best-faith scheduling deadlines. In past years, the Hurricanes and Wolfpack were able to resolve scheduling conflicts by playing on the same day. NC State s basketball team would typically play first because it is easier to change from hardwood floor to ice, but even then, that is no guarantee. An exception to the outlined procedures exists should Gale Force book a single-day event that expects to gross in excess of $500,000. Gale Force will be awarded three such dates annually and will need to notify NC State at least six months out. We understand that they need the flexibility to schedule events such as concerts, Woodson said. As was written into the initial agreement, NC State will still release dates every year for both the circus and Disney on Ice as well as claim dates for graduation ceremonies. Copyright 2013 by Capitol Broadcasting Company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Blog: Red Wings top Hurricanes in OT, 3-2 Posted: Yesterday at 12:41 p.m. Updated: Yesterday at 9:34 p.m. FINAL: Red Wings 3, Canes 2: The Detroit Red Wings forced overtime Friday with a goal in the final seconds of regulation and got a goal in the extra time by Stephen Weiss to win 3-2 and spoil the Carolina Hurricanes home opener. End of 3: Canes 2, Red Wings 2: The Red Wings got a game-tying goal from Henrik Zetterberg with 16 seconds to play after a scrum while skating 6-on-5 to force overtime. 19:18 3rd: Canes 2, Red Wings 1: After a fortunate bounce, the Detroit Red Wings got a goal from Justin Abdelkader to cut

4 the Carolina Hurricanes lead in half with over 19 minutes to play. End of 2: Canes 2, Red Wings 0: Despite being out-shot, and losing the face-off battle, the Carolina Hurricanes have tallied twice and lead the Detroit Red Wings 2-0 after two periods in the season opener. 1:49 2nd: Canes 2, Red Wings 0: Nathan Gerbe picked up a scrap goal on the power play and the Carolina Hurricanes have opened up a 2-0 lead on the Red Wings late in the second period. Justin Faulk got credit for his second assist of the night and Jay Harrison notched a secondary point as well. End of 1: Canes 1, Red Wings 0: Despite being out-shot 8-4, the Carolina Hurricanes were able to net the only goal of the first period as they lead the Red Wings, :20 1st: Canes 1, Red Wings 0: Radek Dvorak netted the first goal of the Carolina Hurricanes season as he was opportunistic to poke a Jeff Skinner dump-in past Wings goaltender Jimmy Howard. Skinner and Justin Faulk got credit for the assists on the play. For the Canes, it was their first shot on goal in nearly 12 minutes of ice time. 20:00 1st: Carolina vs. Detroit: Jordan Staal, Nathan Gerbe and Patrick Dwyer take to the ice first for the Carolina Hurricanes in with Cam Ward in net. Tim Gleason, who is dealing with "upper body" issues is a scratch Friday. Kevin Westgarth and Mike Komisarek are healthy scratches. PREGAME Sporting a revamped defense and new uniforms, the Carolina Hurricanes open the regular season Friday night when they welcome the Detroit Red Wings now a member of the Eastern Conference to PNC Arena. The Hurricanes battled injuries throughout a 3-3 preseason, but Jeff Skinner, Alexander Semin and fresh face Elias Lindholm the team's top draft pick in the 2013 draft all returned to practice this week in the final days before the start of the season. Head coach Kirk Muller hasn't set his lineup for Friday's opener (7 p.m., FSN-Carolinas, 99.9 FM The Fan), but he said this week he expects to dress six defensemen and 12 forwards. The play of those defensemen in front of goaltender Cam Ward will likely be key in whether the Hurricanes return to the playoffsthe team has not made the postseason since The team added Andrej Sekera in a draft-day trade with Buffalo, and they also brought in veterans Ron Hainsey and Mike Komisarek. Longtime Hurricane Tim Gleason will likely miss the season opener due to a concussion. Ward is back in the net after missing the bulk of the lockoutshortened season with a third-degree sprain of his medial collateral ligament, and he's now backed up by proven puck-stopper Anton Khudobin, who was signed in the offseason. Without Ward between the pipes last year the Hurricanes imploded, losing 20 of their final 27 games and finishing 13 points out of a playoff spot. "[Anton] Khudobin as a goalie is going to give us a real good one-two punch back there with Cam, so we're real excited about our goaltending this year," Muller said Tuesday. "Both are capable of going in and winning hockey games, in a competitive division and conference, actually the whole season." A healthy Hurricanes team could challenge for a playoff spot this season, although they'll have to do it in what appears to be a tougher division than the Southeast. The Canes join powerhouses Pittsburg, Washington and Philadelphia along with Columbus and the three teams in the New York City area in the Metropolitan Division. Unfortunately, the injuries already seem to be starting for the Hurricanes, who learned earlier this month that top defenseman Joni Pitkanen will miss the entire season with a broken bone in his left heel not the best omen heading into s. Forward Tuomo Ruutu is also on injured reserve with a lower-body injury, while sniping winger Semin is questionable for Friday's opener with an upper-body issue. The Red Wings opened the season at home on Wednesday night and earned a 2-1 regulation win over the Buffalo Sabres. Mikael Samuelsson and Pavel Datsyuk tallied 36 seconds apart in the first period and Jimmy Howard turned away 19- of- 20 shots to help the Red Wings earn two points in the season opener for both teams. Howard is coming off the best season of his career, in which he posted a 2.13 goals against average and his five shutouts tied for the league lead. Detroit, which had been a member of the Western Conference since , got off to an ideal start as a part of the East following the league's realignment this offseason. Detroit has won four of the last five encounters with the Hurricanes, but Carolina has claimed two of the past three meetings in Raleigh. Web Editor: Derek Medlin Copyright 2013 by Capitol Broadcasting Company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Hurricanes begin crucial season against Red Wings By Mike Maniscalco Posted: Oct 4, 2013 Updated: Yesterday at 1:13 p.m. The Carolina Hurricanes start one of the most important campaigns they've had since relocating to the Triangle Friday

5 night when they welcome the Detroit Red Wings (7 p.m., FSN- Carolina, 99.9 FM The Fan) to PNC Arena. The team has not made the postseason since the season, and that fact is not lost on the organization or the fans. The word playoffs has been said frequently in the preseason with coaches and players, but the road to get there has been made more difficult thanks to a move to the newly-created Metropolitan Division. Out are the Florida teams and Winnipeg, and in come the Rangers, Islanders, Devils, Penguins, Flyers and Blue Jackets. That is like going from Baltic Avenue to Boardwalk, with heavyhitters and big spenders moving into the neighborhood. The Eastern Conference had another big upgrade in the offseason by adding the Detroit Red Wings, who the Hurricanes will face twice more after Friday's opener. While these outside factors will impact the team, it is the changes inside the walls of the PNC Arena that will determine if hockey will be played past April 13 this year. General Manager Jim Rutherford stressed at the exit meetings this summer that his team needed to improve on defense, and he didn t waste much time trying to do that. At the NHL Draft, the team acquired Andrej Sekera from the Buffalo Sabres in exchange for offensive-minded Jamie McBain. On the first day of free agency, the team signed goalie Anton Khudobin to back up Cam Ward and then added Mike Komisarek to bulk up the blue line. The organization announced the loss of Joni Pitkanen due to a heel injury, but quickly followed that news with the signing of steady veteran Ron Hainsey. There was not a major addition to the forward ranks, which puts aded pressure on the top line of Eric Staal, Alexander Semin and Jiri Tlusty to duplicate the production that made the trio one of the top lines in the NHL last season. Semin missed a majority of camp with a wrist injury and Tlusty was slowed at the start of camp with an upper body concern, but that line should be able to keep up with the pace set a year ago. Nathan Gerbe was the surprise of camp, earning a spot on the second line. Gerbe signed as a free agent on a two-way deal and made the most of his opportunity and in the preseason. He's now part of a potent line with Jordan Staal and Patrick Dwyer. The consistent Dwyer and fiery Gerbe seem to be the compliment for Jordan Staal s game that the coaching staff was looking for last season. The postseason prospects for the Hurricanes aren't dependent on the stars as much as how the third and fourth lines come together. Heading into the season opener there are still many moving parts to this puzzle. If Jeff Skinner can perform like he did three season ago, the third line could become one that other teams must fear. Drayson Bowman and Riley Nash have a hand in how effective this group will be in the early going and both should be ready to take a step forward in their pro careers. Rookie Elias Lindholm was beset by injuries as well this camp, and the team is not quite ready to make him the center of the third line as they had envisioned when he was picked No. 5 overall in the draft. The early tests won t be easy. The Hurricanes open the season with Detroit, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Washington, Los Angeles, Phoenix and the defending champion Chicago Blackhawks, a tough gauntlet to run at any point of the year. This stretch might not be the determining factor in Carolina s final grade, but it will give a good handle on the work the team needs to do to get to the top of the division and return to the postseason. Copyright 2013 by Capitol Broadcasting Company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

6 Canes Earn Point in 3-2 OT Loss to Detroit Friday, / 10:32 PM Michael Smith Tracking the Storm Postgame: Analysis -- It wasn t the outcome they were looking for, but there were a number of positives the Carolina Hurricanes can build on from their 3-2 overtime loss to the Detroit Red Wings. The Canes got goals from newcomers Radek Dvorak and Nathan Gerbe in the first 40 minutes of the game, but Detroit added two goals in the third period, including one with 16 seconds left in regulation to force overtime. Stephen Weiss potted the game-winner at the 3:13 mark of the extra session. We knew we had an opponent here tonight that plays well and doesn t beat themselves. They re going to force you to play 60 minutes or more than 60 minutes, head coach Kirk Muller said. A lot of good things in our game tonight. That was a good measuring stick for us. -- The prevailing theme of the postgame locker room mood was that the Canes played a solid game, but it takes 60 minutes and in some cases more to come away with two points. It would have been nice to get the win with the lead going into the third. Those are games we need to close out and win. That s something to learn from, defenseman Justin Faulk said. That s the thing in this league: you need to have 60 minutes each night. -- More Muller: Those last five minutes, you re going to have to get the job done. We didn t get the job done, and you lose a point, he said. I thought overall it was a good hockey game. Two teams played really well, and unfortunately we came up short at the end. -- New guys made an immediate impact tonight, as Dvorak, signed to a contract just two days ago, and Gerbe netted goals for the Hurricanes. Dvorak s first of the season was a deftly tipped puck over Jimmy Howard s shoulder. Gerbe potted a power-play goal, as the team was 1-for-3 on the man advantage. -- The second line of Jordan Staal, Patrick Dwyer and Gerbe put in serious work tonight, especially considering they were regularly matched up against Pavel Datsyuk s top line. The line had eight shots (including a team-high five from Gerbe), three blocked shots and two takeaways. We re three hard-working guys, Gerbe said. That s why our line can mesh pretty well. -- In front of Team Canada head coach Mike Babcock, Olympic orientation camp-snub Cam Ward put forth an impressive effort, making 35 saves. It s hard to find fault in his game tonight, as he builds off of his two-game winning streak from the preseason. -- In his NHL regular-season debut, Elias Lindholm logged 9:16 of ice time, a third of which was on the power play. For a kid that s 18 years old and hasn t played in an exhibition game [in two weeks] and missed most of camp, we spotted him in there, and I thought he looked fine, Muller said. That progression will keep building. -- The Canes penalty kill was a perfect 3-for-3 on the night. Brett Bellemore and Andrej Sekera paced the squad in shorthanded ice time with 2:56 and 2:39, respectively. I thought we did a lot of good things, Muller said. We went at them, we were aggressive, special teams were good. Five-onfive, I thought we were strong. --Opening Weekend continues Sunday for the Hurricanes, who come away with a point in the standings in the newly-formed Metropolitan Division. They ll take on the Philadelphia Flyers in a 5 p.m. evening puck drop at PNC Arena. Recap (NHL.com) RALEIGH, N.C. -- Stephen Weiss scored with 1:47 remaining in overtime as the Detroit Red Wings rallied from a two-goal third-period deficit to beat the Carolina Hurricanes 3-2 at PNC Arena on Friday night. Henrik Zetterberg tied the game when he scored off a scramble around the net with less than 17 seconds remaining in regulation. Justin Abdelkader had put the Red Wings on the board early in the third after Detroit trailed 2-0 through two periods. Detroit goaltender Jimmy Howard stopped 23 shots to win for the second time in as many starts Defenseman Justin Faulk assisted on both Carolina goals. The teams looked a little ragged in the opening stages of the game. The shots on goal were even at 2-2 until 8:46 remained in the opening period. But a defensive lapse by the Red Wings led to the first goal of the game. Radek Dvorak, playing his first game with the Hurricanes, chipped the puck over the outstretched stick of Howard at 13:30. Detroit defenseman Kyle Quincy appeared in position to sweep away Jeff Skinner's headman pass, but the puck slipped past him, allowing Dvorak to drive to the net and score. The Hurricanes extended their lead to 2-0 at 18:11 of the second period when Nathan Gerbe, also playing in his first game with Carolina, scored in the final seconds of a power play. Faulk's shot from above the circles deflected off Detroit defenseman Danny DeKeyser and onto the waiting stick of Gerbe on the right side. Detroit got on the board 42 seconds into the third period when Abdelkader took advantage of pass by Zetterberg pass that deflected off Faulk. Abdelkader was alone in front and beat Cam Ward, who finished with 35 saves. For the Hurricanes, it was a night of debuts, led by Elias Lindholm, the No. 5 overall pick in the 2013 draft. Veteran defensemen Andrej Sekera and Ron Hainsey also played their first games in Carolina.

7 Red Wings rally to beat Hurricanes 3-2 in OT By JOEDY McCREARY, AP Sports Writer Updated at 12:34 a.m. RALEIGH, N.C. The Detroit Red Wings dominated the game but had little to show for it until they rallied for the win. Stephen Weiss scored at 3:13 of overtime and the Red Wings came back from two goals down in the third period to beat the Carolina Hurricanes 3-2 on Friday night. Henrik Zetterberg tied it with a goal with 16.4 seconds left in the third, after Justin Abdelkader started the rally by scoring in the first minute of the period. "Got one early, got one late and were able to get one in overtime," Weiss said. Jimmy Howard stopped 23 shots for the Red Wings who never led until Weiss' game-ending goal despite outshooting Carolina and earning a victory in their first road game since moving to the Eastern Conference. "We liked our first period.... We just said, 'Stay patient and stick with the plan,'" Weiss said. "We needed to get one early (in the third), which we did, and that was huge." Radek Dvorak and Nathan Gerbe scored in their debuts with Carolina, which led 2-0 in the third, but lost its opener for the fourth time in five seasons. Justin Faulk added two assists and Cam Ward made 35 saves for the Hurricanes. "Effort-wise, I thought everyone came hard tonight to play," Carolina coach Kirk Muller said. "We pushed. Detroit forces you to skate. We said before the game, 'We can't have a letup, guys. They're not going to stop.'" They certainly didn't. Zetterberg sent it into overtime when he pushed a loose puck past Ward after a scramble in front of the net. Ward lost his stick while stopping a shot from Daniel Alfredsson a moment earlier. "Obviously, that's the way you want to go into overtime," Zetterberg said. "You want to be the team that ties the game up." Weiss a perennial nemesis for Carolina who spent 11 seasons with former Southeast Division rival Florida before signing with Detroit in the offseason then ended it when he stuffed a loose puck past Ward. "I followed up and it squirted out to me, and I was able to get a stick on it," Weiss said. Zetterberg also had an assist for the unbeaten Red Wings, who couldn't get anything past Ward until Abdelkader finally solved him 42 seconds into the third. "We knew we wanted to try to get that first one to get things going," Abdelkader said. "I think after we got that, we started getting some more chances, we really came on and obviously, that was a huge goal at the end." Detroit shifted from the Western Conference to the East as part of the NHL's realignment, which also moved the Hurricanes into the new Metropolitan Division. The Southeast was dissolved. Dvorak and Gerbe were two of five players skating for the first time in Carolina red. Dvorak, a veteran forward who came to Carolina's preseason camp on a tryout basis, earned a one-year contract Wednesday while Gerbe signed a one-year free-agent deal in late July after playing parts of the past five seasons with Buffalo. Dvorak put the Hurricanes up 1-0 with 6:30 left in the first, chipping Jeff Skinner's long cross-ice pass over Howard's shoulder. Gerbe then struck with 1:49 left in the second, in the final seconds of a holding penalty on Brendan Smith. Gerbe positioned himself near the net, scooped up a deflected shot and whipped it past Howard to put Carolina up 2-0. "There was no panic in the room," Weiss said. NOTES: Carolina RW Alexander Semin and Detroit's Zetterberg each rang the post.... Faulk wore an "A'' on his sweater because regular alternate captain, D Tim Gleason, was out with a concussion.... This was the first meeting between the teams since March 24, They play twice more this season. Follow Joedy McCreary on Twitter at Copyright 2013 by The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

8 Hurricanes drop season opener 3-2 to Red Wings by Peter KoutroumpisOctober 5, 2013 RALEIGH, N.C. The Carolina Hurricanes started their National Hockey League (NHL) season with a 3-2 overtime loss to the Detroit Red Wings in front of a sold out crowd of 18,680 at PNC Arena on Friday. For those who follow the team, it may have seemed like déjà vu all over again. They earned a point, but they came up short in a game that looked as though it would have earned them two. However, it didn t come about as easily as it looked, and showed that Carolina is a work in progress as head coach Kirk Muller alluded to a day earlier. We knew we had an opponent here tonight that played well, Muller said. They re not going to beat themselves. They re gonna force you to play 60 minutes, or more than 60 minutes. A lot of good things in our game tonight it was a great measuring stick for us. A lot of positives to take out of it, but we also gotta learn from giving a point away. The last time the two teams met was March 24, 2012, a game in which the Hurricanes led 4-3 before being outscored in the third period to lose to the Red Wings 5-4 on the road. This time, in their first meeting as Eastern Conference foes in the newly realigned NHL, and the first-ever that Detroit came in as an opening night opponent for Carolina in Raleigh, the result came out the same. Leading 2-0 after two periods of play, the Hurricanes allowed the Red Wings to score three unanswered goals, including the sudden death overtime winner from Stephen Weiss to send their fans home with mixed emotions. Forwards Radek Dvorak and Nathan Gerbe each tallied their first goals of the season and as new members of the team, while goaltender Cam Ward made 35 saves in the losing effort. It sucks losing, Gerbe said afterwards. It s never fun. It s a bad feeling. A tough way to go to bed, but as a player you have to find every positive you can from the game and build off that. We gotta look at what we did wrong. Both teams played a tight-checking first 10 minutes of play and each managed to place only two shots apiece on net at the time. Detroit s neutral zone trap was tough to penetrate for Carolina and forced the Hurricanes to play more of a dump n chase style of play to work around it. At the other end of the ice, the Red Wings were able to gain the zone much more easily with puck possession, and gave Ward lots of work throughout the game, outshooting Carolina Playing in his 1211 th game of his career, and after signing a one-year deal with Carolina two days earlier, Dvorak scored the first goal of the season for the Hurricanes and gave them a 1-0 lead with 13:30 to play in the period. After Jeff Skinner gained the zone on a breakout pass from Justin Faulk, Dvorak reached to tip the puck as Skinner slid it towards the low slot. As Red Wings defenseman Kyle Quincy let up on the play while the puck slid towards goalkeeper Jimmy Howard, Dvorak s blade deflected it high into the top corner of the net over the sprawling keeper s shoulder. Effective forechecking work by Gerbe and linemates Patrick Dwyer and Jordan Staal hemmed the puck along the boards behind the Red Wings goal line and allowed Carolina to keep its 1-0 by the end of the first period. Outshooting the Hurricanes 8-4, Detroit increased its offensive pressure early in the second period, carrying the puck easily into the Carolina zone and challenging Ward to stay sharp. As Carolina eventually put its share of shots on Howard, it also got its first power play of the game just past the midpoint of the period. Muller used two different line combinations but the Hurricanes couldn t capitalize on the first extra-man opportunity of the season presented to them. Even while continuing to move the puck consistently through the neutral zone and keeping the edge in shots on goal, the Red Wings couldn t beat Ward. Later in the period, as Skinner tried to play the puck deep into the Detroit zone, he was slowed enough to draw a penalty on Brendan Smith that gave Carolina its second power play opportunity of the game. It was one that Gerbe took advantage of as he put the Hurricanes up 2-0 at 18:11 with a power play goal that came about from a deflected point shot. As Gerbe sat all alone on the crease to Howard s left, Faulk s shot ended up on his stick which he quickly redirected under the sprawling keeper s left pad to give Carolina a comfortable two-goal cushion which it carried into the second intermission.

9 Detroit only needed only 42 seconds into the third period to get to within one goal as Justin Abdelkader put a shot between Ward s pads after a redirected pass from Henrik Zetterberg found him wide upon on the left crease. Holding onto a 2-1 lead, the line of Gerbe, Staal, and Dwyer continued to challenge the Red Wings defense, and with just over 10 minutes left in the period, put more shots on Howard to defuse Detroit s offensive energy at the other end of the rink put towards Ward. With less than six minutes to play, the Hurricanes top line of Eric Staal, Alexander Semin and Jiri Tlusty added more pressure on Howard whose 23-save performance kept Detroit in the game throughout. Ward continued to stand tall as well, facing shots from Zetterberg, Pavel Datsyuk, and Johan Franzen among others. With a minute remaining to play, Detroit pulled Howard and coach Mike Babcock sent all the offense he had onto the ice as Daniel Alfredsson, Niklas Kromwall, and Stephen Weiss joined Zetterberg, Datsyuk, and Franzen to continue to wreak havoc on Ward and the Hurricanes defense which showed signs of fatigue. Unable to clear the puck successfully, Hurricanes players scrambled as Alfredsson slid a pass from behind the net and into the slot area where Zetterberg eventually found enough space through the crowd to put the puck past Ward and sent the game into overtime. While salvaging a point, the Hurricanes were unable to deny Weiss from scoring the game-winning goal for the Red Wings with 1:47 left to play in the sudden death period. Effort-wise, I thought everyone came hard tonight (and) to play, Muller said. I thought overall it was a good hockey game. Two teams played really well and unfortunately we came up short at the end. Hurricanes fall to Wings in opener By Dennis Garcia RALEIGH The Detroit Red Wings switched conferences this season, joining the Carolina Hurricanes in the Eastern Conference. That means more regular season games against Detroit, one of the most storied franchises in NHL history. Judging by Friday night s season-opening result against those Red Wings. the Hurricanes are probably wishing Detroit would pack their bags and move back to the Western Conference. The Red Wings fought back from a two-goal, third-period deficit, tied the game with 16.4 seconds left and used Stephen Weiss overtime goal, his first as a Red Wing, for a stunning 3-2 victory over the Hurricanes. The win gives Detroit, which opened the season with a 2-1 win over Buffalo Wednesday, a 2-0 record, while the Hurricanes look to even their record Sunday at home against Philadelphia. It sucks losing, said Carolina s Nathan Gerbe, a free-agent signee who played with Buffalo last season and scored one of the two Carolina goals. But it s one game in our eyes. This is a tough one to go to bed with, but we are going to have to look at the positives. Carolina coach Kirk Muller said he liked what he saw from his team. Effort-wise, everyone came to play, Muller said after the Hurricanes franchise slipped to in season openers. Overall it was a good hockey game that we just didn t win. With the Hurricanes holding on to a 2-1 lead late, Detroit pulled goalie Jimmy Howard and Henrik Zetterberg tied the game off a scramble in front. After Carolina goalie Cam Ward made a couple of outstanding saves, Daniel Alfredsson sent the puck in front and Zetterberg put the puck past Ward, tying the game and deflating a sell-out crowd of 18,680. The last few minutes, we just have to learn how to defend, Muller said. We had numbers, we had guys in front. We just weren t able to get a handle on it. Ward was able to hold the Wings at boy through the first few minutes of overtime before Weiss put the puck in the goal for the win. I thought for the most part, we handled their pressure pretty well, said Carolina defenseman Jay Harrison. When they have a 6 on 5, they have a lot of personnel who can create a lot of things. The Hurricanes broke a scoreless tie at the 13:30 mark of the first period when Radek Dvorak scored the Hurricanes first goal of the season, thanks to some strong skating. Jeff Skinner took a pass from Justin Faulk down the left-side boards and flipped a pass toward the Detroit goal that was just out of the reach of Detroit defenseman Kyle Quincey. Dvorak stretched and just got the end of his stick on the puck to deflect it past Howard. Dvorek was signed Wednesday to a one-year contract after participating in training camp under a professional tryout deal. Carolina extended its lead to 2-0 on a power-play goal from Gerbe. Harrison kept the puck in along the boards, fed a pass

10 to the point where Faulk s deflected pass in front found a wideopen Gerbe, who swept it in past Howard at the 18:11 mark. Meanwhile, Ward was exceptional in his return to the ice. The Carolina goalie, who played just 17 games last season, missing the final 27 because of a knee injury, stopped all 18 shots in the first two periods. The Red Wings closed to within 2-1 early in the third period when Justin Abdelkader scored his first of the season, beating Ward to the short side just 44 seconds in. He took a cross-ice pass from Zetterberg. Zetterberg now has 12 points in 10 career games against the Hurricanes. N.C. State, Hurricanes reach agreement on arena By Bob Sutton / Times-News Published: Saturday, October 5, 2013 at 00:51 AM. RALEIGH North Carolina State and the Carolina Hurricanes have worked out an outline regarding scheduling at PNC Arena, hoping to avoid conflict that surfaced a few months ago regarding dates for the Wolfpack s men s basketball team and for the NHL s Hurricanes. Beginning in the season, the Hurricanes have given up Saturday dates from January through the second week in March unless certain dates are released based on Atlantic Coast Conference basketball scheduling. University chancellor Randy Woodson and Hurricanes president and general manager Jim Rutherford made the announcement Friday, about 90 minutes prior to the hockey team s season opener at the arena. At the end of the day, this is a partnership, Woodson said. The conflict arose when N.C. State held dates for potential use well into the NHL s scheduling process for this season. The university has scheduling priority for its men s basketball team at the arena, normally needing about 20 game dates. The Hurricanes play a regular-season schedule with 41 home games. Gale Force Holdings, which essentially operates the arena in conjunction with the Hurricanes, schedules an array of other events are the facility. In the agreement, which is a non-binding outline, the Hurricanes (and Gale Force Holdings) won t schedule events on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays during the ACC portion of N.C. State s season until the Wolfpack s schedule is confirmed. Those are the primary playing dates each week identified for ACC play in the expanded league. For the Hurricanes, playing on Fridays and Saturdays has proven to be the most lucrative. Rutherford said it has been a good arrangement for both sides since the arena opened in the fall of We had done the scheduling the same way for a number of years, Rutherford said. and as sometimes is the case, you have to make adjustments. All except three Fridays through the second week of March will be released each year for the Hurricanes use. The outline also calls for N.C. State to release all unbooked dates from late August until Dec. 31 to the Hurricanes by May 15 of each year. Then after the Hurricanes schedule is set, dates will go back to N.C. State to confirm its non-conference basketball schedule. Much of the new agreement gives Gale Force Holdings flexibility to schedule major single-day events, such as concerts, Disney on Ice and Ringling Brothers Circus. Woodson said the university understands the importance of those types of events for the community. Rutherford said it s vital that the market isn t overlooked for those events because of lack of arena availability. After several weeks in the spring when the university and arena management appeared to be in conflict, the discussions rose to the level of Woodson, who played intramural hockey as a Cornell graduate student, and Rutherford. They estimated they had about a half-dozen face-to-face meetings in recent months to help establish a plan that would work for both groups. Woodson said the arena venue is ideal for N.C. State with its location across the street from Carter-Finley Stadium. Rutherford said the outline can be revisited, especially if the ACC were to change its primary playing days for conference games. Until the spring, there hadn t been an ongoing public dispute between the school and the hockey team about scheduling issues. The color schemes are designed to work for both N.C. State and the Hurricanes. Rutherford noted the problem early on when the seats were essentially maroon, and that had to be fixed to conform to N.C. State s red. Red Wings rally, spoil Hurricanes' opener

11 By Times-News Published: Saturday, October 5, 2013 at 00:48 AM. RALEIGH It was almost all good until the end for the Carolina Hurricanes in Friday night s opener. The Hurricanes couldn t hold a two-goal lead in the final period and they paid for it in overtime when Stephen Weiss scored his first goal as a member of the Detroit Red Wings, sending Carolina to a 3-2 loss at PNC Arena. Newcomers Radek Dvorak and Nathan Gerbe scored goals for Carolina. Weiss, who joined the Red Wings as a free agent in the offseason, controlled a rebound and pushed the puck past Carolina goalie Cam Ward. Henrik Zetterberg forced overtime by scoring with 16.4 seconds left in regulation on a scramble in front of the net after the Red Wings (2-0) pulled goalie Jimmy Howard for an extra skater. Ward stopped 34 shots. Dvorak, taking only the third shot of the game for the Hurricanes, poked in a pass from Jeff Skinner. Ward, who missed the final 27 games last season with a knee injury, stopped all 17 shots through two periods. He blocked Pavel Datsyuk s short-handed breakaway late in the second period. Detroit s Justin Abdelkader broke through 42 seconds into the third period with a wrist shot. Defenseman Justin Faulk assisted on both Carolina goals. Canes' parent, N.C. State reach scheduling agreement By Jason debruyn N.C. State University Chancellor Randy Woodson and Carolina Hurricanes General Manager Jim Rutherford announced a scheduling agreement at PNC Arena that the two said "benefits both our organizations." Both the Wolfpack and the Canes call the arena home, and Gale Force, the Canes' parent company, shares the arena for other events like concerts. Per the contract, N.C. State has scheduling priority, but Rutherford and arena manager Dave Olsen said that the university was holding too many dates aside and not allowing enough dates for Canes games or other events. In the agreement announced Friday, which doesn't amend the contract, the Wolfpack have strict priority on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays during basketball season, leaving the other dates for the Canes and other events. "Obviously (scheduling) is difficult to do with two main tenants," Rutherford said. "Sometimes you have to make adjustments." He added that the new agreement gives "more flexibility for Dave Olsen" for events that are not games. Rutherford said that the university still has "priority on all dates," but has agreed to focus more on the three days of the week that are key days for the ACC and allow more flexibility on the other days. In addition, Olsen may schedule three events on any days, as long as those events will bring in at least $500,000 of revenue and are booked at least six months in advance. Rutherford said Olsen will try to schedule those events preferably outside the key days of Monday, Wednesday and Saturday. Interestingly, the agreement doesn't actually amend the existing contract, which gives broad authority to the university. Rutherford and Woodson said the agreement was reached in good faith between the two of them, and if there are subsequent heads of the organizations, they might reach a different agreement. The agreement does not have a time frame either, but both Rutherford and Woodson said they would honor what they had decided on.

12 Red Wings rally to beat Hurricanes in OT Saturday, / 1:03 AM Kurt Dusterberg - NHL.com Correspondent RALEIGH, N.C. -- After 10 years with the Florida Panthers, Stephen Weiss got an up-close look at the poise of the Detroit Red Wings. Then he finished the game for his new teammates in overtime. Weiss, signed by the Red Wings as a free agent this summer, tucked in a loose puck with 1:47 remaining in OT to give Detroit a come-from-behind 3-2 win at PNC Arena, spoiling the home opener for the Carolina Hurricanes. Johan Franzen drove to the net and was denied by Carolina goaltender Cam Ward, but Weiss tucked in the loose puck to cap Detroit's comeback from a 2-0 deficit after two periods. "When you're down 2-0 and there's no panic in the dressing room, you know you've got some guys who have been there before," Weiss said. "Guys trust the system and trust the process, that it's going to take to come back in a game like that. Sometimes it's going to happen, sometimes it's not. Luckily tonight it was one of those games where it was good enough." Detroit trailed 2-0 at the start of the third period, but Justin Abdelkader scored in the first minute of the period to make it a one-goal game. The Red Wings needed nearly all of the third period to tie it, as Henrik Zetterberg delivered his first goal of the season with 16.4 seconds remaining in regulation. The tying goal came from a goalmouth scramble. With goaltender Jimmy Howard pulled for the extra attacker, the Red Wings peppered Ward with shots, first from Daniel Alfredsson, then Zetterberg. "We just tried to get as many pucks as possible at the goalie," Zetterberg said. "I think I had at least two or three whacks at it before it went through. It was a nice feeling to see it go in." The difference between Zetterberg's first couple of attempts and the one that found the net was just a split-second of extra care. "I just wanted to take a little extra time to make sure that I got a good shot away," he said. "The first two, I didn't do that. I tried to aim for a corner, and it just went through." The Red Wings played the kind of game they wanted in the first period, outshooting Carolina 8-4, but the Hurricanes went to the dressing room with a 1-0 lead. Radek Dvorak, playing his first game with the Hurricanes, chipped the puck over the outstretched stick of Howard at 13:30. Detroit defenseman Kyle Quincy appeared in position to sweep away Jeff Skinner's headman pass, but the puck slipped past him, allowing Dvorak to drive to the net and score. "I thought we had an excellent first period," Detroit coach Mike Babcock said. "We felt like we didn't deserve to be down 1-0, but that's the way hockey is." Carolina extended the lead to 2-0 late in the second, when another newcomer, Nathan Gerbe, scored in the final seconds of a power play. Justin Faulk's shot from above the circles deflected off Detroit defenseman Danny DeKeyser and onto the waiting stick of Gerbe on the right side for a shot that beat Howard at 18:11. Abdelkader put his team back in the game when he took a cross-ice pass from Zetterberg that bounced off Faulk and ripped a shot past Ward 42 seconds into the period. "We knew we had to get that first one to get things going," Abdelkader said. "After we got that, we started to get more chances and we really came on." Losing the lead late in the game was what the Hurricanes hoped to avoid. After last season's collapse that left the team 13th in the Eastern Conference, a win in the opener would have been a confidence builder. "We went out and we were aggressive," Hurricanes coach Kirk Muller said. "I thought we had a really good game. You are going to play good teams like these, and the last five minutes, you have to get the job done. We didn't get the job done. "That was a great measuring stick for us. A lot of positives to take out of it, but we've also got to learn from giving a point away." On the positive side, the goals by Dvorak and Gerbe signal that the added depth at forward might pay dividends this season. "Radek's not flashy, but he knows how to play the game, and that simplifies everything for his linemates," Muller said. "[Gerbe] is a direct player and he skates a north-and-south game. He brings out the best in Jordan Staal." The Red Wings, now 2-0-0, flew to Boston for a Saturday night meeting with the Bruins.

13 "It's a real good morale win for us to understand that if you do good things, good things will happen," Babcock said. "Just keep on playing. It doesn't matter what building you go into, the team is good enough to beat you. It just goes to show you, you've got to have your A game or you're not going to win." Game Preview: Checkers at Oklahoma City (Oct. 5, 2013) Created: October 5, :55 am Written by Paul Branecky The Checkers would love nothing more than to head into what will already be their longest layoff of the entire season with a perfect record in Oklahoma City. They have a chance to just that tonight thanks to having kicked off their campaign with a 3-2 win over the same Barons on Friday. It marked the second consecutive season the team has won its opening game after starting their AHL history with a record of They will have played at least their first two games on the road in all four seasons and have never started with two wins. After tonight's game, it will be 14 days the longest break between games in team history - until the Checkers next compete against the Iowa Wild for their home opener at Time Warner Cable Arena. Charlotte As will have to be the case throughout a season that has seen some significant changes to the team's roster, the Checkers got contributions for players old and new in Friday's win. Chris Terry, the team's all-time scoring leader who has led the team in each of the last two seasons, got things going by scoring on the first shot of the season just 49 seconds into the game. Defenseman Mark Flood, a veteran playing in his first game with the team, followed that up with another to make it 2-0, with center Brody Sutter, a candidate for a breakout season after finding his offense in last year's playoffs, broke a 2-2 deadlock with the winning goal late in the third period. Goalie Justin Peters, a two-time AHL All-Star playing his first game in the league since leaving for the NHL on March 4 of last season, made 32 saves to pick up his second openingnight win in as many seasons. Defenseman Matt Corrente picked up an assist and six penalty minutes in his team debut, while third-year pro Rasmus Rissanen had a key assist on Sutter's winner and Justin Shugg, another player who will be counted upon to provide offense this season, also had one helper. Aside from the likely change of using Mike Murphy in goal for the second of back-to-back games, the team's success and the apparent absence of injury may not prompt any other lineup changes, even though there are a handful of options available. The team had four extra players with it on opening night, a group made up of forwards Kyle Bonis, Stefan Della Rovere and Brendan Woods and defenseman Beau Schmitz. Forward Manny Malhotra, a veteran of over 800 NHL games who just signed a pro tryout contract with the Checkers on Thursday, may sit if he and the team elect to continue to ease the 33-year-old back into the lineup after he missed training camp. In his first AHL game since the season on Friday, he played on the fourth line between Matt Marquardt and Adam Brace. Oklahoma City After a rough start to Friday's game in which new goalie Richard Bachman gave up a pair of stoppable goals to Terry and Flood in the first 12 minutes, the Barons bounced back to give the Checkers all they could handle for much of the remainder. Charlotte dictated play throughout the first period of Friday's game, leading the shots battle 15-6 after the initial frame. However, the Barons had completed the comeback by the first half of period three, having out-shot the Checkers by an evenmore lopsided 18-5 mark in the second. They then appeared to wear down late, committing several defensive-zone turnovers prior to Sutter's winning goal. Bachman, who played half of last season in the NHL with Dallas and is thought to be the team's clear No. 1 option after Yann Danis departed in the offseason, could again get the start tonight ahead of Olivier Roy. If so, he will be one of a handful of players with major-league experience looking to get the team its first win, joining Friday goal scorers Ryan Jones and Philip Larsen. Jones, a 29-year-old who spent the entirety of the last three seasons in the NHL with Edmonton, also had a second-period goal disallowed as he interfered with Peters. Larsen, a 23- year-old defenseman who finished a very nice passing move on a Barons power play to tie the game at 2-2, split last season between the top league in Finland (during the NHL's lockout)

14 and the Dallas Stars. A potential change to today's roster could be the addition of agitating forward Ben Eager, who did not play Friday. Center Ryan Hamilton was on the team's opening-night roster but departed for Edmonton after the Oilers summoned him on the afternoon of Friday's game. Top prospect Oscar Klefbom, a first-round draft pick in 2011, also missed the game. Checkers Notes Starting Strong After losing each of its first two season openers a regulation loss in Connecticut in 2010 and an overtime loss at Norfolk in 2011 Charlotte has now won its first game in each of the past two seasons. It has never begun a season with a perfect record, having started each campaign by playing its first two games on the road. Sutter Finds Scoring After scoring six points (4g, 2a) in his first 27 AHL games dating back to the end of the season, Checkers center Brody Sutter now has six (3g, 3a) in his last six, all of which have come against the Barons. That streak dates back to Game 1 of the 2013 playoffs, when he recorded his first multigoal game as a professional, including the overtime winner. Three of his seven career AHL goals, including playoffs, were game winners. Welcome to the Club With his first-period goal on Friday, defenseman Mark Flood became the first defenseman to ever score a goal in his Checkers debut. Flood, who scored a career-high 40 points (11g, 29a) in 60 games over his last full AHL season with Manitoba in , led all Checkers defensemen and tied for first on the team in scoring during the preseason with three points (3a) in two games. Friday was Flood's first AHL game since Nov. 1, 2011, as he spent the remainder of that season in the NHL with the Winnipeg Jets and all of last season in the KHL with Lokomotiv Yaroslavl. Been a Long Time Checkers center Manny Malhotra, a 33-year-old veteran of 864 NHL games with the New York Rangers, Dallas Stars, Columbus Blue Jackets, San Jose Sharks and Vancouver Canucks, on Friday played his first AHL game since suiting up for Hartford in the season. Malhotra, the seventh overall pick in the 1998 NHL draft who has 17 points (6g, 11a) in 41 career AHL games, signed a 25-game professional tryout contract with the Checkers on Thursday. Original Checkers Five players who were in the lineup for the Checkers' first-ever AHL game at Connecticut on Oct. 9, 2010, also played in the team's first game of the season on Friday. They are: forwards Nicolas Blanchard, Zach Boychuk, Jared Staal and Chris Terry and defenseman Michal Jordan. A seventh, defenseman Rasmus Rissanen, made his AHL debut after concluding his junior career later in that inaugural season, making him the sixth player to have played at least one game for the team in each of its four seasons in the league. Goalie Mike Murphy, who backed up on Friday, will join that group with his next game played. New Faces Six players - forwards Adam Brace, Manny Malhotra, Aaron Palushaj and defensemen Matt Corrente, Mark Flood and Keegan Lowe - made their Checkers debuts on Friday. It was also the AHL debut for Brace and Lowe and the professional debut for Lowe. Two more players on the roster - forwards Kyle Bonis and Stefan Della Rovere - await their Checkers debuts after sitting out Friday's game. The Checkers used four rookies on Friday - Brace, Lowe, forward Victor Rask and defenseman Danny Biega. Rask and Biega both played a handful of games for the team last season. Bonis and forward Brendan Woods also qualify as rookies. Against the Barons The Checkers have an all-time record of against Oklahoma City dating back to the season when Charlotte joined the Western Conference. The teams met in the first round of last year's playoffs, with the Barons winning two straight games to defeat the Checkers in five games. Including last season's playoffs, seven of the last 14 meetings were decided by three or more goals. Enemy Ties Checkers forward Matt Marquardt played 63 games for Oklahoma City in the season, recording 12 points (5g, 7a) in 63 games. The fathers of Checkers defenseman Keegan Lowe (Kevin Lowe president of hockey operations) and forward Brody Sutter (Duane Sutter pro scout) work for the Edmonton Oilers, NHL parent club of the Barons. Barons winger Matthew Ford, who had an assist in his Oklahoma City debut on Friday, played 31 games for the ECHL Checkers from , scoring 40 points (21g, 19a) in 31 games. He was teammates with the Checkers' Sean Dolan for one season at the University of Wisconsin. Long Break Following tonight's game, the Checkers do not play again for 14 days - a break that ends with the team's home opener against the Iowa Wild at Time Warner Cable Arena on Oct. 19. It is the longest time between games this season and in the team's AHL history, besting a 10-day holiday hiatus from Dec , Checkers Start Season with Win in Oklahoma City Created: October 4, :53 pm

15 Written by Paul Branecky The Checkers started strong, went into survival mode but ultimately came out on top in a hard-fought road victory to open the regular season in Oklahoma City. After the home team rallied to erase a 2-0 deficit, Checkers center Brody Sutter scored with just over five minutes remaining in regulation to seal a 3-2 victory in a rematch of last season s first-round playoff opponents on Friday. Chris Terry, the Checkers leading scorer from last season, got things going by scoring on the team s first shot of the season just 49 seconds into the game, while defenseman Mark Flood added another midway through the first period of his first-ever game with the team. Justin Peters, a two-time AHL All-Star who returned to the lineup after spending the last two months of the campaign in the NHL, made 32 saves to earn the victory over Oklahoma City, who the Checkers face again on Saturday night. Sutter picked up where he left off last season against the Barons, scoring the decisive goal when defenseman Rasmus Rissanen curled around behind goalie Richard Bachman and found him all alone in the slot for the one-time finish. The 22-year-old, second-year pro first showed signs of developing a more consistent offensive side to his game in last season s playoffs, scoring twice in Game 1 of that series in Oklahoma City, including the overtime winner. After scoring six points in his first 27 AHL games, Sutter now has six points (3g, 3a) in his last six outings, all against the Barons. Until putting together a few excellent scoring chances on Barons giveaways just prior to Sutter s goal, including pointblank chances by Terry and Aaron Palushaj, the Checkers had struggled to generate the same kind of offensive pressure they enjoyed in the first period, when they scored two surprising goals on Bachman and won the shots battle In the meantime, the Barons had out-shot the Checkers 18-5 in the second period, including a rebound goal by Ryan Jones, and tied the game on a third-period power play when Philip Larsen finished a tic-tac-toe passing play involving Anton Lander and Brad Hunt with Rissanen serving a double minor for boarding former ECHL Checker Matt Ford. Bachman, who earlier allowed Terry and Flood to score on innocent-looking shots from along the side boards, improved dramatically during Oklahoma City s turn to seize the momentum, stopping rookie Victor Rask on a great chance to end the first period and Zach Boychuk on a power-play breakaway in the second. Peters did his part to allow the Checkers and Sutter to strike the final blow, covering up for a few breakdowns including a one-time chance midway through the third period. The Barons also hit a post with two minutes remaining as they narrowly missed a chance to send the game into overtime. Following Saturday s game, the Checkers are off for two entire weeks before they resume their schedule with their home opener against the Iowa Wild on Oct. 19. NOTES The Checkers killed a 20-second five-on-three power play prior to Larsen s goal and were 3-for-4 on the penalty kill for the game. They were also 0-for-5 on the power play The Checkers were whistled for 10 total penalty minutes, all of which was divided between defensemen Matt Corrente (six) and Rissanen (four) Center Manny Malhotra, an NHL veteran signed to a professional tryout contract on Thursday, played his first AHL game since suiting up for Hartford in the season The Checkers did not name another captain with Brett Sutter starting in the NHL. Terry and Nicolas Blanchard served as alternates Terry, Rissanen, Boychuk, Blanchard, Jared Staal and Michal Jordan became the only players to play for Checkers in all four of the team s AHL seasons Boychuk celebrated his 24th birthday Forwards Brendan Woods, Stefan Della Rovere and Kyle Bonis and defenseman Beau Schmitz were healthy scratches... Corrente, Malhotra, Flood, Adam Brace and Keegan Lowe all made their Checkers debuts. It was also the AHL debut for Brace and Lowe. TODAY S LINKS AP:

16 Detroit Red Wings Red Wings 3, Hurricanes 2 (OT): Why the Red Wings won on Friday night October 5, 2013 By Helene St. James At PNC Arena, Raleigh, N.C. IN THE FIRST PERIOD: The Hurricanes, in their season opener, sprinted into Detroit s zone off the opening face-off and nearly scored a minute in but Riley Nash s backhander dinged off a goalpost. An early Wings power play had good puck possession but not much directed at Cam Ward.... The Hurricanes converted on their third shot on net at 13:30. Streaking up the left boards, Jeff Skinner sent the puck cross-ice. Kyle Quincey missed intercepting it by an inch, and Radek Dvorak was able to get his stick on a redirect for a 1-0 lead. The Wings had eight shots on net to Carolina s four. IN THE SECOND: Todd Bertuzzi put a slap shot on Ward later in the period, but 16 shots in, the Wings still had nothing. Jimmy Howard made a big save on Patrick Dwyer with about 5 minutes left as Dwyer attempted to poke the puck in from just outside the crease. Brendan Smith was penalized for holding at 16:28 at which point the Canes had 11 shots on net but Pavel Datsyuk was the one with the offense, forcing a save from Ward on a breakaway.... Nathan Gerbe converted on a power play with 1:49 left when Justin Faulk s shot bounced off Danny DeKeyser and onto Gerbe s stick, making it 2-0. The Wings had a edge in shots. IN THE THIRD: Justin Abdelkader scored at the 42-second mark after taking a pass from Henrik Zetterberg that careened through traffic. The Wings kept battling, breaking only to kill another power play. The Hurricanes showed good resilience, keeping up cycles in Detroit s zone and making Howard work hard for his teammates. The Wings called a time-out with 1:17 to go, pulled Howard, and got rewarded. Zetterberg collected a puck last touched by Daniel Alfredsson, held the puck for a second, and made sure he got off a good shot. With 17 seconds left, the Wings had a 2-2 game. Shots after three periods were for the Wings. IN OVERTIME: Zetterberg was denied on a backhand, Alfredsson had one attempt turned away and Johan Franzen another. Stephen Weiss scored at 3:13, deflecting Franzen s shot. QUOTABLE: Zetterberg said: We just wanted to keep doing what we were doing. Nothing more than we can do than just go out and keep playing and keep putting the puck at their goalie.... Mike Babcock said: I thought we started great, had an excellent first period. We really felt like we didn t deserve to be down, 1-0, but that s the way hockey is. They were better in the second. At the start of the third, we didn t execute, but we found a way to dig in and get it done. UP NEXT: Tonight at Boston. Detroit Free Press LOADED: Detroit Red Wings With roster makeover, Detroit Red Wings want power play to be 'spot on' October 5, 2013 By Helene St. James RALEIGH, N.C. The Detroit Red Wings have shown what a good penalty kill can do for a team, and are frustrated their power play has yet to show equal improvement. They dropped to 0-for-6 after falling short on three attempts in Friday s 3-2 overtime victory against the Hurricanes at PNC Arena. Our power play wasn t good enough, coach Mike Babcock said. I really liked it in game one, I didn t like it tonight, so we ll make a couple of changes there. Just, not enough, period. That might include personnel changes; Babcock said he d look at it on the plane to Boston. Having a popping power play against a team like the Bruins would be a boon, because when you are playing a good defensive team, it makes it even more important, Johan Franzen said. The Wings power play has been something of a sore point for two seasons now, despite having some incredibly skilled personnel. Hopes remain that this season will see a resurgence, thanks to some new faces. Daniel Alfredsson is new to the right point, as is, really, Mikael Samuelsson, who was with the team last season but injured start to finish. Stephen Weiss is new to the second unit, where he s with big wingers Todd Bertuzzi and Daniel Cleary. The top forward group has Pavel Datsyuk with Henrik Zetterberg and Johan Franzen. You want your power play to be spot on, Babcock said. Obviously Alfredsson, the way he shoots the puck, really brings a dimension that way. We need Samuelsson to do the same. We need all five guys on there working hard and shooting the puck and getting pucks back. Of Weiss group, Babcock said, I would like to see them get it to the top and just shoot the puck. We should have good retrievals and a lot of crowding at the net with those two guys. Niklas Kronwall and, most often, Jakub Kindl, man the left points. It s a lot of skill and guys that can read off of the penalty kill and take what they give us, Alfredsson said My role is pretty simple - if I get a lane, I m going to shoot the net. If you have me and Kronner shooting from the point, sooner or later, they are going to have to respect that and open things up down low. The Wings have gone 9-for-10 on penalty kills, including 7-for-7 in the season opener. Detroit Free Press LOADED: Detroit Red Wings Detroit 3, Carolina 2 (OT): Henrik Zetterberg, Stephen Weiss rally Red Wings to victory 11:03 PM, October 4, 2013 By Helene St. James RALEIGH, N.C. The Detroit Red Wings showed what their coach likes to call stick-to-it-ness, patiently working away until they could party. Stephen Weiss completed a well-deserved rally when he scored with 1:47 left in overtime at PNC Arena Friday night, capping a 3-2 victory for the Wings after a 2-0 deficit. Henrik Zetterberg got the Wings past regulation with a mad-scramble goal that stopped the clock with 16.4 seconds left, a minute after Jimmy Howard had left his station. Box score At the end of the night, the Wings had a 2-0 start to their season as they packed their bag, Detroit Tigers playoff game on in the background, and headed to Boston for Saturday's game against the Bruins.