CAROLINA HURRICANES NEWS CLIPPINGS May 22, 2017

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1 Four Hurricanes win gold medals for Sweden in Worlds By Chip Alexander After missing the Stanley Cup playoffs for an eighth straight year, the Carolina Hurricanes had seven players compete in the 2017 IIHF World Championship. Four wound up with gold medals draped around their necks Sunday forwards Elias Lindholm, Victor Rask and Joakim Nordstrom, and goalie Eddie Lack of Sweden. Jeff Skinner of Canada finished with a silver. Canada was favored to win a third straight championship in the Worlds. Canes coach Bill Peters was an assistant coach for Team Canada when it won in 2015, then the head coach for Canada albeit minus Skinner a year ago, returning to Raleigh with gold. But the Swedes won the gold-medal game 2-1 Sunday in a shootout, at Lanxess Arena in Cologne, Germany. Forward William Nylander of the Toronto Maple Leafs was named the MVP of the tournament, and Lindholm, Rask and Nordstrom gave the Swedes good, consistent play and hustle throughout the Worlds -- Rask and Lindholm often used on the same line. Canes forward Sebastian Aho of Finland and defenseman Noah Hanifin of Team USA were denied medals. The Finns ousted the U.S. 2-0 in the quarterfinals, then were beaten 4-1 by Sweden in the semifinals. Russia took third place and the bronze medal Sunday with a 5-3 win over Finland, although Aho, who had two assists, was named Finland s player of the game. In the gold-medal game, Sweden scored on a shorthanded goal by Victor Hedman late in the second period and Canada on a power-play goal by Ryan O Reilly in the third. After a 20-minute overtime period, the gold medals were decided in a shootout. Nicklas Backstrom and Oliver Ekman-Larsson scored shootout goals for Sweden and goalie Henrik Lundqvist stopped the four shots he faced. Lundqvist was named Sweden s player of the game and goalie Calvin Pickard was chosen Canada s player of the game. Aho finished the tournament with 11 points in 10 games, with two goals and nine assists. Skinner, who turned 25 during the tournament, had four goals and five assists in 10 games for Canada. Lindholm and Rask each had seven points for Sweden Lindholm with five goals and two assists, Rask with two goals and five assists. Nordstrom had a goal in the semifinals against Finland and followed it up with a strong two-way game Sunday. Lack had a 19-save, 2-0 shutout of Latvia in his only start and was used as a backup. Four Canes Bringing Home Gold Medals from Worlds Sweden tops Canada, 2-1, in championship thriller by Michael / CarolinaHurricanes.com May 21st, 2017 Four Carolina Hurricanes are golden, winning the 2017 IIHF World Championship, while another is bringing home a silver medal. Elias Lindholm, Victor Rask, Joakim Nordstrom, Eddie Lack: Sweden In a match-up with their neighboring country Finland in the semifinals, the Swedes scored twice in the second period to break a 1-1 tie and earn a berth in the gold medal game in a 4-1 victory. Joakim Nordstrom scored his first goal of the tournament to pad Team Sweden's lead to three in the third period. Elias Lindholm registered a team-high six shots on goal and was a plus-1, and Victor Rask fired two of his team's 41 shots on net. The gold medal match versus Team Canada required a shootout to settle the score, the first time that's happened in the championship game since Nicklas Backstrom and Oliver Eckman-Larsson scored for the Swedes in the fiveplayer shootout, while Henrik Lundqvist stopped all four

2 shots he faced as Team Sweden skated away with gold medals in a 2-1 victory. Nordstrom posted a team-high six shots on goal in 18:16 of ice time in the championship game. Lindholm played nearly 24 minutes and recorded two shots and two penalty minutes, and Rask skated in 22:41 of ice time and notched a shot in overtime. This marks the first World Championship gold medal for all four Swedish Hurricanes. Jeff Skinner: Canada Team Canada topped the Russian national team, 4-2, in the semifinals to advance to the championship, where it was looking for its third straight gold medal. Jeff Skinner recorded three shots on goal in both the semifinal match and the gold medal game, but, as noted above, the Swedes scored a 2-1 shootout victory in the championship to snag gold. Skinner, in his fourth appearance in the World Championship, brings home a silver medal. Skinner finished the tournament as a plus-8, ranking tied for third among all tournament skaters. He also ranked third on his team in scoring with nine points (4g, 5a) in 10 tournament games. Sebastian Aho: Finland After knocking out Noah Hanifin and Team USA from the tournament, Sebastian Aho and the Finns faced off with Sweden in the semifinal round. The Swedes proved too much, pouring 41 shots on goal in a 4-1 win. Aho tallied two shots on goal, as Team Finland would square off with the Russians for bronze. In the bronze medal match on Sunday, Aho recorded two assists and three shots on goal in over 20 minutes of ice time and earned team player of the game honors, but the Russian national team took third place in a 5-3 decision. Aho ranked first on his team and in the top 10 of all tournament skaters with 11 points in 10 games. Aho also paced his team and ranked third among all tournament skaters in assists (9). Fleury, Wallmark hope AHL success leads to NHL jobs Andrew Schnittker, Sports Editor May 17, 2017 Though the Carolina Hurricanes season did not end in snapping the team s NHL-leading playoff drought as it had hoped, that does not mean there was no playoff hockey in North Carolina this year. The Canes farm team, the Charlotte Checkers, made a strong late charge to qualify for the Calder Cup playoffs in the AHL. Though the team fell to the top-seeded Chicago Wolves in its first-round series, the experience will be beneficial to the baby Canes going forward. Several players on the team will hope to use their strong performances down the stretch and experience in the postseason as a springboard to compete for a job with the big club next fall. Chief among those are defenseman Haydn Fleury and forward Lucas Wallmark. Fleury, the Hurricanes first-round draft pick at seventh overall in 2014, and the first draft choice of general manager Ron Francis tenure with the Canes, turned pro this season after spending his first two post-draft years with the Red Deer Rebels of the WHL. The blueliner had a strong second half after an adjustment period to the pro game, growing on both sides of the puck as he ended up posting 7 goals and 26 points in 69 games for the season. I think [my game has] grown in every area, Fleury said after the Checkers game-one win over the Wolves at Bojangles coliseum in Charlotte. I ve started to excel towards the end of the season offensively. I think I owe a lot of that to my strong play defensively. I got better in the defensive zone, which means I wasn t playing in there as much. I d rather get my offensive rhythm going and play in the offensive zone. Fleury need not look far from Carolina for hope to translate his AHL success into production in the NHL. The Cleveland Monsters (formerly Lake Erie Monsters), the affiliate of one of the Canes Metropolitan Division opponents in the Columbus Blue Jackets, won the Calder Cup in 2016, with defenseman Zach Werenski making a big impact on that run. In his rookie season with the Blue Jackets this year, Werenski put up 47 points in 78 games, and was named one of the three finalists for the Calder Memorial Trophy, given to the NHL s rookie of the year. I think if you look at Cleveland last year, Werenski came in from college, got hot and made the big club the next year, Fleury said. You look at guys like that, and you want to have a good showing when the stage is at its highest. Joining Fleury as a rookie of sorts in Charlotte was the team s head coach, Ulf Samuelsson, who spent his first year as a head coach in the AHL. Samuelsson saw his young defenseman grow as the Checkers season went along. He s kind of taken a step each month, almost, Samuelsson said. Maybe the last month was the biggest step he s taken. He s taken over now using his size; he s hard to play against. He s always been good joining the rush and jumping up, but he s turned into a really good two-way defenseman. Wallmark, another pick from Francis first draft class (fourth round), also made his mark in his first pro season, coming across the pond to join the Checkers this year. The rookie

3 Swede led Charlotte with 24 goals and finished second in points with 46. I d been playing professionally back home in Sweden for a couple years, Wallmark said. I think that helped me get into it and get a big role here. I played a lot. You get confidence when you do something good out there. Just keep going and try to work hard every day. It s been a fun season so far. Wallmark s strong play down on the farm earned him a cup of coffee with the Hurricanes this year, as he posted two assists during an eight-game callup. Wallmark worked to apply what he learned in his NHL stint to the AHL playoffs, and carry it forward towards trying to earn a job next year. It was fun to be up there, Wallmark said. It was just a couple of games, but that s what you re working for every day. When you come back here, you try to take advantage of that speed and skill up there and bring it into the games here. It helped me a lot when I was up there and then came back here. Wallmark impressed his coach as well in his first year playing in North America. He s grown tremendously as a player, Samuelsson said. He came over and started playing on the small ice. This year was his first year. He had some learning curves there initially, but he is such a smart player. I m so excited that he s getting rewarded with some points there as well. Strong showings from rookies has been nothing new for the Hurricanes in recent years. Finnish forward Sebastian Aho enjoyed a banner campaign this year, while the defensive trio of Jaccob Slavin, Brett Pesce and Noah Hanifin made their mark a season ago. If the Canes are looking for contributions from first-year players once again next October, Fleury and Wallmark will be two to watch after their big year down on the farm. Penguins cruise past Senators in Game 5, take 3-2 series lead Pittsburgh scores three power-play goals to move within one win of second straight Cup Final appearance by Wes Crosby / NHL.com Correspondent May 21st, 2017 PITTSBURGH -- Throughout the Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Pittsburgh Penguins have searched for the same overwhelming speed they used to win the Stanley Cup last season. They found it Sunday. Four first-period goals helped the Penguins defeat the Ottawa Senators 7-0 in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Final at PPG Paints Arena. Pittsburgh, which is one win away from reaching the Stanley Cup Final for the second straight season, leads the best-of-7 series 3-2 with Game 6 in Ottawa on Tuesday. "Obviously, the team played extremely well tonight," Penguins coach Mike Sullivan said. "Every line, we liked. It was a solid effort. This was one of the more complete efforts, for sure. We've had a few of them. This is one of them. I thought our guys had a readiness about them tonight that we're going to need moving forward." Matt Murray made 25 saves for the Penguins for his second shutout in 24 career Stanley Cup Playoff games. Olli Maatta scored his second goal in as many games to give the Penguins a 1-0 lead at 8:14 of the first before Sidney Crosby scored a power-play goal in a third straight game to extend it to 2-0 at 12:03. Bryan Rust, who returned after missing two games with an upper-body injury, scored with 3:56 left in the first for a 3-0 lead. The Senators pulled Craig Anderson after Rust's goal. Mike Condon made one save in 1:28 of relief before Anderson returned to the net following a media timeout with 2:29 remaining in the first. Senators coach Guy Boucher said he informed Anderson he had taken him out to stall without taking a timeout. Anderson allowed a goal to Scott Wilson who backhanded a rebound off his skate to make it 4-0 with 1:43 left in the first. Condon, who made 19 saves on 22 shots, took over again to start the second period. Anderson made 10 saves on 14 shots. "[I] put [Anderson] back in because he's my man," Boucher said. "I have total confidence in him. I want him to know that. I want him to go back out there. When I saw where the game was going, he didn't have to live that." Matt Cullen made it 5-0 at 1:54 of the second period, Phil Kessel pushed it to 6-0 with a power-play goal 50 seconds into the third period and Trevor Daley scored the third powerplay goal of the game for Pittsburgh at 8:49 to make it 7-0. Crosby, who had a goal and an assist, passed Anaheim Ducks forward Ryan Getzlaf (18 points) for second in playoff scoring with 19 points. Evgeni Malkin, who had three assists, leads with 23 points.

4 "I just think we capitalized on our chances," Crosby said. "I don't think we did anything different. I feel like we had a good start. We gave ourselves a chance to score some of those goals." Senators defensemen Erik Karlsson and Cody Ceci, and forward Derick Brassard each left. Boucher said they were taken out to rest and were healthy enough to return. Goal of the game Leading to Crosby's goal, Malkin kept the puck in the offensive zone by stickhandling around Viktor Stalberg several times just inside the blue line. Malkin passed to Daley, who took a slap shot that Crosby deflected under Anderson's blocker. Save of the game Anderson temporarily kept the Penguins from taking a 2-0 lead when Carl Hagelin went on a shorthanded breakaway midway through the first period. Anderson denied Hagelin's wrist shot with a pad save at 9:31 of the first. Highlight of the game Carter Rowney bumped Kyle Turris off the puck before he could carry it into the neutral zone. Rowney recovered the puck and shot on Anderson, which allowed Bonino to shoot the rebound off of Rust and in the net. Unsung performance of the game Forward Josh Archibald had 11:50 of ice time and led the Penguins with six hits in his second career playoff game. They said it "We did a really good job. The majority of that was because we had the puck the whole time, so we didn't really have to defend." -- Penguins goalie Matt Murray "When the coach tells you to go out or come in, you do as you're told. When you're told to play, you go and stop the puck." -- Senators goalie Craig Anderson Need to know The Senators dressed seven defensemen with Ben Harpur playing for the first time since May 4. Penguins forward Conor Sheary was a healthy scratch with Rust back in the lineup. Malkin played in his 141st playoff game, passing Jaromir Jagr (140) for the most in Penguins history. Crosby is tied with Jagr for second place after playing in his 140th playoff game on Sunday. Crosby became the 22nd player in NHL history to reach 100 playoff assists when he set up Kessel's goal.... The team that wins Game 5 to take a 3-2 lead in a best-of-7 series is in League history, including 5-0 this season.... The Penguins earned a margin of victory of at least seven goals in a playoff shutout for the fourth time in their history. Sunday was the third time in the past 10 postseasons that a team earned a shutout with a margin of victory of at least seven goals, and the second time this year. The San Jose Sharks defeated the Edmonton Oilers 7-0 in Game 4 of the Western Conference First Round. What's next Game 6 of Eastern Conference Final at Canadian Tire Centre on Tuesday (8 p.m. ET; NBCSN, CBC, TVA Sports) Saarela and Kuokkanen Get Taste Of North American Pro Game Written by Nicholas Niedzielski Published: May 19, 2017 The nation of Finland has provided two of the most intriguing prospects in the Carolina system, and the Checkers got to check them both out firsthand last season. Aleksi Saarela and Janne Kuokkanen each got to enjoy a taste of the North American pro game late in the year after the conclusion of their respective campaigns, though for varying lengths of time. Saarela, acquired from the New York Rangers as a part of the deadline deal that sent Eric Staal to the Empire State, jumped on board in late March after his Finnish club, Lukko Rauma, failed to make the SM-Liiga playoffs. Already an established scorer in his homeland, the 20-year-old showed he was the real deal by putting up seven points in his first five games, including lighting the lamp in four of those. He came in and had a tremendous start, said head coach Ulf Samuelsson. One of the biggest adjustments for European players making the jump to North America is playing on a much smaller ice surface than is used internationally. For Saarela, however, this change seemed to suit his game in a positive way. Right away when I got here I felt like I play better on a small rink, said Saarela. There s not a lot of room so you have to make your plays and decisions faster and I feel like I ve tried to do that for my whole career. It s so much bigger of a rink in Finland. So when I got here I felt like that s how it s supposed to go. Saarela s red-hot introduction to the continent caught eyes

5 across the league, as the forward earned himself AHL Player of the Week honors in his first week of play. Unfortunately, an injury derailed the momentum he had built up. Saarela was sidelined for the final two critical games of the regular season, but in the end taking care of his health came first, both to him and the team. It s a huge risk if you come back too early and something happens again, he said. The doctors here are so careful about injuries so you re not able to play before you re 100 percent OK. Saarela returned to the lineup for the postseason, which in and of itself was an eye-opening experience ( It s so much different than the regular season ), but an upper body injury in the decisive Game 5 forced the young Finn to the locker room for the remainder of the contest, though he now appears to be fine. I feel good, said Saarela. I actually got an MRI a couple of hours ago so we ll see after that what happens. But I think everything is ok. I m ready for the summer. Joining Saarela late was his fellow countryman Kuokkanen, who was added to the team s playoff roster after his London Knights were eliminated from the OHL playoffs. Unlike Saarela, however, the 18-year-old Kuokkanen spent the majority of his time with the team simply observing the pro game, something that was helpful in its own right. It was good, said Kuokkanen of his time in Charlotte. I learned a lot of things from the guys and I m really happy that I came here. The forward, selected in the second round of last year s NHL Draft, was able to make his pro debut with the Checkers, suiting up for Game 3 in Chicago. While Kuokkanen was held off the scoresheet, he certainly got a feel for what comes with the pro game. I felt pretty good, said Kuokkanen of his debut. The speed was a lot faster than the OHL but I think I did well. Unlike other European-born players, Kuokkanen wasn t a stranger to the smaller ice surface, having made the decision along with the Hurricanes to move his development from his home country of Finland to the OHL for this season, something that could pay huge dividends in his progress. It was a big move to come here and play in North America, especially on the small rinks, said Kuokkanen. I think it helped me a lot to play here. Also aiding in the transition was having a fellow Finn newcomer in Saarela on the club. He had been here already for a month so he helped me out a lot with things, said Kuokkanen. With their trial runs in the books, the question now is where will the duo go from here? Well, according to them, fans should prepare to see both skaters draped in red sweaters next season. I think I m turning pro next year, said Kuokkanen, who would be eligible as a European-born skater to play in the AHL despite being younger than 20. I m going to be here in North America for sure next year, said Saarela. I just have to work hard to make the NHL right away. That s my goal and that s how I m going to practice this offseason. If what they showed in spurts this season is any indication of what Kuokkanen and Saarela can bring to the table, next year should be a treat. They re both high-skill players, said Samuelsson. We anticipate them being either with us or with the Hurricanes next year. Tolchinsky Finding Silver Lining To Tough Season Written by Nicholas Niedzielski Published: May 18, 2017 Sergey Tolchinsky has built up some high expectations during his short time as a pro. before. While his raw talent has never been in question, Tolchinsky attributes his drop off in points in part to the mental aspects of the game. Whether it s been highlight reel moves in camp or a solid rookie season with Charlotte in , Hurricanes fans have been eagerly awaiting the arrival of Tolchinsky. But even those high expectations and glimpses of greatness aren t immune to setbacks, something Tolchinsky saw firsthand. It was a hard year for me mentally, he said. It was hard to stay focused and stay positive and want to play hockey. Tolchinsky s definition of a down year is relative, of course. The forward was able to tally 23 points (7g, 16a) in 59 games this season, a not insignificant number but a substantial step down from his 36 points (14g, 22a) as a rookie the year One of my issues was a lot of turnovers and I think it s because I was trying to create a lot of scoring chances and sometimes playing too risky, said Tolchinsky. Sometimes I m trying to do too much by myself and that s why I was making too many turnovers. [The coaching staff] said I just need to learn how to manage it and know when to try to beat someone or just play safe. As Tolchinsky struggled to piece together his offensive game, the Checkers roster continued to collect pieces back from injury and other places and, eventually, the young Russian found himself as the odd man out. The rough year culminated with Tolchinsky serving as a healthy extra in six of the final 12 games of the regular season, including three of the last five as the Checkers pushed for a playoff spot.

6 He didn t have the year he wanted as far as production goes, said head coach Ulf Samuelsson. He told me that he was trying too hard and he didn t get the numbers that he wanted early and then his turnovers started building up so that forced us to take him out of the lineup and it kind of snowballed from there. It was unfortunate. It wasn t an ideal situation for the second-year pro, nor was it one he had gone through before, but he didn t let it stop him. I ve never had healthy scratches like that in my life, said Tolchinsky. I had it a few times last year but nothing like this. But I dealt with it pretty good. I didn t get myself down and I didn t give up. I still worked hard and I stayed positive. Tolchinsky remained on the outside looking in for the Checkers first-round playoff series with the division champion Chicago Wolves, not dressing for any of the first four games. But in Game 5, with the season on the line, the coaching staff gave the young forward the nod, inserting him into the lineup for his pro playoff debut. And despite having been on the shelf for an extended period of time, Tolchinsky came out firing, setting up an impressive goal and looking strong across the board. I didn t feel pressure, said Tolchinsky. I felt like, because I didn t have a good season, it was my last chance to prove to the coaches that I am a good player and I can help the team in the future. I think I played really good, coach said it was my best game of the season. I didn t feel any pressure, I just wanted to play hard and help the boys win. Despite the end result of that contest, Tolchinsky s play served as a significant boost for himself as he prepares for his third year as a pro. It s weird because before the game I didn t have any confidence but after I did because I remembered that I can actually play good and create chances, he said. I have a good mindset right now heading into the summer. While the stats don t necessarily reflect it, Tolchinsky has confidence that this year will end up just being a small setback as he moves toward greater things. I didn t score many points this season but it was still experience, he said. A bad experience can sometimes be a good experience. I m excited to go into the summer. I had a bad season, but I can see clearly what I need to work on. With that positive, silver-lining takeaway from a tough year, you can expect Tolchinsky to come back with something to prove. I still think [Carolina] knows what I m capable of, said Tolchinsky. And maybe they understand that sometimes players have bad seasons. I m going to work hard over this summer and go into training camp playing my best hockey the way I know I can. TODAY S LINKS Anaheim Ducks The scenes could not have been different for the Ducks and the Nashville Predators when they landed in Nashville on Sunday. Hundreds of cheering fans decked in yellow greeted the Predators at the airport as the city anticipates a coronation. The Ducks landed without forwards Rickard Rakell and Patrick Eaves, and with a questionable status for goalie John Gibson as they rest on the verge of elimination. Coach Randy Carlyle said Rakell and Eaves did not travel for Game 6 of the Western Conference finals Monday at Bridgestone Arena, with the Ducks trailing the best-of-seven series 3-2. Eaves has been out since April 30 because of a lower-body injury but Carlyle on Saturday upgraded his status to day to day, and Rakell also has a lower-body injury after he was hobbled in Game 4.

7 It wasn t a positive response from Eaves in skating [Saturday], Carlyle said. So we decided we d leave him at home. And Rakell wasn t ready to skate today. So both players are not available to us. Carlyle said Gibson will be reassessed Monday, following a lower-body injury that forced him out of Game 5. Jonathan Bernier would start if Gibson is not ready. Nashville Predators The Predators unveiled the specific nature of center Ryan Johansen's left thigh injury on Sunday, confirming that he required season-ending surgery to treat acute compartment syndrome. "His symptoms developed shortly after the end of (Game 4 of the Western Conference finals) in Nashville (on Thursday), and as they progressed, he was diagnosed, transported to Vanderbilt University Medical Center and had surgery performed by head team physician Dr. Jed Kuhn within two hours of his diagnosis," Predators general manager David Poile said in a statement. Johansen "had no permanent injury to his muscle, nerves or blood vessels," the statement said. A full recovery is expected. The team previously offered a timetable of two to three months. Acute compartment syndrome occurs when pressure within the muscles builds to dangerous levels. It can restrict blood flow, which can prevent oxygen from reaching nerve and muscle cells. Ottawa Senators Breathe easy, Erik Karlsson says he ll be fine. The Senators captain told reporters he was held out for precautionary reasons in the third period of the club s 7-0 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins Sunday afternoon because he twisted his ankle late in the second and there was no point coming back. It was the same for centre Derick Brassard and defenceman Cody Ceci. All three are expected to play in Game 6 Tuesday. Pittsburgh Penguins As the recipient of the biggest, arguably most memorable hit of the Eastern Conference final's first four games, Bryan Rust went into Game 5 warm-ups Sunday afternoon as a "game-time decision" for coach Mike Sullivan. The right winger skated with other ailing teammates the previous few days, but his upper-body injury still rendered him questionable for the 3 p.m. start against Ottawa. But Rust's first few shifts made it clear Sullivan needed to decide very little. The coach simply needed to let the right winger seize some gametime deliverance. Winger Scott Wilson headed to the locker room just before the rest of his teammates after taking a forearm shiver to the face from Ottawa's Tommy Wingels at the end of the game. Coach Mike Sullivan said he did not have an update on Wilson's condition afterwards. END