Dispatches from the Road: Vancouver

VANCOUVER - Vancouver is one of my favorite road cities in the National Hockey League.
Really, the Pacific Northwest as a region is one of my favorites in North America. Vancouver itself is this picturesque fusion of mountains, water and a cityscape.
But you're not here to read me wax poetic about Vancouver (or maybe you are, but we'll save that for another time); you're here to read about the Carolina Hurricanes, so let's talk hockey, shall we?

The Hurricanes took advantage of a two-day gap in between games to get out to the Pacific Northwest on Sunday in advance of Tuesday's match-up with the Canucks.
"It helps you get the body clock readjusted, especially the fact that we're out here in the Pacific time zone for quite a while with this trip," head coach Bill Peters said. "It will help us to get acclimated sooner rather than later."
After two separate three-hour legs flying across the country, the Hurricanes held a team event in Vancouver and then got back on the ice for a Monday practice at Rogers Arena.
"We had to get going again. Travel day yesterday, and it was a good day to get out here early. There was some stuff that we worked on today," Peters said. "It was a good day."

The trip to Vancouver is usually grouped with the swing through Western Canada, but this season is a bit different. This is the starting line for a two-week, six-game road trip that will then take the Hurricanes through California, Las Vegas and Buffalo.
It's a crucial road trip at a crucial juncture of the season, just past the quarter mark, and the Hurricanes are looking to build off an emotional 3-2 overtime victory over the Florida Panthers at home on Saturday.
"We've got to start stringing some wins together, and there's no better time to do that than right now," Peters said. "We love coming out on the road and being together as a group. It's a good opportunity to come out here and play good teams in the Pacific Division to start and see where we're at."
On Tuesday, the Hurricanes will be looking to snap a nine-game winless streak (0-6-3) at Rogers Arena; it was October of 1999 when the Canes last won in Vancouver. The team lost a 4-3 heartbreaker in overtime in October of last season.
"You've got to do your homework now," Peters said. "We've got good video of how they play. We feel comfortable with what we're going to present to our guys tomorrow in our meetings. We'll put our best foot forward."
Have some coffee on standby this week - here come the late-night start times, beginning with Tuesday's 10 p.m. Eastern puck drop in Vancouver. We'll have you covered with all you need to know on gameday right here at Hurricanes.com tomorrow and throughout this road trip. TV's Mike Maniscalco will get things started on the broadcast side with Hurricanes Live! at 9:30 p.m. Eastern on FOX Sports Carolinas.