The Summer That Was
By now those who follow the team are familiar with the hectic nature of the summer months. There was the wild first day of free agency, the eight-year extension for Andrei Svechnikov and of course, the offer sheet.
But when asked, Waddell was clear in what the defining move was.
"There is no doubt in my mind that the biggest thing we did this summer was that we signed our head coach, Rod Brind'Amour," the President & General Manager shared to a roar of cheers from the faithful Caniacs.
It's hard to say that something of this nature is overlooked, but think about it as the first domino to fall. Perhaps some of the landed newcomers don't come to the organization if another bench boss would've had to take over. Maybe Svechnikov doesn't sign for the length that he does if it's not Brind'Amour guiding the ship.
When you take a step back, it becomes very easy to see why Waddell gave the answer he did.
Holding Down The Fort
Much has been made over the situation in net for the team since July. Ultimately bringing in two free agents in Frederik Andersen and Antti Raanta, Waddell was able to explain the rational behind bringing in both.
"We spent a lot of time on this, these decision aren't made in a vacuum. They're made with everybody involved in the organization. Our goal isn't to make the playoffs anymore, our goal is to win a championship - and we felt that we wanted to get a little bit more experience."
Of the nine seasons Andersen has played in the league, he's got seven trips to the playoffs. He's also 32 and hungry to win the grand prize. Raanta, the same age, has posted some of the best numbers in the NHL, when healthy, over the last several seasons. Just four years ago he carried the load in Arizona, compiling an outstanding .930 save percentage (SV%) that ranked fourth among all goalies. Two years ago he finished right outside the top ten with a .921.
Both hoping to cash in on a change in scenery, it's a good thing when both are at this stage in their careers with still something to prove.
We('re Going) Outside?
Canes fans have been salivating for the official details of an outdoor game at Carter-Finley stadium ever since the initial news was released in February of 2020. The pandemic removed that opportunity the first time around, and then with the ever-changing landscape entering this year, the game remains to be locked in.
Fresh news was brought to life this morning though and while of course nothing is confirmed nor signed at this time, Waddell spoke of recent updates.
"I had a meeting on Friday about this with the NHL. We could've kept it this year, but the situation that we're in as a country and a world, we thought it would be best to wait another year. We're not in a position yet to announce the game yet for 2022-23, but I'm pretty sure we're going to have one of the outdoor games at Carter-Finley."
Another slice of news that brought applause, the General Manager continued to say that they would anticipate being able to host a crowd of 60,000.
Red-White Scrimmage:
After a scoreless first period the two sides battled to an eventual 6-5 Team Red final.
Ethan Bear led the way for the winning group with a hat trick, including the game-winner in the final second of the third period.
Frederik Andersen played the first 27 minutes of action for Team White, with Alex Lyon taking over the rest of the way. Antti Raanta went the duration for Team Red.
