Tweetmail No. 149: Trades, Prospects & Uniforms

Hello and welcome back to a weekly feature on CarolinaHurricanes.com in which I take your Twitter questions about the Carolina Hurricanes or other assorted topics and answer them in mailbag form. Hopefully the final product is insightful to some degree, and maybe we have some fun along the way.
Let's get to it.

Despite all the conversations that were had, the Hurricanes ultimately didn't pull the trigger on any trades at the 2017 NHL Draft in Chicago.
And that's OK.
It is no secret that Executive Vice President and General Manager Ron Francis is in search of top-six forward help. It's also no secret that
he was trying to finagle such a deal before or at the draft
. That would have made sense, too, because the Hurricanes had the 12th overall pick plus seven more in rounds 2-7; that equates to bargaining chips in which other clubs might be interested.
As it turned out, the Canes retained all eight draft picks and stocked their prospect cupboard with eight new players.
And that's OK.
It was unexpected, yes - Francis and Director of Amateur Scouting Tony MacDonald even said as much - but I don't think it can be considered disappointing. For whatever reason, trades didn't work out, not just with Francis and the Canes but with a lot of other teams, too. It was an unusually quiet draft weekend, perhaps because teams were comfortable making picks or perhaps because teams weren't interested in picks being shopped around. In the end, presented with making their picks or acting on whatever proposals may have been floating around, the Hurricanes found more value in the former.
And that's OK.
Prior to the draft, Francis found the team's answer to the goaltending question that has loomed large with the acquisition and subsequent signing of Scott Darling. He then addressed the team's depth on defense with the acquisition of Trevor van Riemsdyk. Both moves involved 2017 draft picks. Perception is important to consider here - what if those moves are made on Friday or Saturday in Chicago? Perhaps the weekend's activity is viewed differently.
The goal to add a piece up front remains. The draft was one opportunity amongst a few. Free agency opens on Saturday, July 1. There could be an answer there, though the pool of available players is a bit thin. There are still trades that can be made. And there is still money the Canes will need to spend in order to reach the salary cap floor for this season.
As I type this today, we're just over three months away from Opening Night. It's OK that the Hurricanes didn't find an answer up front at draft weekend. It remains a priority, and rest assured Francis and his staff will be just as diligent in trying to accomplish their goal in the coming days, weeks and months.

Great question. Each year's schedule varies somewhat, but Prospects Development Camp features both on- and off-ice instruction designed to prepare the Hurricanes of tomorrow for life as a professional hockey player.
This year includes four days of on-ice sessions. On Wednesday and Thursday, the players receive meals and hands-on instruction with nutrition, cooking, social media and more throughout the day before taking the ice for a team practice at 5:30. Friday is similar: meals and off-ice seminars throughout the day before the prospects depart for team building on the golf course that afternoon. Saturday caps the week with autographs that morning and the Canes Prospect Game at noon.
It's a busy but very informative week that gives these Hurricanes prospects a solid foundation on which to build for the remainder of summer heading into training camp and their seasons in the fall.

Lots of things happened last week. Among them was the reveal of the brand new Adidas ADIZERO uniform system. Late last Tuesday night, Adidas and the league unveiled 31 new home uniforms at a launch event in Las Vegas.
For the Hurricanes, the home uniform saw the most drastic alterations, most notably the addition of black stripes on the sleeve and waistline and the reintroduction of a modern warning flag design along the waistline. The new warning flags introduce a secondary red with the tone-on-tone pattern. Elsewhere, the collar is a split red and black design, and white laces have returned below the prominently displayed NHL shield. Finally, black has also been added to the gloves and socks, which replicate the striping pattern from the sweater.
The away uniform was also altered, but ever so slightly. As with the other Adidas jerseys, the collar was updated; it is again a split red and black design, and the NHL shield sits at the collar's base, which is white. Also, just like the home uniform, the away uniform features gloves that are red with black accents. The unique shoulder design that drops down on the back of the sweater and houses the nameplate remains on the new Canes Adidas away jersey; the only change there is in the fabric utilized.
We've got plenty more on the new Adidas uniforms
here
. Fill out the form, and reserve your new jersey today!
Tweet from @JPanepinto17: With a new franchise in the NHL, do you feel your title as best web producer is in jeopardy? #tweetmail
Ha, too kind! Thankfully, I was protected in this year's expansion draft.
I think.
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We'll be coming off the 4th of July holiday next week, so let's meet up again in two weeks for more questions and more answers! In between now and then, be sure to check out
CanesCast
, the official podcast of the Carolina Hurricanes featuring Mike Maniscalco and myself.
If you have a question you'd like answered or you have a suggestion for CanesCast, you can find me on Twitter at
@MSmithCanes
or drop an email
here
.