It has indeed been a successful preseason thus far, and not even just in terms of the results. Yes, 4-0-0 is great. The best start in team history, even! But, what's perhaps most encouraging is the process and the habits already established by the Hurricanes.
"We're really buying in to what Rod is saying," Warren Foegele said after Tuesday night's victory in Nashville. "From the beginning of training camp, everyone has been working really hard, and it's paying off."
"Everyone here has been playing great," Scott Darling said. "Everybody is pushing and doing their job, making it tough on the coaches."
"From the top down, just pounding it into our head that we need to work hard every time we're out there," Jordan Martinook said after Friday's win over Washington. "It starts with effort. To a man, every guy has been giving it this whole camp."
Notice a trend here? Training camp and preseason has been tied together by a common thread. It's not a new or unique idea, either, but the entire team - all 50 players originally invited to training camp - climbed on board from the first whistle on Sept. 13.
"It's pretty simple: I think we've outworked the opponents. It's certainly not anything we're doing special or any secret," Brind'Amour said. "We've been trying to ramp it up from day one."
Come Oct. 3 (Oct. 4 for the Hurricanes), none of this matters, at least in terms of wins and losses. The slate is wiped clean. Everyone is 0-0-0 with 0 points. It begins again.
The Hurricanes, though, will already have an established foundation upon which they can continue to build.
"Hard work] is what it's all about," Brind'Amour said. "That's the way our foundation needs to be built. Everyone has to buy into it if we're going to have any success."
[Tweet from @Bass8151: So far, who has been the most impressive this preseason? And whats gonna be the biggest take away us fans can take into the start of this season with a very different canes roster?
For me, the most impressive player in the preseason has been Warren Foegele.
Here's a player who made his NHL debut in grand fashion in late March. He scored a goal and tallied an assist in his first game and followed it up the very next night with another goal.
Despite the incredibly small sample size, it was a very encouraging pair of games for the young forward, who was already assembling a stellar rookie season with the Charlotte Checkers.
Crunching the numbers and available roster spots heading into this season, he figured to be squarely in the mix of players who would be competing for a spot with the big club.
He's competed. Big time. And he's all but earned a spot on the Hurricanes' Opening Night roster.
"Just working hard. That's what Roddy is preaching to everyone. Play fast and play hard," Foegele said. "For myself, that's what I've been doing, and hopefully I can stay here longer."
Through three preseason games, Foegele has tallied a goal and four assists and is tied for the team lead in scoring (five points). He's aggressive and quick on the penalty kill, and each time his skates touch the ice, he's working.
"He's what we want in a Hurricane," Brind'Amour said. "You want good kids, number one, and then you want them to play their butt off. They don't leave anything left in the tank. That's what we want."
