Mar 31, 2014; Ottawa, Ontario, CAN; Carolina Hurricanes goalie
Cam Ward(30) is unable to stop a shot against the Ottawa Senators in a shootout at the Canadian Tire Centre. The Senators won 2-1. Mandatory Credit: Marc DesRosiers-USA TODAY Sports
3 BIG QUESTIONS
1. Is Cam Ward finished? – The main reason the Canes have a Stanley Cup banner has recently fallen out of favor in Carolina and as a result he was being shopped around the league, but apparently there were no takers. With Anton Khudobin ready to assume a starter role, Ward will be an expensive ($6.3M) backup. Ward did suffer through injuries once again, but simply wasn’t very good when he did play.
2. Will The Hurricanes ever get value for the money? – The Canes have one of the more expensive non-playoff teams. Top end salaries to the 4 S’s – Eric Staal, Jordan Stall, Alexander Semin and Jeff Skinner – take a huge of Cap space and aren’t performing to expectations needed for the club to be a playoff contender
3. Are the changes at the top enough? – The Canes cleaned house in the front office and behind the bench. Ron Francis is a rookie GM and Bill Peters is a rookie NHL head coach. Is that the right situation to bring a new guard to such an underachieving club?