With the Stanley Cup Final underway, it is a good time to look at a couple of clubs that were eliminated and see exactly why their season ended.
Today we take a look at one of the Eastern Conference favorites that fell short in their pursuit of a championship, and a recent Cup winner that could not recover from the loss of their starting goaltender.
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Ep 34: NHL Coaching Retreads; Stanley Cup Final Talkby Full Press Coverage on June 22, 2022 at 3:30 pm
Mike, Jim, and Chris discuss the never-ending NHL coaching retreads and […]
Carolina Hurricanes
What went right?
The Hurricanes upgraded in goal last summer, signing free agents Frederik Andersen and Antti Raanta, and the pair ended up winning the Jennings Trophy with the best goals allowed (202) in the NHL last season. In spite of losing defenseman Dougie Hamilton in free agency, GM Don Waddell was able to replace his offense with the signing of Anthony DeAngelo (51 points) and the club ended up with the third-best regular-season record (54-20-8) behind Florida and Colorado.
What went wrong?
The Hurricanes suffered the misfortune of losing Andersen to a knee injury late in the season, forcing head coach Rod Brind’Amour to go with Raanta and the untested Pyotr Kochetkov in the playoffs. Carolina went 7-1 at home against Boston and New York in the postseason, but due to a lack of scoring depth and an ineffective power play, the Canes were unable to win on the road, going 0-6 at TD Garden and Madison Square Garden in the first-round victory over the Bruins and their second-round loss to the Rangers.
What will they do?
The Hurricanes have over $19 million in available cap space going into the summer. While veterans Max Domi, Derek Stepan, Ian Cole, and Brendan Smith will likely be allowed to go to market, Waddell may not be able to get center Vincent Trocheck or winger Nino Niederreiter re-signed, and may face a high ask in arbitration from DeAngelo.
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St. Louis Blues
What went right?
The Blues had an excellent season overall, finished third in the Central Division behind Colorado and Minnesota, fourth in the NHL with 311 goals scored, with nine players posting more than 20 goals. After requesting a trade last summer, winger Vladimir Tarasenko led the club with 34 goals and 82 points, and the core group began to shift from veterans Brayden Schenn and Ryan O’Reilly to Robert Thomas (77 points), newcomer Pavel Buchnevich (76 points), and Jordan Kyrou (75 points).
What went wrong?
After riding goalie Ville Husso for most of the second half and the first two games of the first round, head coach Craig Berube switched back to Jordan Binnington, who led them to a victory over Minnesota. Injuries crippled St. Louis in the postseason, losing a number of blueliners (including power-play quarterback Torey Krug) and Binnington in Game 4 vs. Colorado, which forced the Blues to go back to the inexperienced Husso.
What will they do?
GM Doug Armstrong is reportedly working on re-signing pending UFA David Perron, but with $9 million in available cap space this summer and goalie prospect Joel Hofer putting up excellent numbers in the Calder Cup Playoffs, it is unlikely that they will bring back Husso unless they decide to trade Binnington with five years left on a six-year, $36 million deal. St. Louis may try to be proactive with O’Reilly, Tarasenko, Kyrou, and Thomas entering the last year of their contracts, but they will not be able to lock up all of them, which will force the Blues GM into some tough decisions.
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Ep 34: NHL Coaching Retreads; Stanley Cup Final Talkby Full Press Coverage on June 22, 2022 at 3:30 pm
Mike, Jim, and Chris discuss the never-ending NHL coaching retreads and […]
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Ep 33: Stanley Cup Final Previewby Full Press Coverage on June 15, 2022 at 1:11 am
Mike, Jim, and Chris preview the Stanley Cup Final between the Tampa Bay […]
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Ep 32: Bruins Fire Bruce Cassidy; Avalanche To Stanley Cup; Bolts/Rangersby Full Press Coverage on June 8, 2022 at 4:09 pm
Mike, Jim, and Chris react to the Bruins firing of Bruce Cassidy, the […]
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Ep 31: Conference Finals Previewby Full Press Coverage on June 1, 2022 at 2:38 pm
Mike and Jim are back to preview the Conference Finals in the NHL. Out […]
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Colorado Avalanche 2022 Stanley Cup Championsby Full Press Coverage on June 28, 2022 at 2:09 am
Jim is back once again joined by C.C. Hawkley of Full Press Hockey to […]
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New Jersey Devils and Stanley Cup Final Talkby Full Press Coverage on June 23, 2022 at 6:26 pm
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Ep 73: Bruins Face Elimination; Bruce Cassidy On Hot Seat; Patrice Bergeron Final Standby Full Press Coverage on May 12, 2022 at 4:00 pm
Ian and Chris discuss game six between the Bruins and Hurricanes and the […]
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Ep 72: Bruins Acquire Hampus Lindholm; More Moves To Come?by Full Press Coverage on March 20, 2022 at 3:34 pm
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S3E33 - Stanley Cup Final - Avalanche vs Lightningby Jim Biringer on June 19, 2022 at 12:00 pm
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S3Ep32 - Eastern Conference Final and Colorado Avalanche Advanceby Jim Biringer on June 11, 2022 at 9:37 pm
Jim is joined by Coach Jay and Marc Weiss to discuss the Eastern […]
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Episode #386 - The 2022 Stanley Cup Championsby Full Press Coverage on June 28, 2022 at 1:49 am
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Episode #385 - The Stanley Cup Final - LIVE!by Full Press Coverage on June 21, 2022 at 2:05 am
With 2 games of the Stanley Cup Final in the bag, we record during the […]
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Episode #384 - The 2022 Stanley Cup Final Previewby Full Press Coverage on June 14, 2022 at 2:05 am
The Stanley Cup Final is here! Let's find out if Carl is emotionally […]
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Episode #106: If You Can't Beat Them, Become Themby Full Press Coverage on June 18, 2022 at 5:55 am
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Episode #105: Goalie Rotation Sensationby Full Press Coverage on June 10, 2022 at 6:06 am
On this episode of The Calder Farmstead, C.C. is left to host the show […]
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Episode #106: If You Can't Beat Them, Become Themby Full Press Coverage on June 18, 2022 at 5:55 am
23 playoff teams are now down to just two. It's the 2022 Calder Cup Finals […]
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Episode #105: Goalie Rotation Sensationby Full Press Coverage on June 10, 2022 at 6:06 am
On this episode of The Calder Farmstead, C.C. is left to host the show […]
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Ep 60: #KrejciForever and Raised Expectationsby Full Press Coverage on May 4, 2021 at 9:23 pm
Ian and Chris talk about the Bruins post trade deadline turnaround and […]
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Ep 59: Bruins Swing Big At Trade Deadlineby Full Press Coverage on April 12, 2021 at 9:48 pm
Ian and Chris welcome in Mike Cratty to discuss the trade acquisitions of […]
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6/24 - WSOP; NBA Finals Talk; Stanley Cup Coming To An End; NBA Draftby Full Press Coverage on June 24, 2022 at 2:15 pm
Ian and John are back to discuss the World Series of Poker, the NBA Finals […]
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6/15 - Celtics Falter In San Fran, Can They Force A Game 7?by Full Press Coverage on June 15, 2022 at 4:23 pm
Ian and John discuss the Celtics loss in Game 5 and what they have to do […]
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6/13 - Goodfellas; Celtics/Warriors, Stanley Cup Finalby Full Press Coverage on June 13, 2022 at 4:46 pm
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Are The Celtics In The Heads Of The Warriors?by Full Press Coverage on June 10, 2022 at 5:50 pm
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