By Bud L. Ellis

Nine goals allowed in their first 120 minutes of the season was not what the Carolina Hurricanes had in mind.

A 2-0 loss to Philadelphia Friday night opened the 2009 season on a sour note, and the taste grew even more bitter the next night when Boston hung seven goals on the Canes in a 7-2 defeat, a game in which forward Erik Cole broke a bone in his lower left leg (he’ll miss at least a month, perhaps longer).

Heading into Tuesday’s Southeast Division opener against Tampa Bay, a Carolina team that made it to the Eastern Conference finals last season is seeking something positive to turn around what’s been a wretched six periods so far this season.

Only Vancouver and defending Western Conference champion Detroit are 0-2 so far, and maybe there’s a good place to start, the fact that if Detroit is also 0-2 on the season, maybe things aren’t so bad.

But all joking aside, nobody expects either the Wings or Canes to stay below .500 for long. However, defending division champion Washington already is out to a 2-0 start, and Atlanta looked impressive in beating Tampa in its season opener Saturday.

The last thing the Canes need to do is fall behind in the standings early on, as points earned now don’t have to be made up later. With three games this week against division opponents (Tampa Tuesday, Florida Friday, at Tampa Saturday), a good week of hockey will level-set things for Carolina.

But another bad week, and suddenly the Canes could be six or eight points out of first just five games into the season. Not exactly what Carolina, or its fans, had in mind.

–30–

Monday, October 5, 2009 at 8:31 pm by bud

Tags: Atlanta Thrashers, Boston Bruins, Carolina Hurricanes, Detroit Red Wings, Erik Cole, Florida Panthers, Philadelphia Flyers, Tampa Bay Lightning, Vancouver Canucks, Washington Capitals