New Guy´s » soon-to-be 30-year-old winger got his game bac

RALEIGH Florida Panthers Hoodies Authentic , N.C. — The Carolina Hurricanes might not turn to Scott Darling for Friday night’s game against the San Jose Sharks, but he could be set for season debut any day now.It’s one of the developments for the Hurricanes, who’ve been idle for most of the week.“It sounds like it went pretty well for him,” Brind’Amour said of Darling’s conditioning stint. “I think it’s encouraging that he got through it and felt good about his game and put all that behind him for now.”Article continues below ...Darling, playing with the American League Hockey affiliate Charlotte Checkers, stopped 25 shots in a 3-1 victory Wednesday night at Utica, N.Y.Brind’Amour hedged on saying when Darling would be in the lineup, though he has rejoined the team. Darling, 29, has been the projected first-stringer Florida Panthers Hats Authentic , but he suffered a groin injury in the preseason finale.The Hurricanes will have decisions to make soon about their roster regarding the goalies. Petr Mrazek has played in five games and Curtis McElhinney has been in the nets for four games.San Jose and Carolina both have 5-3-1 records (11 points) and, entering play Thursday night around the league, held first-place spots in their respective divisions.The Sharks have outshot every opponent this season.“We’ve put up some shots and our analytics are pretty good,” San Jose coach Peter DeBoer said. “We’re feeling good about our game.”The Sharks are coming off Tuesday night’s 5-4 victory at Nashville. They’re not interested in changing many aspects of what they’ve been doing.“It’s just a matter of us sticking with our game and doing what we know,” Sharks defenseman Brent Burns said.The Hurricanes are normally interested in playing at a rapid pace, so it’s a pair of teams with objectives that might look familiar to one another.“It’s two teams with very similar styles. Whoever gets their game going first will probably have the most success,” Brind’Amour said. “It’s go hockey, it’s get up and down the ice. We’ve got to obviously control the back end.” Hurricanes center Sebastian Aho has a point in all nine games, matching his career-high for a points streak. Across two games last year against San Jose, he scored three goals — though the Sharks won both matchups Custom Florida Panthers Jerseys , needing overtime for one of them.Micheal Ferland is also on a roll for Carolina with a goal in four consecutive games. That gives him a team-high six goals this season.The Hurricanes made a roster move by calling up center Nicolas Roy from Charlotte. Forward Clark Bishop, who made his NHL debut earlier this month, was sent back to the Checkers after two games with Carolina.This is the opener of a three-game homestand for the Hurricanes, who haven’t played since Monday night’s 3-1 victory at Detroit.The Hurricanes produced two power-play goals in that game after registering just two power-play goals in the first eight games combined.It was a sign of going in the right direction, but it doesn’t mean that the issue has been solved.“You’ve got to work on it every day, that’s the way it’s going to be with this group,” Brind’Amour said.This will mark DeBoer’s 750th game as an NHL head coach.For San Jose, this is the seventh road game of the season. The Sharks go to Anaheim on Sunday to cap the brutal road stretch before four straight home games. John Carlson can’t forget that he is fighting for the NHL lead for points among defensemen because his Washington Capitals teammates keep razzing him about it.”The guys do a good job of pumping that up in the locker room,” Carlson said.Carlson’s 61 points have him tied with the Dallas Stars’ John Klingberg, and he is a dark horse candidate for the Norris Trophy as the league’s top defenseman.”John’s having just a whale of a year www.officialkings.com ,” teammate Matt Niskanen said. ”Monster year – production, been carrying the load all year. He’s been a stalwart back there for us.”This breakout season with a career-high 15 goals and 46 assists is coming at a perfect time for Carlson, who is set to be an unrestricted free agent this summer but has been flying under the radar compared to New York Islanders captain John Tavares. Carlson command upward of $7 million per season on a deal that’s almost certain to be eight years if Washington re-signs him or seven if he hits the market July 1.The 28-year-old has outperformed the six-year contract he signed in 2012 that pays him just under $4 million a year. He has shown the ability to be a dominant No. 1 defenseman by averaging 25 minutes a game, running the point on the top power-play unit, killing penalties and drawing the toughest matchups.A 2008 first-round pick of the Capitals, Carlson likes Washington and would like to stay if the fit is there. General manager Brian MacLellan has said he believes each side wants to get a deal done but will wait until after the season to try to make it happen.The big question is whether the Capitals can make it work under the salary cap, which might require trades even though the ceiling is expected to go up to between $78 million and $82 million from $75 million.Carlson might not reach the $7.875 million annual salary of Tampa Bay defenseman Victor Hedman, who along with Drew Doughty of the Los Angeles Kings is a Norris front-runner, but he might not be far off. Carlson has more of an offensive punch than San Jose Sharks defenseman Marc-Edouard Vlasic, whose new deal pays him $7 million a year Los Angeles Kings T-Shirts Authentic , and he has almost double the points of the next-highest potential free agent defenseman, former Capitals teammate Mike Green, who’s 32.”He’s always been steady,” Washington goaltender Braden Holtby said of Carlson. ”His role’s expanded, obviously, which shows: time on ice and points and such. He’s got all the tools of a great defenseman. “Carlson isn’t the only player excelling in a contract year. Here are some others:JAMES VAN RIEMSDYKThirty-goal scorers get paid handsomely in free agency because they are so rarely available. Van Riemsdyk’s 33 goals are 11th-most in the NHL, and the 6-foot-3, 217-pound left-winger has gotten better around the net. Van Riemsdyk, the second overall pick in 2007, has another one of the league’s best bargain contracts at $4.25 million a year Los Angeles Kings Hoodies Authentic , which Toronto inherited from Philadelphia. The Maple Leafs have expressed interest in keeping the 28-year-old.JOHN TAVARESUndoubtedly the best pending free agent, Tavares still not having a new contract with the New York Islanders is generating buzz and whispers like Steven Stamkos two years ago. Stamkos re-upped with Tampa Bay on the eve of free agency, which Tavares could do. The Islanders will miss the playoffs for the second consecutive season and sixth time in Tavares’ nine years in the league. The point-a-game player with 32 goals and 43 assists could fetch $10 million a year or more if he isn’t back with New York.DAVID PERRONThe expansion Vegas Golden Knights struck gold with Perron, whose 66 points are a career high and a big reason they are leading the Pacific Division. The soon-to-be 30-year-old winger got his game back after bouncing around to four different teams the past five seasons and could easily re-sign with Vegas like teammate Jonathan Marchessault did.JOE THORNTONKnee surgery knocked Thornton out of the San Jose Sharks’ lineup in January, cutting short a season in which he had 36 points in 43 games at age 38. If Thornton shows he can still play at the top of his game when he returns, he will be in demand for another one-year contract.RICK NASHGoing from the New York Rangers to Boston appears to have reinvigorated Nash’s game after just 28 points in 60 games before the trade. The 33-year-old power winger’s contract year won’t truly be judged until the playoffs, where he gets another chance to exorcise some past demons.—