Rock Bottom

Well, this is it. There's nowhere else for this team to go.

Last night the Canes lost to the Maple Leafs 3-2, cementing their spot as the worst team in the National Hockey League.

The game looked like it was going to swing Carolina's way after they knocked two goals in after one period. But apparently the Canes need a lot more than a two goal lead after the first to win a game nowadays. The Leafs scored three unanswered, and the Canes are left with a dismal losing streak.

The worst part? Looking at the highlights, those goals the Leafs scored were not good. At best they were mediocre, at worst they were pansy goals allowed by letting them skate all over us. Watching the first goal, I thought that the Maple Leafs were on a power play with the way they were directing the puck throughout our zone. Then I counted our players and realized, with some developing horror, that it was even-strength.

To pose a serious question, how long will this losing streak last? You must think that the Canes will snap out of it soon, they can't be that bad of a team, not with all of the good parts that they have.

But then you realize that this team just got beat by the Toronto Maple Leafs... the 29th team in the league. If the Canes can't manage to create a win against them...

And I say "good parts" slightly tongue-in-cheek, because obviously something has gone horribly rotten with this team. Zach Boychuk led the team in shots last night, and Brandon Sutter is the only player that has been consistently scoring. Where are the rest of our veterans? The people who, last year before the playoffs, if Eric Staal wasn't scoring, would step up and pull through for the team?

I am at a loss as to what to do about this team. There are two things that I can think of to begin to turn it around: either trade a well-liked player (which pains me to say, I know), or fire Paul Maurice. Maurice got a three-year contract this offseason, but I think that is looking more and more like a bad move after each game we lose. Something has got to wake up this hockey team - Rutherford has said that he's willing to make changes, hopefully for the sake of what's left of our season he'll pull something through.

The next game is tonight against Columbus. Hopefully the Canes will find a way to pull out of this streak.