2015–16 Carolina Hurricanes season explained

The 2015–16 Carolina Hurricanes season was the 37th season for the National Hockey League (NHL) franchise that was established on June 22, 1979 (following seven seasons of play in the World Hockey Association), and 18th season since the franchise relocated from Hartford to start the 1997–98 NHL season.^[1] The season will begin its regular games on October 8, 2015 against the Nashville Predators.

Schedule and results

Pre-season

2015 Pre-season game log: 4–2–0 (Home: 4–0–0 ; Road: 0–2–0)^[2]
	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	OT	Decision	Attendance	Record	Recap
1	September 21	Carolina	0–2	Washington			15,955	0–1–0	Recap
2	September 22	Carolina	3–7	Pittsburgh			17,781	0–2–0	Recap
3	September 26	NY Islanders	3–5	Carolina		MacIntyre	––	1–2–0	Recap
4	September 27	Ottawa	1–2	Carolina		Ward	––	2–2–0	Recap
5	September 30	Washington	3–4	Carolina	SO		6,256	3–2–0	Recap
6	October 2	Pittsburgh	1–2	Carolina		Ward	7,986	4–2–0	Recap

Regular season

2015–16 Game Log^[3]
October: 5–6–0 (Home: 1–2–0 ; Road: 4–4–0) Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 1 October 8 Carolina 1–2 17,204 0–1–0 0 Recap 2 October 10 4–3 Carolina Ward 18,949 0–2–0 0 Recap 3 October 13 4–1 Carolina 10,901 0–3–0 0 Recap 4 October 16 Carolina 5–3 Ward 20,027 1–3–0 2 Recap 5 October 17 Carolina 1–4 Ward 18,506 1–4–0 2 Recap 6 October 21 Carolina 1–0 OT Ward 12,826 2–4–0 4 Recap 7 October 23 Carolina 0–3 Ward 18,230 2–5–0 4 Recap 8 October 24 Carolina 2–5 Lack 15,814 2–6–0 4 Recap 9 October 27 Carolina 3–1 Ward 20,027 3–6–0 6 Recap 10 October 29 Carolina 3–2 OT Lack 11,494 4–6–0 8 Recap 11 October 30 2–3 Carolina Ward 9,345 5–6–0 10 Recap
November: 3–6–4 (Home: 3–3–3 ; Road: 0–3–1) Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 12 November 1 4–3 Carolina 9,081 5–7–0 10 Recap 13 November 6 4–1 Carolina 10,188 5–8–0 10 Recap 14 November 7 2–3 Carolina OT Ward 10,005 6–8–0 12 Recap 15 November 10 Carolina 0–3 Ward 18,006 6–9–0 12 Recap 16 November 12 3–2 Carolina OT Ward 9,511 6–9–1 13 Recap 17 November 14 3–2 Carolina OT Ward 13,758 6–9–2 14 Recap 18 November 16 4–1 Carolina Lack 9,305 6–10–2 14 Recap 19 November 20 2–1 Carolina SO Ward 10,327 6–10–3 15 Recap 20 November 22 3–4 Carolina Ward 10,154 7–10–3 17 Recap 21 November 23 Carolina 2–3 OT Lack 18,636 7–10–4 18 Recap 22 November 25 1–4 Carolina Ward 17,757 8–10–4 20 Recap 23 November 27 Carolina 1–4 Ward 18,052 8–11–4 20 Recap 24 November 30 Carolina 3–4 Ward 18,006 8–12–4 20 Recap
December: 8–5–1 (Home: 4–3–0 ; Road: 4–2–1) Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 25 December 3 5–1 Carolina 9,254 8–13–4 20 Recap 26 December 5 2–3 Carolina 10,687 9–13–4 22 Recap 27 December 6 4–5 Carolina Ward 9,021 10–13–4 24 Recap 28 December 8 Carolina 5–6 Lack 18,287 10–14–4 24 Recap 29 December 11 Carolina 5–1 Lack 17,174 11–14–4 26 Recap 30 December 12 Carolina 5–4 OT Lack 12,668 12–14–4 28 Recap 31 December 15 Carolina 3–4 OT Lack 18,205 12–14–5 29 Recap 32 December 18 2–0 Carolina Ward 10,511 12–15–5 29 Recap 33 December 19 Carolina 2–1 Ward 18,590 13–15–5 31 Recap 34 December 21 2–1 Carolina Ward 13,228 13–16–5 31 Recap 35 December 26 1–3 Carolina Ward 11,654 14–16–5 33 Recap 36 December 27 Carolina 2–1 Lack 22,157 15–16–5 35 Recap 37 December 29 Carolina 2–3 Ward 16,514 15–17–5 35 Recap 38 December 31 2–4 Carolina Lack 14,134 16–17–5 37 Recap
January: 7–3–3 (Home: 4–1–2 ; Road: 3–2–1) Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 39 January 2 2–1 Carolina OT 12,149 16–17–6 38 Recap 40 January 4 Carolina 0–1 OT 16,839 16–17–7 39 Recap 41 January 6 Carolina 2–3 Lack 18,364 16–18–7 39 Recap 42 January 8 1–4 Carolina Ward 14,241 17–18–7 41 Recap 43 January 9 Carolina 4–3 OT Ward 16,532 18–18–7 43 Recap 44 January 12 2–3 Carolina OT Ward 13,012 19–18–7 45 Recap 45 January 14 Carolina 4–1 Lack 19,282 20–18–7 47 Recap 46 January 15 3–2 Carolina OT Ward 11,657 20–18–8 48 Recap 47 January 17 Carolina 0–5 Lack 18,528 20–19–8 48 Recap 48 January 21 Carolina 1–0 OT Lack 18,981 21–19–8 50 Recap 49 January 22 4–1 Carolina Lack 14,102 21–20–8 50 Recap 50 January 24 2–5 Carolina Lack 9,934 22–20–8 52 Recap 51 January 26 0–5 Carolina Lack 14,588 23–20–8 54 Recap
February: 5–6–2 (Home: 4–3–1 ; Road: 1–3–1) Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 52 February 3 Carolina 1–4 18,895 23–21–8 54 Recap 53 February 5 Carolina 5–3 15,924 24–21–8 56 Recap 54 February 7 Carolina 1–2 SO Ward 21,288 24–21–9 57 Recap 55 February 12 2–1 Carolina SO Ward 15,783 24–21–10 58 Recap 56 February 13 3–6 Carolina Ward 12,665 25–21–10 60 Recap 57 February 16 1–2 Carolina Lack 10,489 26–21–10 62 Recap 58 February 18 Carolina 2–4 Lack 16,994 26–22–10 62 Recap 59 February 19 2–5 Carolina Ward 11,756 27–22–10 64 Recap 60 February 21 4–2 Carolina Ward 10,422 27–23–10 64 Recap 61 February 23 1–3 Carolina Ward 10,896 28–23–10 66 Recap 62 February 25 Carolina 1–3 Ward 18,862 28–24–10 66 Recap 63 February 26 4–1 Carolina Ward 17,917 28–25–10 66 Recap 64 February 28 5–2 Carolina Ward 15,128 28–26–10 66 Recap
March: 6–2–6 (Home: 3–1–1 ; Road: 3–1–5) Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 65 March 1 Carolina 3–1 14,251 29–26–10 68 Recap 66 March 5 Carolina 3–4 OT 19,092 29–26–11 69 Recap 67 March 8 3–4 Carolina SO Ward 10,743 30–26–11 71 Recap 68 March 10 Carolina 3–2 OT Ward 17,565 31–26–11 73 Recap 69 March 12 Carolina 2–3 OT Ward 19,070 31–26–12 74 Recap 70 March 15 Carolina 1–2 OT Lack 18,506 31–26–13 75 Recap 71 March 17 Carolina 2–4 Lack 18,455 31–27–13 75 Recap 72 March 19 Carolina 2–3 SO Ward 19,044 31–27–14 76 Recap 73 March 22 3–2 Carolina Ward 10,372 31–28–14 76 Recap 74 March 24 Carolina 3–2 Lack 15,624 32–28–14 78 Recap 75 March 26 4–3 Carolina OT Lack 11,636 32–28–15 79 Recap 76 March 27 2–3 Carolina Ward 12,792 33–28–15 81 Recap 77 March 29 Carolina 1–2 SO Ward 13,733 33–28–16 82 Recap 78 March 31 3–4 Carolina Ward 16,336 34–28–16 84 Recap
April: 1–3–0 (Home: 0–2–0 ; Road: 1–1–0) Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Record Pts Recap 79 April 2 5–1 Carolina 11,542 34–29–16 84 Recap 80 April 5 Carolina 2–1 SO 17,565 35–29–16 86 Recap 81 April 7 4–2 Carolina Ward 15,120 35–30–16 86 Recap 82 April 9 Carolina 2–5 Lack 18,434 35–31–16 86 Recap
Legend:

Player stats

Final stats

Skaters

Regular Season^[4]

Player					data-sort-type="number"
	82	28	23	51	−2	38
	82	20	28	48	6	34
	80	21	27	48	−6	24
	82	11	28	39	−23	24
	64	16	21	37	−22	27
^‡	63	11	22	33	−6	36
^‡	63	10	23	33	−3	32
	71	10	14	24	1	12
	55	9	14	23	4	8
	64	9	13	22	−5	18
	79	4	18	22	−14	22
	63	2	18	20	1	8
	81	5	14	19	−13	37
	41	7	10	17	0	18
	69	4	12	16	−7	16
^‡	64	6	9	15	−3	16
	68	8	3	11	−12	16
	77	3	8	11	−17	24
	35	0	10	10	−1	10
	47	3	4	7	−15	14
	57	2	4	6	−11	75
	21	3	1	4	−14	10
	6	2	0	2	1	2
	7	1	1	2	4	4
	36	1	0	1	−5	12
	2	0	1	1	1	0
	1	0	0	0	0	0
	8	0	0	0	−4	0
	5	0	0	0	0	7
	2	0	0	0	−1	0

Goaltenders

Regular Season^[5]

Player
style=white-space:nowrap		52	51	3,038	23	17	10	122	2.41	1343	.909	1	0	0	0
style=white-space:nowrap		34	31	1,920	12	14	6	90	2.81	910	.901	2	0	2	0

^†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Hurricanes. Stats reflect time with the Hurricanes only.
^‡Denotes player was traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with the Hurricanes only.
Bold/italics denotes franchise record.

Awards and honours

Awards

Regular Season

Player	Award	Awarded
	NHL Third Star of the Week^[6]	December 14, 2015
	NHL All-Star game selection^[7]	January 6, 2016

Milestones

Regular Season

Player	Milestone	Reached
	1st Career NHL Game	October 8, 2015
N. Hanifin	1st Career NHL Assist 1st Career NHL Point	October 10, 2015
	1st Career NHL Game 1st Career NHL Goal 1st Career NHL Assist 1st Career NHL Point	October 16, 2015
	1st Career NHL Game	October 24, 2015
B. Pesce	1st Career NHL Assist 1st Career NHL Point	October 30, 2015
	250th Career NHL Win	October 30, 2015
C. Ward	30,000 Career NHL Minutes	November 10, 2015
N. Hanifin	1st Career NHL Goal	November 16, 2015
	1st Career NHL Game	November 20, 2015
B. Pesce	1st Career NHL Goal	November 22, 2015
	100th Career NHL Game	November 22, 2015
J. Slavin	1st Career NHL Assist 1st Career NHL Point	November 30, 2015
	1st Career NHL Game	December 5, 2015
	500th Career NHL Game	December 8, 2015
J. Slavin	1st Career NHL Goal	December 8, 2015
P. Di Giuseppe	1st Career NHL Goal 1st Career NHL Point	December 8, 2015
	200th Career NHL Game	December 19, 2015
	100th Career NHL Assist	December 19, 2015
	100th Career NHL Game	December 26, 2015
	800th Career NHL Game	December 27, 2015
J. Faulk	200th Career NHL Game	December 31, 2015
	200th Career NHL Assist	December 31, 2015
K. Versteeg	300th Career NHL Point	January 9, 2016

Transactions

The Hurricanes have been involved in the following transactions during the 2015–16 season.

Trades

Date			Ref
June 27, 2015	To Vancouver Canucks 3rd-round pick in 2015 7th-round pick in 2016	To Carolina Hurricanes Eddie Lack	^[8]
June 27, 2015	To Anaheim Ducks Anton Khudobin	To Carolina Hurricanes James Wisniewski	^[9]
September 11, 2015	To Chicago Blackhawks Dennis Robertson Jake Massie 5th-round pick in 2017	To Carolina Hurricanes Kris Versteeg Joakim Nordstrom 3rd-round pick in 2017	^[10]
February 28, 2016	To New York Rangers Eric Staal	To Carolina Hurricanes Aleksi Saarela 2nd-round pick in 2016 2nd-round pick in 2017	^[11]
February 29, 2016	To Los Angeles Kings Kris Versteeg	To Carolina Hurricanes Valentin Zykov Conditional 5th-round pick in 2016	^[12]
February 29, 2016	To Chicago Blackhawks Drew MacIntyre	To Carolina Hurricanes Dennis Robertson	^[13]
February 29, 2016	To Boston Bruins John-Michael Liles	To Carolina Hurricanes Anthony Camara 3rd-round pick in 2016 5th-round pick in 2017	^[14]
March 7, 2016	To Vancouver Canucks Future considerations	To Carolina Hurricanes Dane Fox	^[15]
June 15, 2016	To Chicago Blackhawks NYR's 2nd round pick in 2016 CHI's 3rd round pick in 2017	To Carolina Hurricanes Teuvo Teravainen Bryan Bickell	^[16]

Notes

• Carolina to retain 50% ($4.125 million) of salary as part of trade.

Free agents acquired

Date	Player	Former team	Contract terms (in U.S. dollars)	Ref
July 1, 2015			1 year, $600,000	^[17]
March 8, 2016			2 years, $1.5325 million entry-level contract	^[18]
April 22, 2016			1 year, $575,000	^[19]

Free agents lost

Date	Player	New team	Contract terms (in U.S. dollars)	Ref
July 2, 2015			1 year, $750,000	^[20]
July 24, 2015			1 year, $1.1 million	^[21]

Player signings

Date	Player	Contract terms (in U.S. dollars)	Ref
June 29, 2015		2 years, $1.825 million	^[23]
July 1, 2015		3 years, $2.4975 million entry-level contract	^[24]
July 1, 2015		1 year, $1.15 million	^[25]
July 1, 2015		1 year, $575,000	^[26]
July 7, 2015		1 year, $600,000	^[27]
July 11, 2015		3 years, $2.4975 million entry-level contract	^[28]
July 12, 2015		1 year, $600,000	^[29]
July 15, 2015		1 year, $600,000	^[30]
August 27, 2015		2 years, $5.4 million contract extension	^[31]
October 3, 2015		2 years, $5.5 million contract extension	^[32]
April 4, 2016		3 years, $1.875 million entry-level contract	^[33]
April 9, 2016		3 years, $1.875 million entry-level contract	^[34]
April 22, 2016		2 years, $2.55 million contract extension	^[35]
June 1, 2016		3 years, $1.875 million entry-level contract	^[36]
June 13, 2016		3 years, $2.4975 million entry-level contract	^[37]
June 13, 2016		3 years, $2.05 million entry-level contract	^[38]
June 16, 2016		2 years, $6.6 million	^[39]
June 16, 2016		1 year, $600,000	^[40]

Draft picks

See also: List of Carolina Hurricanes draft picks. Below are the Carolina Hurricanes' selections at the 2015 NHL Entry Draft, held on June 26–27, 2015 at the BB&T Center in Sunrise, Florida.

Round		Player	Pos	Nationality	College/Junior/Club team (League)
1	5	Noah Hanifin	D	United States	Boston College (Hockey East)
2	35	Sebastian Aho	LW	Finland	Oulun Kärpät (Liiga)
4	93	Callum Booth	G	Canada	Quebec Remparts (QMJHL)
4	96	Nicolas Roy	C	Canada	Chicoutimi Saguenéens (QMJHL)
5	126	Luke Stevens	LW	United States	Noble & Greenough (HS-MA)
5	138	Spencer Smallman	RW	Canada	Saint John Sea Dogs (QMJHL)
6	156	Jake Massie	D	Canada	Kimball Union Academy Wildcats (HS-NH)
6	169	David Cotton	C	United States	Cushing Academy (HS-MA)
7	186	Steven Lorentz	C	Canada	Peterborough Petes (OHL)

Draft notes^[41]

• The Arizona Coyotes' fourth-round pick went the Carolina Hurricanes as the result of a trade on February 28, 2015 that sent Tim Gleason to Washington in exchange for Jack Hillen and this pick.^[42]

Washington previously acquired this pick as the result of a trade on March 4, 2014 that sent Martin Erat and John Mitchell to Phoenix in exchange for Rostislav Klesla, Chris Brown and this pick.^[43]

• The Winnipeg Jets' fifth-round pick went to the Carolina Hurricanes as the result of a trade on February 25, 2015 that sent Jiri Tlusty to Winnipeg in exchange for a third-round pick in 2016 and this pick (being conditional at the time of the trade).^[44] The condition – Carolina will receive a fifth-round pick in 2015 if Winnipeg qualifies for the 2015 Stanley Cup playoffs – was converted on April 9, 2015.^[45]
• The Ottawa Senators' sixth-round pick went to the Carolina Hurricanes as the result of a trade on December 18, 2014 that sent Jay Harrison to Winnipeg in exchange for this pick.^[46]

Winnipeg previously acquired this pick as the result of a trade on June 28, 2014 that sent a seventh-round pick in 2014 to Ottawa in exchange for this pick.^[47]

Notes and References

1. Book: National Hockey League. The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book/2011. 2010 . Triumph Books . 35. 978-1-60078-422-4.
2. Web site: Hurricanes Announce 2015 Exhibition Schedule - Carolina Hurricanes - News. Carolina Hurricanes. June 3, 2015.
3. Web site: 2015-2016 Regular Season Schedule/Results - Carolina Hurricanes - Schedule. July 17, 2015. Hurricanes.nhl.com.
4. Web site: 2015–2016 – Regular Season – Carolina Hurricanes – All Skaters – Summary – Points – NHL.com – Stats. NHL.
5. Web site: 2015–2016 – Regular Season – Carolina Hurricanes – Goalie – Summary – Wins – NHL.com – Stats. NHL.
6. Web site: Crawford, Hall and Faulk named stars of week. NHL. December 14, 2015.
7. Web site: Star-studded Central roster highlights All-Star reveal. NHL. January 6, 2016.
8. Web site: Canes Acquire Eddie Lack from Vancouver . nhl.com . June 27, 2015. live . June 29, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150630024756/http://hurricanes.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=772512 . June 30, 2015 .
9. Web site: Canes Acquire James Wisniewski from Ducks . nhl.com . June 27, 2015. live . June 29, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150630055406/http://hurricanes.nhl.com:80/club/news.htm?id=772556 . June 30, 2015 .
10. Web site: Canes Acquire Versteeg, Nordstrom from Hawks . nhl.com . September 11, 2015. live . September 11, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20150912213328/http://hurricanes.nhl.com:80/club/news.htm?id=778729 . September 12, 2015 .
11. Web site: Canes Acquire Saarela, Picks for Eric Staal . nhl.com . February 28, 2016. live . February 28, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160229101247/http://hurricanes.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=871111 . February 29, 2016 .
12. Web site: Canes Acquire Zykov in Exchange for Versteeg . nhl.com . February 29, 2016. live . March 1, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160301061250/http://hurricanes.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=871235 . March 1, 2016 .
13. Web site: Canes Reacquire Robertson for MacIntyre . nhl.com . February 29, 2016. live . March 1, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160302095357/http://hurricanes.nhl.com:80/club/news.htm?id=871308 . March 2, 2016 .
14. Web site: Canes Acquire Picks, Prospect for Liles . nhl.com . February 29, 2016. live . March 1, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160302083254/http://hurricanes.nhl.com:80/club/news.htm?id=871370 . March 2, 2016 .
15. Web site: Canes Acquire Dane Fox from Vancouver . nhl.com . March 7, 2016. live . March 9, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160310025732/http://hurricanes.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=872569 . March 10, 2016 .
16. Web site: Canes Acquire Teravainen, Bickell from Chicago . nhl.com . February 29, 2016. live . June 15, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160615164847/http://hurricanes.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=886117 . June 15, 2016 .
17. Web site: Hurricanes Sign Forward T.J. Hensick. nhl.com. July 17, 2015.
18. Web site: Hurricanes Agree to Terms with Poturalski. nhl.com. March 9, 2016.
19. Web site: Hurricanes Agree to Terms with Jake Chelios. nhl.com. April 22, 2016.
20. Web site: New York Islanders - Islanders Sign Six To Two-Way Deals. nhl.com. July 17, 2015.
21. Web site: Canadiens agree to terms on a one-year contract with free agent Alexander Semin . canadiens.nhl.com . July 24, 2015.
22. Web site: Hurricanes Buy Out Alexander Semin. nhl.com. July 17, 2015.
23. Web site: Canes Agree to Terms with Andrej Nestrasil. nhl.com. July 17, 2015.
24. Web site: Canes, Slavin Agree on Entry-Level Contract. nhl.com. July 17, 2015.
25. Web site: Hurricanes Agree to Terms with Riley Nash. nhl.com. July 17, 2015.
26. Web site: Canes Agree to Terms with Rasmus Rissanen. nhl.com. July 17, 2015.
27. Web site: Canes Agree to Terms with Zach Boychuk. nhl.com. July 17, 2015.
28. Web site: Canes Sign Hanifin to Entry-Level Contract. nhl.com. July 17, 2015.
29. Web site: Hurricanes Agree to Terms with Justin Shugg. nhl.com. July 17, 2015.
30. Web site: Hurricanes Agree to Terms with Brody Sutter. nhl.com. July 17, 2015.
31. Web site: Canes, Lindholm Agree on Two-Year Extension. nhl.com. August 27, 2015.
32. Web site: Canes Agree to Terms with Lack on Extension. nhl.com. October 7, 2015.
33. Web site: Hurricanes Agree to Terms with Clark Bishop. nhl.com. April 4, 2016.
34. Web site: Canes Sign Nicolas Roy to Entry-Level Contract. nhl.com. April 13, 2016.
35. Web site: Canes Sign Nordstrom to Two-Year Extension. nhl.com. April 22, 2016.
36. Web site: Canes Agree to Terms with Josh Wesley. nhl.com. June 1, 2016.
37. Web site: Canes Agree to Terms with Sebastian Aho. nhl.com. June 13, 2016.
38. Web site: Canes Agree to Terms with Aleksi Saarela. nhl.com. June 13, 2016.
39. Web site: Canes Sign Cam Ward to Two-Year Extension. nhl.com. June 16, 2016.
40. Web site: Canes Agree to Terms with Derek Ryan. nhl.com. June 16, 2016.
41. Web site: 2015 NHL Entry Draft Pending Transactions. Pro Sports Transactions. June 3, 2015.
42. Web site: Canes Acquire Hillen, Draft Pick for Gleason. February 28, 2015. February 28, 2015.
43. Web site: Capitals send Erat to Coyotes for Klesla, Brown. National Hockey League. March 4, 2014. March 4, 2014.
44. Web site: Jets acquire Tlusty for two draft picks. February 25, 2015. February 25, 2015.
45. Web site: Jets clinch berth despite shootout loss to Avalanche. April 9, 2015. April 9, 2015.
46. Web site: Jets acquire D Harrison from Hurricanes for sixth-round pick. December 18, 2014. December 18, 2014.
47. Web site: Notes from the 2014 NHL Draft. June 28, 2014. June 28, 2014.