As they battle through their own set of injuries on the back end, the Hurricanes have recalled rookie defenseman Jaccob Slavin.
This marks the first NHL recall for the 21-year-old. Selected in the fourth round of the 2012 draft, Slavin has stepped up for the Checkers early in his pro career, leading the team with a plus-6 rating, holding a share of the team lead with six assists through 14 games and commanding a large chunk of ice time as he and Trevor Carrick have taken on bigger roles due to injuries.
Prior to turning pro, the Colorado native starred for Colorado College for two seasons. He led the Tigers in scoring his freshman year and was named NCHC Rookie of the Year, as well as earning first-team, All-NCHC honors as a sophomore.
The move takes away from a Charlotte blue line that has been decimated by injury. The good news, however, is that Danny Biega and Tyler Ganly have rejoined practice this week, as has Keegan Lowe, though he has been sporting the yellow "no contact" jersey. That hopefully signals that they are making progress towards being available for games, though Morris has no time table for their return. Slavin's recall also could lead to the Checkers keeping Justin Agosta and Mike Cornell around to fill out the blue line, as they are here on recall from Florida and on a PTO, respectively.
The next games for both the Hurricanes and Checkers are Friday and Sunday, with the former hosting Toronto and Los Angeles and the latter traveling to Texas.
