During Tuesday night’s exhibition game in Buffalo, those circumstances may have changed.
Following that 2-0 loss to the Sabres, the Hurricanes announced that Jordan Staal had suffered a broken bone in his leg and will miss a yet-to-be-determined yet likely significant amount of time. According to the official release, team doctors were planning to further evaluate Staal in Raleigh on Thursday.
Losing a player who, along with brother Eric, was firmly entrenched as one of the Hurricanes’ top two centers, is certainly unwelcome news. The team will be now be forced to find a replacement, which is where Rask, a second-year pro who spent all of last season in Charlotte, may get an opportunity.
Since ranking fifth on the Checkers with 39 points as a rookie last season, all Rask, the Hurricanes’ second-round pick in 2011, has done is make an impact at every turn. Whether it was leading the Traverse City prospects tournament with nine points in just four games or making the most of his time in scrimmages and Tuesday’s game in Buffalo, his first NHL game of the preseason, he’s consistently found a way to earn praise.
"I thought he handled himself very well," Hurricanes coach Bill Peters told CarolinaHurricanes.com following the Sabres game. "He was good in the faceoff circle."“He played well all four games,” Hurricanes General Manager Ron Francis told the Raleigh News and Observer following the Traverse City tournament. “It wasn’t so much getting the points but how he did it. He has very good hockey sense and was good at both ends of the rink, and on special teams. He was consistent, every shift, every game.”
Should the Hurricanes choose not to thrust Rask, who has yet to play a regular-season NHL game, into the opening-night lineup, there are other routes they could take. From the current roster, Elias Lindholm, Jeff Skinner and Brad Malone are all capable of playing down the middle – a development that could help both Zach Boychuk and Chris Terry, other recent Checkers with great chances to make the team, slide into a newly-opened spot on the wing. If they decide to promote a player on a two-way deal, offseason signing Ben Holmstrom is, compared to Rask, arguably the more polished and experienced option with a handful of NHL games played over his four professional seasons, even though he may not have the same kind of offensive upside.
Speaking before Staal’s injury, Rask said he had heard and appreciated the praise from Peters, Francis and Checkers head coach Jeff Daniels.
“It’s always nice to hear good stuff, especially from those guys who have been really good players,” he said. “It’s a huge compliment and I’m happy with the way I’m playing right now.”
If Rask ran into any obstacles in Charlotte last season, consistency was likely at the forefront. In between a strong start and strong finish to the campaign that saw him score 10 points in both his first and last 10 games of the season, he managed just 19 in 56 games between Nov. 7 and March 25.
Whatever the reasons for his highs and lows, ones that could even be expected for a rookie who became the only player on the team to play all 76 games of a long season, early indications are that he’s taken a step forward in his development. Following the Traverse City tournament, Daniels said that Rask looked stronger and faster – an assessment Rask seems to agree with despite maintaining his usual offseason training regimen.
“I pretty much did the same thing as last year but I definitely feel like I’m in better shape than last year,” said Rask. “I’m really excited about this season. I’m just here to do my best and see where it takes me.”
Given recent developments, it could take him closer to the NHL than most would have guessed.
