Lackluster starts and terrible goaltending have Philadelphia Flyers head coach Dave Hakstol and Calgary Flames goaltender Mike Smith on the hot seat.
The NHL season is a very long one. Usually, the teams who wind up having success in the postseason are the ones who are doing the best in February and March. Because of this, the month of October is probably the most meaningless month of the season. You can overcome a suboptimal first month and still make the postseason. However, Mike Smith of the Calgary Flames and Dave Hakstol are feeling pressure early on.
Terrible starts have quite a few players and coaches, including Smith and Hakstol, under the hot seat. Which players are dangerously close to losing their spot in the lineup? What coaches should probably start updating their resumes? Which general managers are bad, and because of that, should feel bad?
Ice Cold, But Warming: Every Carolina Hurricanes Goaltender
Feel good stories are fun. That’s why everyone is rooting for Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Scott Darling. He overcame a variety of obstacles and wound up having to give up alcohol completely. By all accounts, Darling is a very likable guy.
However, that doesn’t really matter if you’re a goalie. Goaltenders, whether it’s fair or not, get judged by how their teams do. If you’re not playing well but your team is winning, people tend to ignore the struggles. But if you’re playing well and your team is losing, more often than not, the goalie gets more blame than they deserve.
Darling can relate to that after a rough first season as a starting goalie. An injury at the end of the regular season forced the Hurricanes to claim Curtis McElhinney on waivers. Darling has since rejoined the NHL roster after a brief conditioning stint.
Neither Petr Mrazek, McElhinney, or Darling have done enough to clearly separate themselves from the others. The Hurricanes are temporarily going with three goalies, but it’s not a long-term plan. Someone’s going to draw the short end of the straw eventually. Such is life as a goaltender.