Questions 67 and 68

The Carolina Hurricanes play the Tampa Bay Lightning tonight at the RBC and at the moment there are more questions than answers. A couple of facts that we do know are that the Lightning have lost 2 in a row and the Canes have lost 3 of their last 4. Tampa Bay has literally owned Carolina so far this year, beating them 6-1 and 5-1 in their two previous meetings. The biggest questions?

1. Who will be in the net tonight for the Canes? After great starts, neither goalie has looked particularly good during their past outings.
2. Will Erik Cole play? He’s cleared to play and the coach says that there is a good chance that he’ll play, but it depends upon how he feels at game time.
3. Can the team win without him? The answer is yes, but they have only won a single game out of 4 without Erik in the lineup during this past injury. The team certainly isn’t the same without him.
4. Can the team stop Vincent Lecavalier? So far the answer is a big no!
5. Can the team solve Johan Holmqvist? During the past several games, the average goalie has looked like a super star against the Canes and has won 5 straight.

Both teams need the game tonight, but the Canes should be a little more desperate. They need to establish some semblance of home ice advantage. Could tonight be a turning point?

Chicago