A week into the regular season and the Carolina Hurricanes are sitting on top of the standings. Granted, they’ve played more games than almost everyone else and have faced the Islanders, Blue Jackets, Rangers and Canucks, not exactly the cream of the crop, but wins are wins. For years, the Hurricanes have been a popular pick to make the playoffs in the Eastern Conference and for years they have failed to do so. Will this year be different? So far, at even-strength, the Hurricanes have performed very well.

In its first three games, Carolina created lots of quality looks and put the puck in the back of the net at a high rate. However, the next three games will be a tougher test for the Canes than the first three. Carolina will face the Wild and Jets, back-to-back, this weekend and finish its current road trip on Tuesday in Tampa Bay. So, hats off to the Hurricanes for what they’ve accomplished in the first week of the season but we’ll have a better idea of what this team can do after week two.