Many of the Canes will be making their first trip to Russia when Carolina plays its final preseason exhibition game in St. Petersburg in early October.
For Sergei Samsonov, it's just going home.
Samsonov, a Moscow native, said he returned to Russia this summer for a visit. He last played a game in Russia duing the 2004-2005 NHL lockout season when he got in a few games for Dynamo Moscow.
The preseason game against SKA St. Petersburg of the KHL, played a few days before the Canes open the regular season in Helsinki, Finland, should be a "big test," Samsonov said.
"It's going to be tough," he said. "As far as the atmosphere, it's going to be pretty nice. Pretty close to the NHL, maybe even crazier.
"It will be a challenge for us. They have a lot of NHL guys who played recently and it's one of best teams in Russia right now. They should have a little of an upper hand because I think they will have about 10 regular-season games before that game. For us it will be a preseason game. Either way, it will be exciting."
After the two games in Helsinki against the Minnesota Wild, the Canes return to North America for five more road games. Their first two home games: against the Washington Caps and Pittsburgh Penguins.
A year ago, a 14-game winless streak early in the season proved to be a killer for Carolina. The Canes, who will have a new, younger look tthis season, can't afford anything approaching a repeat.
"We dug ourselves a hole at the beginning," Samsonov said. "We played better late, but we couldn't catch up because there were too many teams to jump over.
"The start will be big for us this year. It's going to be crucial."
A Raleigh native, Chip has worked at the N&O since 1979 and is the Canes beat writer. He can be reached at 
