Talking Points: The backup blues
This week's Tuesday Top Five in Talking Points is a direct follow-up to this week's Monday debate.
For whatever reason, whether it has been Arturs Irbe or Cam Ward or Kevin Weekes in net or Paul Maurice or Peter Laviolette behind the bench, the two-goalie system hasn’t been a huge success with the Hurricanes.
It worked in 2001-02 (Irbe and Tom Barrasso during the regular season, Irbe and Weekes in the playoffs), 2002-03 (Irbe and Weekes, although the Hurricanes finished dead last) and 2005-06 (Ward and Martin Gerber).
But more often, it doesn’t.
Read about the top five seldom-used or ill-fated backups here.
Luke DeCock
Luke has worked for The N&O since 2000. He covered the Carolina Hurricanes and the NHL before becoming a sports columnist in August 2008. A native of Evanston, Ill., he graduated from the University of Pennsylvania. He can be reached at 829-8947 or luke.decock@newsobserver.com.
