Of the former Hurricanes in the playoffs, it would be hard to single out a star performer other than Peter Laviolette. The Philadelphia Flyers coach, by trying to climb into the Pittsburgh Penguins’ bench during a late-season meeting between the two future playoff opponents, threw the Penguins way off their game.

Among players, Justin Williams leads the way with three goals in three games for the Kings, who have jumped out to a surprising 3-0 lead over the top-seeded Canucks.

UPDATE, 8:36 A.M. WEDNESDAY: Totally forgot Ian White, whose 39 games for the Hurricanes last season could aptly be described as forgettable. One goal and is minus-2 after Tuesday's games, averaging 18:01 in ice time.

The trade deadline is still a month away, but the Carolina Hurricanes picked up a draft pick and cleared one of their expiring contracts off the books Friday night.

After a 3-0 win over the Washington Capitals, the Canes traded forward Alexei Ponikarovsky to the New Jersey Devils for a fourth-round draft pick in 2012 and minor-league defenseman Joe Sova.