While North Dakota-bound defenseman Charlie Pelnik is still leading the race to become the first North Carolina-trained player to be drafted by the NHL, Josh Wesley isn't far behind.

The 15-year-old son of former Hurricanes defenseman and current front-office executive Glen Wesley will become the first North Carolina player to join USA Hockey's National Team Development Program next fall, yet another milestone for the growth of hockey in the Triangle.

“It’s a huge honor for me, just growing up looking at the USA Hockey magazines and being a kid, looking at Team USA,” Josh Wesley said. “It’s always been a dream of mine to be there. It’s a huge honor for me.”

UPDATE: Added link to video on NHL website.

The NHL's new Stanley Cup promo is called "No Words" and features players left speechless by winning the Stanley Cup. Featured among them: Former Hurricanes defenseman (and current front-office executive) Glen Wesley.

Wesley played in 1,480 regular-season and playoff games before winning the Cup with the Hurricanes in 2006; he was the second player to lift the Cup after captain Rod Brind'Amour.

Carolina Hurricanes forwards Erik Cole and Chad LaRose and former Hurricanes defenseman Glen Wesley will take questions from fans Friday night at the NHL team's "Summer Fun Fest" Friday night.

The second annual fan event is scheduled to start at 6 p.m. on the South lawn of the RBC Center, with live music, games, sledding on artificial snow and other activities.

Wesley, who is now the Hurricanes' Director of Defenseman Development, will join Cole and LaRose in taking questions during a "State of the Hurricanes" forum scheduled to begin at 8 p.m.

Afterward, there will be a re-broadcast of the Hurricanes' last-minute comeback win in Game 7 of its quarterfinal series against the New Jersey Devils.

Parking and admission to the event are free.

From Talking Points:

You could set your calendar by it: Every summer, usually about the middle of June, I'd start leaving messages on Glen Wesley's cell phone every week or so. He was almost always at the beach, and he'd get back to me at night, and let me know whether there was any contract news.

At first, the questions were about contract negotiations. Later, they were about retirement. But they were part of the offseason furniture, part of both of our lives. In my eight summers on the Hurricanes beat, Wesley's contract was up in the final six of them.

Read more here.

You could set your calendar by it: Every summer, usually about the middle of June, I'd start leaving messages on Glen Wesley's cell phone every week or so. He was almost always at the beach, and he'd get back to me that night, and let me know whether there was any contract news.

At first, the questions were about contract negotiations. Later, they were about retirement. But they were part of the offseason furniture, part of both of our lives. In my eight summers on the Hurricanes beat, Wesley's contract was up in the final six of them.

The readers have spoken! Here's the consensus All-Canes team as chosen by you (and roughly interpreted by me):

C Ron Francis
LW Sami Kapanen
RW Erik Cole
D Glen Wesley
D Aaron Ward
G Arturs Irbe

Glen Wesley spent all but a few months of his NHL career with one of two franchises. Fittingly, he'll be honored -- and his No. 2 jersey retired -- when the Carolina Hurricanes host the Boston Bruins on Feb. 17.

"It makes it pretty special, starting my career out there," Wesley said. "Finding that out today, it was pretty exciting to hear that."

I assumed it was merely an oversight yesterday, but here we are 24 hours later and it hasn't been fixed yet: On the Hurricanes' roster page on their Web site, Josef Melichar is listed as wearing No. 2.

Given that the nameplate over Glen Wesley's locker is barely gone and that the Canes intend to retire that number this season, it seems odd they'd be handing it out to a new guy.

I wasn't going to make a big deal out of it yesterday, but I've asked the team for clarification this morning.

Pitkanen will wear No. 25, at least according to the same roster. Looks like Staal and Whitney will wear the As as well.

UPDATE, 11:17 a.m.: A Hurricanes spokesman said Melichar's number was generated by the NHL, which hosts Carolina's Web site, and he would not be wearing No. 2 with the Hurricanes.