Canes waste no time reuniting Cole and Staal
Mar 6, 2009
Tags: Hockey, Carolina Hurricanes
It didn’t take the Carolina Hurricanes long to pair Erik Cole with Eric Staal again.
On Day 1 of his return to Carolina, Cole was already skating with Staal’s line in practice.
How does a Cole-Staal-Ruutu line sound? The Canes are hoping it sounds like a big horn – the one blasted whenever Carolina scores a goal.
Cole brings size and lots of speed. When the Canes have been at their best, they’ve been quick, and that’s Cole’s game.
“When you play defense against a guy like that (Cole), your only option is to give up ice,” Hurricanes coach Paul Maurice said.
Cole slides back into his old role as Staal’s right wing. He spent much of his time with Edmonton playing as a left wing, but Maurice believes a move back to the right will boost Cole’s production.
“He skates at a very high level,” Staal said. “I like to think I can keep up.”
The change of scenery (albeit to very familiar scenery) already seems to suit Cole.
“At first I was pretty surprised,” Cole said. “But as I departed Ottawa, it was hard to hide the smile on my face.”
