WRAL Sports Fan

Hurricanes

Wesley already has ceremony speech ready

By Tim Hall

Feb 17, 2009

Last season he was donning the No. 2 jersey, this season the jersey goes up in the rafters.  Former Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Glen Wesley will be honored at the RBC Center before next Tuesday's home game against the Boston Bruins.

Wesley will address the home crowd before his two former franchises collide, and he told Mike Maniscalco on 99.9 The Fan on Friday that he already has his speech completely finished.

"I've been going over it here the last few days just reviewing it," Wesley said.  "Hopefully I'll have it ironed out in front of 19 thousand people."

Wesley is more used to checking someone into the boards than delivering a speech in front of a crowded arena.  He was the only Hurricane to play in each of the team's first 10 seasons since moving to North Carolina from Hartford.

Following up with the "state of sports" theme 99.9 The Fan has brought you all week long, Wesley addressed some issues the NHL faces every year as it tries to grow in popularity in America.

"There's a lot of things I think could be improved," Wesley said.  "From a marketing stand-point there is always room for improvement, I think we've made great strides (and I want to stay positive on this) and there are difficult times out there for everybody but the bottom line is it's still a great game."

Wesley talked about how important fan and corporate support are in today's economic time as certain franchises are struggling.

Wesley joins The Sports Lunch on 99.9 FM The Fan every Friday at 12:25 p.m.