Among their handful of restricted free agents, the Carolina Hurricanes have two that present a unique negotiating challenge: Tim Gleason and Tuomo Ruutu.

Carolina Hurricanes owner Peter Karmanos is expected to travel to Raleigh to meet with coach Peter Laviolette next week in a face-to-face meeting that may determine Laviolette's future with the team.

A day after he was fired by the Maple Leafs, Paul Maurice talks about his future plans — and how this firing was different from when the Canes fired him in December 2003.

Paul Maurice was fired as coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs on Wednesday after the team failed to make the NHL playoffs during his two seasons.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have fired coach Paul Maurice, according to media outlets in Canada.

Forward Matt Gellatly, a junior at Enloe High School and a Raleigh native, has become the first player in the Carolina Hurricanes' junior system to be selected in the prestigious Ontario Hockey League draft.

Having completed a hands-on restructuring of the sales force of Compuware, the software company he helped found, Peter Karmanos says he's going to try to do the same with the Carolina Hurricanes.

Hurricanes general manager Jim Rutherford was one of four NHL general managers named to a new working group that will study goaltending equipment, along with Doug Riseborough of Minnesota, Garth Snow of the Islanders and Brett Hull of the Stars.

While Carolina Hurricanes general manager Jim Rutherford continues to digest his team's season before making any big decisions, veteran defenseman Glen Wesley is doing the same.

Carolina Hurricanes general manager Jim Rutherford hasn't made a decision on the future of coach Peter Laviolette.

Carolina Hurricanes captain Rod Brind'Amour, who had reconstructive surgery Feb. 15 for ligament damage in his left knee, was back on the ice Monday.

Opting to stay with the team that rejuvenated his NHL career, forward Sergei Samsonov agreed Wednesday to a three-year contact with the Hurricanes. He revived his reputation with 14 goals and 18 assists in 38 games.

Two of Carolina's 2006 draft picks have agreed to entry-level contracts with the Hurricanes for next season.

An informal newsobserver.com poll has found overwhelming support for Carolina Hurricanes coach Peter Laviolette.

As expected, Hurricanes defenseman Tim Gleason has been named to the U.S. national team for May's IIHF World Championships, USA Hockey announced today.

When the Carolina Hurricanes twice failed to win games in the final week of the season that would have clinched a playoff spot, those losses came at a heavy price.

In his state-of-the-team news conference Thursday afternoon, Carolina Hurricanes general manager Jim Rutherford made it clear he had not yet seriously considered whether to make a coaching change.

If Carolina Hurricanes general manager Jim Rutherford does decide to fire Peter Laviolette — and he made it clear Thursday that his mind is anything but made up on the subject — it won’t be for what happened at the end. It will be for November and December and the way the team sputtered after a great start.

At least two members of the Carolina Hurricanes will gain some playoff experience this year, if only in the minor leagues.

Racked by injury after injury, the Canes started hot and played well down the stretch, only to lose three of their final four games and miss the playoffs. In the end, they paid the price for a lackluster December and January.

The Carolina Hurricanes lost 337 man-games this season, the most since the team moved to North Carolina in 1997. The previous high had been 290 in 2002-03, when the Hurricanes finished dead last in the NHL.

Frantisek Kaberle will not play for the Czech Republic at the World Championships because he's scheduled for shoulder surgery Wednesday.

Peter Laviolette coached the Carolina Hurricanes to the Stanley Cup in 2006, but after missing the playoffs the next two seasons, he may find his job status up for review this spring.

Canes become first team to miss playoffs two straight years after winning Cup.

Carolina could have wrapped up the Southeast Division and a playoff berth with a victory over the Florida Panthers, a team that had not won in the RBC Center since 2002. Now, the Canes need the Panthers to hold the Caps pointless.

As gifts go, the most avid, drooling, ice-obsessed hockey fan would be happy with an autographed sweater -- or even a souvenir puck.

For the Carolina Hurricanes, a win tonight over the Florida Panthers will clinch their fourth division title in the past nine seasons. A loss, and their playoff fate is out of their hands.

With their playoff fate on the line, the Canes scored on their first shot, got a hat trick from Chad LaRose and used a preposterously favorable bounce to put the game away on their way to a critical 6-2 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning on Wednesday.

Their lead in the Southeast Division has dwindled to nothing, and they remain in first place only by a tiebreaker after losing what might turn out to be the most important game of the season Tuesday night.

Hurricanes Notebook:Justin Williams' triumphant return to the Carolina Hurricanes lasted less than a period.

Justin Williams and Ray Whitney each practiced Monday morning and could be available for tonight's matchup at the Washington Capitals.

While the Hurricanes were falling 2-1 to Tampa Bay, Washington beat Florida. Now they face what may be a winner-take-all showdown with the Capitals in Washington on Tuesday.