LaCouture takes cue from O'Neill

NHLVeteran also making comeback effort

RALEIGH -- There's more than one former NHL forward and thirty-something free agent trying to make the Carolina Hurricanes' roster.

Canes fans know about Jeff O'Neill. He's 32, a former Carolina star looking to restart his career with the team that first drafted him.

But Dan LaCouture is also looking for re-entry into the NHL after a year away from the league. And his two goals and an assist Sunday, helping the Red team top the White 6-3 in the intrasquad scrimmage at the RBC Center, was a good way to get some quick attention.

O'Neill also scored for the Red, but LaCouture was named the first star in the scrimmage, which was held after the Caniac Carnival, the team's season kickoff.

"I'm just trying to prove myself and make a statement," LaCouture said. "Just do what I can, every day here, and have a good attitude and try to prove myself all over again. I want back in again in the worst way."

LaCouture, 31, has played in 326 NHL games with five teams. The 6-foot-2, 210-pound forward last was in the league with Boston and New Jersey in 2005-06, spending last season with Lugano of the Swiss-A league.

Why a tryout with the Canes? LaCouture, a Hyannis, Mass., native, once played junior hockey for the Springfield (Mass.) Junior Whalers and said he has known Canes general manager Jim Rutherford and Carolina assistant coach Tom Rowe.

LaCouture had two goals and an assist in the first two periods as the Red took a 4-2 lead. O'Neill scored in the third, gathering in the rebound off a Ryan Bayda shot and wristing it in.

"I think I'm close," O'Neill said. "I think once I get a couple of exhibition games under my belt, it will only get better.

"It was exciting. Although that was only a Red-White goal, it was kind of a big goal, just to get my confidence up. Hopefully, I can build on it."

Nearly all of the Canes regulars practiced Sunday morning and then sat out the scrimmage. Carolina opens its preseason schedule Wednesday against Washington at the RBC Center.

Forward Dwight Helminen had a goal and an assist for the Red, and Joe Jensen scored on a penalty shot. Defenseman Dennis Seidenberg, often paired with Tim Conboy, had three assists for the Red and was solid on the back end.

Stefan Chaput and Robert Slaney had second-period goals for the White to force a 2-2 tie, and Jakub Petruzalek also scored.

"Dan looked good," Canes coach Pete Laviolette said of LaCouture. "I thought he looked strong on his skates, he was strong on the puck.

"You could tell he was an experienced player and had played games in the NHL. He was noticeable."

So was O'Neill.

"I think he's come into camp with a serious approach, like he's trying to make this team," Laviolette said. "It was his first opportunity back in a game situation, and I thought he got better as the game went on. It's a starting point for him."