Canes' Jeff Skinner calls his season 'frustrating'

There were some who believed Jeff Skinner might develop into a 40-goal scorer this season for the Carolina Hurricanes.

Skinner scored a career-high 33 last season, at age 21. Why not 40 at 22?

With the Canes set to play their 54th game on Saturday against the Minnesota Wild, Skinner has 11 goals. The winger ended a 10-game point-less streak Thursday by scoring against the Anaheim Ducks but has not been able to put together a hot scoring run this season.

“It’s been a little frustrating for me, personally,” Skinner said this week. “When you want to help the team win, for me, being a part of that is producing offensively. That’s part of my job. So, yeah, it’s a little frustrating.”

Skinner is playing for a new coach, Bill Peters. It’s a new system, and with it new defensive responsibilities. He also has had a number of different linemates.

Skinner suffered a concussion in the seventh and final preseason game. It was the third of his NHL career and kept him out of the first four games of the regular season.

Once back in the lineup, Skinner had one goal in his first seven games. He said this week he did not think he was being overly cautious on the ice – then or now – but general manager Ron Francis isn’t so sure.

“I think it’s fair assessment to say that, and especially early in the year,” Francis said. “He had a slow start. But lately he has been going into the tougher areas and getting chances. He’s done a better job of that.”

Before Thursday, Skinner was scoring on 7.1 percent of his 141 shots – a big dip from his 12 percent figure last season – and had not scored a power-play goal after getting 11 in 2013-2014.

“He’s hit a lot of posts and crossbars. He’s been a little snakebit,” Francis said.

Peters raised a few eyebrows on the Canes’ recent road trip. He held Skinner out of some line rushes before the Feb. 5 game against the Arizona Coyotes, indicating Skinner might be a healthy scratch for the game.

Peters made some caustic comments, noting when an offensive-minded player such as Skinner wasn’t scoring he needed to have a dependable “ ‘B’ game.”

“Right now his ‘B’ game is not good enough to make up for the lack of offense,” Peters added.

Skinner was coming off a minus-2 game against the Ducks in Anaheim. He was called for a penalty in the third period with the Canes leading 4-3 and just beginning a 5-on-3 power play. Carolina didn’t score, the Ducks soon tied it 4-4 and then won in overtime.

But Skinner wasn’t scratched for the Arizona game. He had four shots in the Canes’ 2-1 win and then another solid, if nonscoring game in a 5-4 win against the San Jose Sharks.

Skinner tied his season high with seven shots Thursday against the Ducks. His goal, on a heavy shot from the right wing, gave the Canes a 1-0 lead in the second period, and he had more chances in the third although the Ducks won 2-1.

“He was dangerous,” Peters said Friday. “He’s playing better.”

Skinner said he enjoys playing with center Victor Rask and right winger Elias Lindholm. It’s a young group – Rask is 21 and Lindholm 20 – that gives the Canes two snipers on either side of Rask, a rookie who has gotten better during the season and had six shots against the Ducks.

“They’re smart players, and they read the game well,” Skinner said. “It’s fun playing with guys who have skill like that and are easy to read off of.”

Whether the line stays together for the Wild game remains to be seen. In Friday’s practice, Peters used Lindholm at center at times while also splitting up Jordan Staal’s line and having both Jordan and Eric Staal working at center.

With the Canes considering potential personnel changes, Skinner’s name and others could pop up in some trade speculation. He can’t worry about that, only about getting his next goal.

“I’m still sort of young in this game, and I’d like to keep learning,” Skinner said. “When you go through a stretch like I had, it’s frustrating and a little bit of adversity but something you can learn from in the big picture. That’s what I’m trying to do.”

This story was originally published February 13, 2015 at 4:56 PM with the headline "Canes' Jeff Skinner calls his season 'frustrating'."