Jim Rutherford Quotations

We've always taken the position at this rookie camp that we'll give opportunities to guys who deserve them. Estrada continued to play well. He deserved to go.

We're fine with where we are now. If we get to the point where we see somebody needs more time, we'll take a look at some kind of adjustment.

Oleg is a highly skilled defenseman who entered the NHL at a very young age and is just reaching his prime, ... His speed and ability to run a power play will put him in an important role for our defense. Oleg has played well over the last two seasons in Russia and is excited to return to North America.

Signing a player is different for each team. You have to take into consideration what is a good fit for your individual team's situation.

No ceremony could fully pay tribute to what Ron Francis meant to the Hurricanes organization and the National Hockey League.

If we couldn't get Mark, we would not have made a deal, whether Erik Cole was hurt or not.

Glen has been a mainstay of this organization for a long time and he has made his home in North Carolina. He is a leader on and off the ice and we are very happy to have him back for another season.

He has been an elite player for many, many years in this league, especially in the playoffs. I think that once you get to the playoffs, it's very important to have guys who've been there to help the other guys along.

He has a very powerful stride, and in the new game that's really beneficial.

He is a big, strong, aggressive player who should develop into a power forward who will play an important role in the future success of our franchise,

When they had the loss in the family, Paul called me and said Jeff would really love to play in Toronto and they would appreciate anything I could do to make it happen.

Josef is coming off two very good seasons and is approaching the prime of his career. We are very happy to have him signed to a multiyear deal.

I think we are a little anxious as to how the games are going to be called. We're told by the league they're going to be called the same as they were during the regular season, but you get different officials that call games different regardless of what system you're in.

Matt is a big centreman who adds a playmaking element to our forward lines. We feel he is a valuable addition to our core group of young forwards.

Mark is an accomplished goal scorer and playmaker who will be an asset to the Hurricanes' forward lines. His playoff experience will provide added leadership for our team as we look forward to the postseason.

I think our team has been very disciplined in both games,

Justin is a young player who we anticipate will play a significant role on our team. He brings a good deal of NHL experience to our group of young forwards, and has demonstrated that he can develop into a top-level NHL player.

That's the past. It doesn't matter what happened in the past.

Which is not good enough. Then it will depend on how the team does.

We don't know who is going to finish eighth, but it could be the defending Stanley Cup champions.

When you draft a player and you see him play a year in the league, you have an idea of whether he has a chance of being a special player,

We'll have to see how it plays out and how he's coming along, but certainly he's on the bubble of playing for the Hurricanes. He's a very good player, the type of player that's hard to find in that he's big and strong, and plays the game really hard on every shift.

Aside from being this franchise's all-time best player on the ice, Ron has been an example of class and dedication throughout his brilliant career to his teammates and in the communities where he has played.

Cory has been a consistent offensive player throughout his NHL career. He was a key member of Tampa Bay's power play, and we will look for him to do the same for our team.

Doug is one of the premier forwards in the National Hockey League and will add a strong element to our top lines. His skill, leadership and experience will be a great benefit for our team.

Doug didn't put points up immediately when he came. He played fine. He didn't play at the level he was capable of, but he factored in some games. He scored a shootout goal to help us win in Boston. But now in the last four games, he's back to the level of player he was in St. Louis. Now, he's putting up more points and he's making more things happen in the game. Clearly, there was an adjustment period, but he's pretty much through it.

During his time with our organization, Bruno has shown that he can be a capable NHL defenseman. He is one of the players we hope can continue to mature and become a fixture on our defense.

Erik is instrumental to the success of our team. We look forward to him taking the next step to being a top-level player.

Erik has performed well for the Hurricanes and we are happy to have him signed, ... He led his team in Germany to the league championship last season and also performed well for coach Laviolette at the World Championships.

There's still going to be deals. I'm not sure there will be as many impact deals as there has been at the deadline in the past.

There's not many spots (open). You find room for guys who perform.

Radim had an extremely productive season in the Czech Republic, ... We will look for him to take the next step offensively for the Hurricanes this year.

Anton is a big, strong defenseman who will add depth to our blue line. He is a former first-round pick and he is a complement to the defensemen we now have in our organization.

This is certainly a statement to everybody how serious we are about our chances to make a run to the championship.

There were a lot of hurdles in dealing with this because he had a no-trade, but we finally got it done. Doug Weight making the decision to come here when he had a few options with other teams that he knew that he could possibly go to I really feel speaks volumes for this franchise at this point and time. And now we have the most sought-after player that was available in the league leading up to the trade deadline accepting a trade to come to Carolina, and I think that this proves that this franchise is moving in the right direction.

They probably don't see the importance of it but as time goes on they will. I did not vote when I played. As you get older you understand politics a little more and the importance of them than you do when you're younger.

It's a good building block to get these two really good young players.

It's the way he played, it's the way he approached things, it's the way he led by example, it's the way he tutored or helped younger players.

Confidence covers a whole bunch of different areas. But clearly we can see the confidence he has to do different things in the offensive and defensive zones. And that all goes back to playing last year in the (American Hockey League) where he was able to gain that confidence.

The nice thing for us is we have a team that Peter has really brought together with his team-building and coaching style, and we have to be careful with the chemistry of the team, and Doug Weight is a perfect fit for us. He can fit into any situation on any line.

The obvious difference from two years ago is age and maturity but also strength, confidence, and he has a very powerful stride, which is very advantageous to him when he's trying to pull away from a player or beat a player one on one. And he really sees the ice well.

His announcement was in a way like his career very professional, ... He went about his business quietly and he's one of the all-time great players to play the game.

I am very excited with the addition of Ray, who is a skilled forward who will add more speed and offense to our team.

He really did everything he could in rookie camp to show that he's ready to play.

He put in the systems on the first day of camp and started to work on drills that were going to come up in game situations. I think our team has been prepared very well for the way the game's being played.