After a few subpar seasons from starting goaltender Cam Ward, the Carolina Hurricanes decided it was time to bring in some competition.
The team acquired Eddie Lack from Vancouver during the off-season and it was understood that both he and Ward would compete for the starting job.
Ward got off to a rocky start this preseason.
He allowed six goals in a 7-3 loss to Pittsburgh on Sep. 22, but rebounded nicely in Friday’s 2-1 win over those same Penguins.
“It’s about fine tuning things,” Ward said. “Against Pittsburgh you’ve got to be on your toes and you’ve got to be ready. We saw what they did to us in Pittsburgh when we weren’t exactly ready, so we were able to turn that around and have a much better outcome.
After the game, head coach Bill Peters announced that Ward will be the team’s starting goaltender in their regular season opener against Nashville on Oct. 8.
That doesn’t mean he’ll be the go-to guy for the entire year, but for now he has a leg up on the competition.
The 31-year-old posted a 22-24-5 record with a 2.40 goals-against-average and a .910 save percentage in 51 games last season.