It’s not every Wednesday afternoon the Hurricanes send two relatively big names down to the AHL. It’s not every season a blue line is so stacked that a defenseman who could be playing is instead racking up the press box minutes. It’s not every late-month stretch where the Charlotte Checkers have five games including two back-to-backs while the Carolina Hurricanes have three and none.



“We didn’t want them — especially Haydn — sitting anymore,” head coach Rod Brind’Amour said Thursday. “I didn’t feel right about taking guys out of the lineup just to put a guy in, either. If you’re playing well you should be able to stay in there. He just needs to play, because if someone does go down (injury) or some other reason we need a guy at his best and you have to play to get that way.”



Plan A was more of a rotation of Haydn Fleury and Trevor van Riemsdyk on the third pairing, but we’re learning...