from John Kreiser of NHL.com,

The Carolina Hurricanes have a big hill to climb if they hope to return to the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2009.

The Hurricanes are coming off a season when they finished last in the Metropolitan Division, 14th in the Eastern Conference and 26th in the NHL. They were among the League's lowest-scoring teams, and their playoff hopes were essentially gone before the first month of the season ended after a 0-6-2 start in October.

It was a nightmarish first season for general manager Ron Francis and coach Bill Peters, and with several teams in the conference making major improvements this offseason, avoiding a seventh consecutive non-playoff season won't be easy.

Can Jeff Skinner rediscover his scoring touch?

The Hurricanes scored fewer goals in 2014-15 (183) than all but three teams despite being among the top 10 in 5-on-5 shot attempts. Eric Staal was Carolina's only forward to finish with more than 40 points (54; defenseman Justin Faulk was second with 49). Carolina made no major additions up front and bought out Alexander Semin, a seven-time 20-goal scorer who had six goals and 19 points last season. For the Hurricanes to improve, Skinner has to return to the form that made him a two-time 30-goal scorer before his 22nd birthday. He dropped from 33 goals and 54 points in 2013-14 to 18 and 31 last season. "We need to find a way to utilize him properly and get him to bounce back to the level he's been at before," Peters said. "If he's done it once, he can do it again."

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