from Doug Harrison of CBC,

You signed free-agent forward Alexander Semin to a one-year dea llast July with hopes he would play alongside Eric Staal. So far, Semin has played well offensively (one goal, six points) and been responsible defensively (plus-7). Do you consider him your best $7-million investment in recent memory?

“Yeah. I don’t want to discount other guys but both Alex and the Hurricanes entered this as, let’s do this [deal] just one year and see if it fits for both sides. Boy, he’s been a very good player for us. He could have five, six goals by now, he’s hit so many goal posts. But it’s not even the fact he has one goal. He’s played the game at both ends of the rink. Players have to focus on him all the time.

They’re watching Semin, which opens [the ice] up a little more for Eric. He’s such a talented player, he can do whatever he wants, quite frankly. If he’s determined to score a goal, he’s gonna get his chances. If he’s going to play a two-way game, he can play it. He can kill penalties, play the power play. He’s been every bit as good as I hoped he’d be.

more Q & A regarding the Hurricanes...