Quick Whistles: The Elephant in the Room

While young Nicolas Roy played in his first game in a Hurricanes jersey on Saturday night, a select group of players likely played their last.

Featured on the list of Carolina’s pending unrestricted free agents are the likes of Derek Ryan and Lee Stempniak, a pair of veterans who have seen their 2016-17 success - and their ice time - falter quickly down the stretch of the 2017-18 campaign. While nothing is ever certain in the National Hockey League, it looks like those two forwards will hit the open market on July 1 in hopes of seeing their NHL careers continuing with different organizations.

While Ryan and Stempniak’s future may be written on the wall, Ward’s fate is far from a slam dunk.…