Perry 'flips' over selection by Hurricanes; status uncertain

The Carolina Hurricanes are already worrying about the condition of their roster and they have only named one player to the team so far. Friday evening, the Hurricanes made their highly-anticipated announcement of Canadian right wing Corey Perry as the first player to ever be selected by the team in the Elite Hockey Experience's Inaugural Draft.

However, the excitement soon turned to great worry as less than 15 minutes later, word came that Perry had been injured in an exhibition game in Minnesota.

"We are evaluating Corey's situation with great caution," said Hurricanes' general manager Kevin Lacy. "It's remarkable how unfortunate this has all become. At 8:15 (EST) we chose him with our first-ever pick and then at 8:26 (EST) we were informed of his injury."

Perry had been training in anticipation of the start of the EHE season with the Minneapolis Mighty Ducks, a team comprised of players who also expect to be drafted in the coming weeks. In the first period of their exhibition game against the St. Paul Wild, Perry was hip checked by St. Paul defenseman Keith Ballard in a violent collision that sent Perry flipping over onto his back. The damage appeared to be to his knee and Perry was not able to leave the ice under his own power. Ballard was not penalized on the play.

The Hurricanes declined to comment on if he would miss any time at the start of the season until an examination from team doctors.

Whether or not Perry misses significant time, Lacy said that the Hurricanes' draft strategy would remain the same.

"We're in the process of building up regardless of whether he is able to go at the start or not. It really is a crummy circumstance but we'll give Corey the time that he needs to heal."