Alexander Semin expected to return Tuesday

With the Canes currently mired in a 1-11-1 slump that saw them fall 8 points behind the Capitals for the division lead and the Islanders for the 8th playoff spot, they could get a boost tonight with Alexander Semin returning from his two-game absence.

While the Canes haven’t received the kind of production they’d expect from Jeff Skinner (20 points in 33 games) and Jordan Staal (23 points in all 38 games), they’ve certainly received a pleasant surprise from the gamble they took on Semin last offseason.  Semin leads the Canes in assists with 26 and is performing at a point-per-game pace – something Semin hasn’t accomplished his last two seasons with the Capitals.

With his status still questionable, recent comments from head coach Kirk Muller lead us to believe Semin will be in:

“My belief is that he is in [the lineup],” Muller said of Semin’s status, noting there were a few health-related question marks with a few unnamed players.