Raleigh, NC (My Sportsbook) - Carolina aims to stay unbeaten against the Atlanta Thrashers and pick up its first win of the year when the two hook up at RBC Center Friday.

Carolina is 12-0-3 all-time against Atlanta in the Thrashers' brief three-year history. However, five of the last seven matchups in this series have gone into overtime, including the last three in Hurricanes' home rink.

On Wednesday the Hurricanes kicked off their 2002-03 season campaign with a 4-1 loss at the hands of the New York Rangers.

Arturs Irbe made 24 saves in the losing effort for the Hurricanes, who failed to cash in on any of nine power play opportunities. Rod Brind'Amour notched the lone score for Carolina late in the game.

After failing to capitalize on a 5-on-3 advantage, Bates Battaglia poked a loose puck away from three Rangers to a wide-open Brind'Amour, who stick- handled in front of the net to set up a shot. New York netminder Mike Richter dove to make the save, but could not stop the puck from going into the net spoiling the shutout. Brind'Amour picked up the 326th goal of his career with the tally.

The Thrashers declined six points in 2001-02 and finished with the National Hockey League's very worst record, but better days could be on the horizon.

Atlanta owns two of the brightest young stars in hockey in Ilya Kovalchuk and Dany Heatley, the team's most recent draft picks -- Heatley No. 2 overall in 2000 and Kovalchuk No 1 in '01 -- made an immediate splash in their inaugural NHL campaigns. Kovalchuk, despite appearing in just 65 games due to a season- ending shoulder injury, led all rookies with 29 goals, while Heatley topped all freshmen with 66 points and beat out his Russian teammate for the Calder Trophy.

The team also added former 30-goal scorer Slava Kozlov from the Buffalo Sabres and winger Shawn McEachern from Ottawa.

Milan Hnilicka enters the season as a No. 1 backstop for the first time in his NHL career. Because of the sub-par play in front of him, Hnilicka's stats haven't been spectacular (3.19 goals-against average, .908 save-percentage last season), but has shown enough to garner the starting the nod between the pipes.

Rookie Pasi Nurminen was very impressive in nine appearances last season, and, off his Calder Cup run with the Chicago Wolves in the AHL, he should push Hnilicka, even if it's only slightly.

The Thrashers are 1-2 in their three season-openers.