News Hurricanes Team Notes

[Carolina Hurricanes]

Hurricanes @ Capitals – Preview and Game Thread

WASHINGTON, DC - DECEMBER 11: Jalen Chatfield #5 of the Carolina Hurricanes and Connor McMichael #24 of the Washington Capitals compete for the puck during the second period of the game at Capital One Arena on December 11, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images) | Getty Images

The Metropolitan Division leading Carolina Hurricanes (33-15-3) return to action today and will do battle with the Washington Capitals (26-22-7) at the Capital One Arena.

Game time is 5 P.M.

The Hurricanes are one of the hottest teams in the league with a 7-1-2 record in their last 10 games.

Stat wise, Andrei Svechnikov has had the best month in his NHL career. He has 10 goals and 9 assists so far in the month of January surpassing his previous goal high of eight and point total of 17.

https://www.nhl.com/hurricanes/news/preview-january-31-at-washington

He also has seven goals in his last six games.

Shayne Gostibehere has 35 points in 36 games played this season.

The team did not have a morning skate today but yesterday skated the lines as follows:

Svechnikov – Aho – Jarvis

Blake – Stankoven – Hall

Ehlers – Staal – Martinook

Carrier – Jankowski – Kotkaniemi

Slavin – Chatfield

Miller – Walker

Nikishin – Gostisbehere

Since Bussi played in the last game, Fred Andersen most likely will be in net tonight.

The Caps won their last outing ( 4-3 over Detroit) but they are 3-6-1 in their last 10 and have had a rough road trip.

https://www.nhl.com/capitals/news/caps-return-home-host-hurricanes

According to the Daily Faceoff, their lines should look like the following:

Ovechkin – Strome – Beauvillier

Protas – Sourdif – Wilson

McMichael – Dowd – Leonard

Duhaime – Lapierre – Frank

Fehervary – Carlson

Chychrun – VanRiemsdyk

Sandin – Chisholm

Star goalie Logan Thompson was held out of the last game with an injury, so stay tuned for the starting netminder for the Caps tonight. Thompson was listed as day-to-day.

The game will be broadcast by the Fan Duel Sports Network with their usual suspects doing the play-by-play and color.

Once again, game time is 5 P.M.

Source: https://www.canescountry.com/2010-1...2/hurricanes-capitals-preview-and-game-thread

 

[Carolina Hurricanes]

Canes Blow 3-0 Lead, Fall in Overtime to Caps

WASHINGTON, D.C. - JANUARY 31: Goaltender Frederik Andersen #31 of the Carolina Hurricanes turns away a shot from Anthony Beauvillier #72 of the Washington Capitals in the second period on January 31, 2026 at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. (Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images) | Getty Images

The Carolina Hurricanes were the talk of the league with their historic comeback victory on Thursday night. And much of the pregame buzz centered on that win over Utah two nights ago.

The task for this team was to harness that momentum against an opponent desperate for a win, fighting for their playoff lives.

And for half of the game, it seemed as though the Hurricanes would be able to handle the Capitals.

But after Carolina built a 3-0 lead, the team sat back, had some defensive miscues, and allowed Washington to score four straight goals to earn the overtime victory.

This is a game that infuriates head coach Rod Brind’Amour, and his postgame comments reflect that:

From the opening puck drop to the end, I don’t think I’ve ever been a part of a 60-minute game where we were that bad. They dominated us from start to finish.

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Just two and a half minutes into the game, Taylor Hall takes a penalty. This was not the ideal start for Carolina, but the penalty was killed with just one shot allowed.

The Canes did not find their rhythm until about halfway through the first period. At the 13:27 mark, Mark Jankowski scored the first goal of the game. William Carrier took a hit in the corner to disrupt the clearing attempt that was kept in by Jesperi Kotkaniemi. Kotkaniemi got the puck back to Carrier, and he used his strength against the defender to settle the puck and get it to Jankowski alone in the slot.

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A few minutes later, a heads-up pass by Frederik Andersen puts the puck near the opposite blue line. Sebastian Aho’s relentless pursuit causes the Capitals’ defender to fan on the outlet pass, and Aho picks it up and buries it for the 2-0 lead.

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Carolina ended the first with a 2-0 lead despite a 19-12 shot advantage by Washington. For much of the period, Andersen was the Canes’ best player.

The Hurricanes had a better start to the second. About four minutes into the period, Jordan Staal created a turnover in the neutral zone and put the Canes on the attack. Jordan Martinook pulled up at the half boards and hit Shayne Gostisbehere with a cross-zone pass. As he was streaking down the wing, a double screen by the Washington defenders allowed his wrister to find the back of the net for a 3-0 lead.

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Just three and a half minutes later, Washington tallied their first goal of the game. The Canes won the faceoff, but failed to clear the puck. Hendrix Lapierre was left alone in front of Andersen and poked home a second chance opportunity to make it 3-1.

The action got sloppy in the middle part of the second, starting with a questionable interference call on Hall.

The Capitals’ man-advantage did not last long as a Hurricanes shorthanded rush forced Ryan Leonard to interfere with Aho, and the teams were four-on-four.

Just 30 seconds later, Logan Stankoven drew an interference penalty that led to a four-on-three for 28 seconds and then a five-on-three for just over a minute.

Unfortunately, the Carolina power play was a bit slow to develop, and with blocks and wide shots, could not get a shot on goal during these prime opportunities.

Soon after these failed power plays, another failed clear led to another Washington goal that cut the lead to 3-2.

Hall took his third penalty of the night on a delay of game call with 1:33 left in the second, and the Capitals rode that momentum into the third.

A Sean Walker penalty just two minutes into the third allowed Washington to stay on the attack. The Hurricanes killed all four Capitals power plays in the game, but the offensive zone time helped to keep the ice tiled in their favor in the third.

An unfortunate sequence of events led to the game-tying goal with about seven minutes left in the game. Tom Wilson’s elbow took a run at Stankoven’s head, cutting his cheek on the play. The dirty play and no call, interference or otherwise, made Stankoven mad and caused him to chase the play at the other end, looking for bodies. That led to the game-tying goal from Jakob Chychrun alone in the high slot.

Andersen kept the Hurricanes in the game, and the team secured a point by advancing to overtime. The Hurricanes did not produce much in the extra frame, and the Capitals scored just 1:42 into overtime.

The Hurricanes return home to Raleigh for a game versus Los Angeles tomorrow at 3:00 PM at the Lenovo Center.

Source: https://www.canescountry.com/2010-1...me-to-washington-capitals-nhl-january-31-2026

 

[Carolina Hurricanes]

Hurricanes blow 2-0 lead but beat Kings 3-2 in Overtime

RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA - FEBRUARY 01: Alexander Nikishin #21 of the Carolina Hurricanes celebrates with teammates after a goal during the third period against the Los Angeles Kings at Lenovo Center on February 01, 2026 in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Cato Cataldo/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images

It’s become more apparent than ever that we’ve hit the time of year where the Canes can feel a little more secure in their positioning for the playoffs, and they underestimate the opponent that is fighting for their playoff lives. It was a problem against Washington on Saturday and it reared its head again against the Los Angeles Kings on Sunday. Carolina dominated play in a chippy game, had a 2-0 lead and almost immediately surrendered it despite being the better team. Despite that, however, they were able to win it in overtime as the march to the Olympic Break continues.

The first period reflected two teams that had played the night before. After giving up 19 shots to the Washington Capitals in the first on Saturday, the Hurricanes gave up just four to the Kings. Most of the play in the period was in the neutral zone, with little offensive zone time for either team. The period did start spicy, though, as Jordan Martinook was called for boarding Mikey Anderson just 30 seconds in. The Penalty Kill unit though easily dispatched of the two minutes, but the Kings tried to get even with a scrum started by Jeff Malott cross-checking Alexander Nikishin.

The scrum didn’t result in any penalties, but shortly after Jackson Blake was slashed by Kevin Fiala to give the Canes their first Power Play chance. Carolina took full advantage—Jordan Staal won the faceoff back to Shayne Gostisbehere, who passed across ice to a red-hot Andrei Svechnikov. Svechnikov did not hesitate to shoot it with the Kings still trying to get set, and the puck found Jordan Stall for his second straight home goal via a deflected shot.

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There was one scary moment when Adrian Kempe went down with what looked like a slash from Sebastian Aho’s stick. He had to be helped off the ice, but fortunately it was to the team bench and he didn’t miss a shift. Anderson also came back from the locker pretty quickly after the boarding penalty, but didn’t return after the first.

The second period was scoreless but it wasn’t boring. The Kings decided they needed to avenge the hit on Anderson, and Corey Perry tried to engage Martinook in a fight on the opening faceoff. It appeared he declined the fight, but that didn’t stop Perry. It resulted in an extra minor to Perry, and later on in the period Joel Edmundson just pushed over Jackson Blake as he went in on goal. Neither penalty resulted in a converted Power Play goal, and while the Canes dominated play in that period—outshooting the Kings 14-4—the period ended with another scrum involving Martinook and the score still 1-0 Carolina.

The third period opened with more 4-on-4 play and urgency from the Kings as they are in a dogfight for position in the West and needed every point. Despite that, Carolina was able to tilt the ice in their favor and after several misses, they were able to finally finish. Chaos in front of the net led to a few more shots on Anton Forsberg, eventually the puck squirted right in front of Alexander Nikishin who snapped it by Forsberg to give Carolina a 2-0 lead.

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With the way the Canes had played, 2-0 seemed insurmountable—however as has plagued the team in recent days, they also seemed to think 2-0 was insurmountable. Right off the faceoff the Kings attacked in front of their bench, forcing a Jesperi Kotkaniemi turnover. It created a quick 4-0n-2 for the Kings that they were able to convert with a goal by Samuel Helenius just 24 seconds after Nikishin’s goal. LA continued to push, and before they could even pull the goalie, Quinton Byfield cashed in on a pass from a skating Adrian Kempe to knot the goal at two. Carolina was able to hold on the rest of the period despite some scary moments, and force overtime.

It was the second overtime in a row for both teams, but once the puck dropped Carolina controlled the action. LA had one chance at the puck early on, but Carolina controlled it and never gave it up. Eventually Carolina was able to cash in. It started as Shayne Gostisbehere learned from Will Carrier’s mistake earlier in the season, and despite getting held, saw the puck was going out of the zone and skated across the blue line. Sebastian Aho was able to secure it, then he asked the official about the missed call. Play continued as Aho went unencumbered into the zone and snapped a shot past Forsberg to give the Canes the 3-2 win.

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Brandon Bussi only had to make eleven saves on thirteen shots, as the Canes played the type of game that Rod Brind’Amour had been hoping for after the disappointment the night before. Forsberg made 30 saves in the overtime loss.

Carolina has just two games remaining before the Olympic Break—at home Tuesday against Ottawa and then up in New York against the Rangers on Thursday.

Source: https://www.canescountry.com/2010-1...-blow-2-0-lead-but-beat-kings-3-2-in-overtime

 

[Carolina Hurricanes]

Kings at Hurricanes: Preview, How to Watch, Game Thread

RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA - JANUARY 22: Sebastian Aho #20 of the Carolina Hurricanes handles the puck against the Chicago Blackhawks at Lenovo Center on January 22, 2026 in Raleigh, North Carolina. (Photo by Josh Lavallee/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images

As fun as Thursday Night was for the Canes, yesterday was equally frustrating as once again the Canes give up a 3-0 lead to a team on the road. This time it was to the Washington Capitals as they couldn’t match the desperation of a team fighting for its playoff life. There’s little time to wallow in it, though, as the Canes get right back to it in snowy Raleigh against the LA Kings.

The quick turnaround for Carolina shouldn’t result it line changes—there won’t be a morning skate and the only change should be Brandon Bussi in net instead of Freddie Andersen. Both teams are coming off playing Saturday, with the Kings beating Philly in Overtime. Today is just one of three games on the schedule, because you know, when it’s the first Sunday free of meaningful NFL football this season and before the Olympic Break you of course just schedule three games. Clearly the league wants to put the Stadium Series game in Tampa Center Stage, but not making a day long celebration out of it seems like a missed opportunity.

The trip back to Raleigh last night had to be a tough one as Rod Brind’Amour gave perhaps his harshest criticism of the team in his post game availability. He was right in that even though Carolina had a 3-0 lead, Washington had played with a desperation to where they were getting a ton of shots off. With only three games left before the team gets a three week break, you have to imagine Brind’Amour wants to see that tightened up in order to have some good vibes to carry over.

The assignment today won’t be much easier, as LA is another team fighting for their playoff lives. They come in today outside of the playoff line, but just two points back of the second Wild Card, as well as two points back of third in the Pacific. Just like Utah and Washington, LA will be looking to get every point they can, especially since they get a couple days off before their last back-to-back Pacific clashes.

In the middle of last month it appeared the Kings were out of it, a four game losing streak had them dropping down in the standings, but since then they’ve righted the ship and have benefited from the fact that the Pacific is just a mess. They’ve had a good road trip where they’ve won three of four, and the only loss was against the red hot Buffalo Sabres.

The player that the Canes have to be ready for is Adrian Kempe. He has points in six straight games, including a three point performance yesterday against Philly. He’s their leading point producer, goal scorer, assist maker, and has the looks of someone fit for Hollywood. He’ll be suiting up for Sweden next week for the Olympics, and he’s going to try and carry this squad on his back till then.

In net expect to see yet another former Hurricane in Anton Forsberg. He’s won three of his last four, with the only loss coming after regulation. He backstopped the Kings to a win against Detroit earlier in the week, and his last performance with a save percentage under .900 was against Edmonton on January 10th.

If you’re going to Lenovo today, it goes without saying to be careful. While the Raleigh area didn’t get as much snow as expected, it’s still going to take a while for all of this to disappear. Also be patient with everyone working around the arena as they had to do some work to get there and will be standing out in near zero wind chills to get you inside.

If you’re going to stay cozy inside instead, here’s how you can catch the action:

Time: 3 PM

TV: FanDuel Sports Network in the Carolinas. Mike Maniscalco will handle play-by-play alongside Tripp Tracy doing color. Hanna Yates and Shane Willis will provide off-ice reports. **Note there is no pregame or postgame today. If you live outside the Carolinas the game has been picked up by the NHL Network. If you don’t have access to the network, you’ll likely want to take advantage of streaming services like Fubo that has it and cancel quickly.

Streaming: FanDuel Sports Network App for fans in the Carolinas. Outside of the area, you’re unlikely to be able to use the ESPN app today as NHL Network games typically get blacked out.

Radio: The pregame on 99.9 The Fan starts at 2:30. At 3PM the Hurricanes Radio Network (consisting of 99.9, 730 The Game in Charlotte, ESPN New Bern 107.5/1490, and ESPN Greenville 107.5/1570) picks up the FDSN feed. You can also stream the call on the Hurricanes app.

Odds: Hurricanes -184 Moneyline, Puckline Hurricanes -1.5 at +134/Kings +152 Moneyline, Puckline +1.5 at -164, O/U 5.5 (-118 Over/-104 Under)

Source: https://www.canescountry.com/caroli...t-hurricanes-preview-how-to-watch-game-thread