After six games into the 2024-25 season, the Carolina Hurricanes are 4-2-0 and are on a two-game winning streak. While they are on a good run right now, they have been benefitting from depth scoring from players new and old. Who has been stepping up for the Canes during this upward trend?
Jesperi Kotkaniemi
One of the guys who really needed a bounce-back start for the 2024-25 season was Finnish forward Jesperi Kotkaniemi. After the 2023-24 season, it is one that he wishes he had back. Kotkaniemi finished the season with 12 goals and 27 points in 79 games. However, after six games into the 2024-25 season, he seems to be on the right path. He currently has five points (all assists), and is tied for the team lead with Sebastian Aho and Martin Necas. Furthermore, he has been throwing the body quite frequently while also having tough board battles to win the puck for the Canes. It seems that he has figured out how to use his body more and box out opponents for possession, especially in the offensive zone.
Related: Hurricanes’ Jesperi Kotkaniemi Is in Make-or-Break Mode for 2024-25
So far this season he has been snake-bitten with no goals and at least four posts hit on shots. However, he is putting pucks on the net and finding teammates who are scoring. Furthermore, he is finally getting the points that eluded him in 2023-24 when he seemed to lead the team in tertiary assists in build-ups that led to goals. Luckily, he is being rewarded for his efforts, seeing him having a goals-for percentage (GF%) of 62.50% and a Corsi-for percentage (CF%) of 57.80%. His 62.50 GF% is a huge step up from the 50.70% that he had last season. Furthermore, he has 0.83 points per game (P/G) after six games. Will Kotkaniemi be able to keep this pace up? Fans are hoping they see the player who had 18 goals and 43 points two seasons ago. Plus, are we seeing the Jordan Staal 2.0 that everyone is hoping for when it comes to the trajectory of Kotkaniemi’s career?
Jack Roslovic
Another player who has been stepping up for the Hurricanes six games into the season is Columbus, Ohio native Jack Roslovic. So far into the 2024-25 season, Roslovic has three goals while proving why his speed is something the Canes needed. When asked back during training camp, Roslovic stated, “It’s the reason why I wanted to come here, because of the fit. They get their wingers up the ice and their D know it. I think it’s a really good system that they’ve created here. I want to be able to fit in and already playing with speed is an advantage that hopefully I can bring to the team.”
Related: Hurricanes’ Jack Roslovic Addresses Team’s Need for Speed
So far it has paid off as he went from the second line with Kotkaniemi and Necas to now being on the first line right-wing with Andrei Svechnikov and Aho. His speed has given him the flexibility head coach Rod Brind’Amour needs for his roster which emphasizes speed and being able to be slotted anywhere in the lineup.
It certainly does help when you have a 92nd percentile skating speed and an upper 80% range of rush offense, rush assists, and zone entries/exits per JFresh’s analytical cards. In terms of quick transitions that the team likes to play, Roslovic will easily fit in with the off-the-rush mentality that the Canes use and so far, it’s worked out perfectly.
Eric Robinson
Another speedster the Canes added to their 2024-25 roster was former Columbus Blue Jackets forward Eric Robinson. After six games, the New Jersey native has one goal and three points on the season. He scored his first goal as a Hurricanes player in the team’s 4-2 win over the Calgary Flames on Thursday night (Oct. 24). Robinson leads the team in plus/minus with a plus-5 with two players at plus-3. Right away it is clear that he is not afraid of throwing the body and getting physical in board battles. Furthermore, his speed, especially on the fourth line has been clutch in scoring situations where the Hurricanes needed it.
He found Jackson Blake in front of the Pittsburgh Penguins goal to notch his second goal of the season to kick off the road trip. Seth Jarvis after signing his eight-year deal mentioned how Robinson’s speed was something that caught his eye. It was certainly one of the reasons why the Canes added the former Blue Jacket and Buffalo Sabres forward to a one-year, $950,000 deal. While he will be an unrestricted free agent after the season, there is a possibility of a case being made to keep him here for a couple of more seasons since he will be 30 years old after the deal is done next summer. But overall, he is proving why general manager Eric Tulsky wanted him with the team after signing him back on the first day of free agency on July 1.
Can These Canes Maintain Current Form?
While all three players aren’t going to score 20-25 goals a season, they each bring their own unique style to the Carolina Hurricanes who are looking for their seventh straight Stanley Cup Playoff appearance next April. Kotkaniemi is top five in points and tied for the team lead in assists in a much-needed bounce-back season. Roslovic and Robinson are showing the speed that caught the Hurricanes’ front office’s attention to bring them both in this past summer. Could all three keep up their current form?
It remains to be seen but if they can stay consistent and do their jobs along with the right things, these three could make an impact for the team even if points aren’t being added to the scoresheet. It’s about the little things and so far all three have been doing that plus much more in the team’s 4-2-0 record and two-game winning streak with two games left in their current road trip.
These three are worth watching for the upcoming weeks as we get closer to American Thanksgiving (Nov. 28) where people really start to get impressions of how teams will do this season. It’ll be interesting to see where these three and the Canes are at by that point of the season.
