Hurricanes Continue Historical 8-0 Playoff Run With Round 2 Sweep

What an historic run the Carolina Hurricanes are on to begin the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs. After defeating the Philadelphia Flyers in Game 4, 3-2 in overtime, they punched their ticket to the Eastern Conference Final for the third time in four seasons. On top of that, they joined an elite company of teams to begin a postseason 8-0.

Joining Elite Company

Following their second consecutive sweep, the Hurricanes joined the 1985 Edmonton Oilers (9-0), 1969 St. Louis Blues, 1960 Montreal Canadiens, and the 1952 Detroit Red Wings. Furthermore, they became the first team in NHL history to sweep two consecutive rounds after the four-round best-of-seven format was adopted in 1987. What’s even more remarkable: they became the fourth team in playoff history to allow two or fewer goals to begin the postseason, joining the 1928 Montreal Maroons, 1952 Detroit Red Wings, and 1969 St. Louis Blues.

When asked about his team pulling off two consecutive sweeps, head coach Rod Brind’Amour stated, “The impressive part is how we’ve gone about it. Obviously, we’re getting some huge performances, but everybody’s doing it. It’s how we have to get it done. Go down the list, every guy had his hands in these two series wins.”

The Hurricanes have only allowed 10 goals in eight games, five per round. Frederik Andersen has started all eight games and has a 1.12 goals-against average (GAA) and a .950 save percentage (SV%). He also has two shutouts, giving him seven playoff shutouts in his career. Andersen leads all goalies in wins, GAA, and SV% so far this postseason. Another reason the Hurricanes have been successful is their penalty kill. They’re currently 38-for-40 (95%), which is second only behind the Boston Bruins (95.8%), who were eliminated in Round 1 in six games.

Along with Andersen playing lights-out hockey, the second line has been leading the way as they’ve combined for 31 points in eight playoff games. Furthermore, they are a combined plus-25, with Taylor Hall a plus-10 alone. Hall leads the Hurricanes with nine assists and 12 points, while Logan Stankoven leads with seven goals. Regarding Jackson Blake, he tallied seven points in Round 2 against the Flyers, including a series-clinching goal in Game 4. Overall, the trio has been a force that no team can figure out.

What’s been beneficial for the Hurricanes is the team staying healthy and everything falling into place. During the 2023 Playoffs, they were without Andrei Svechnikov, Jesper Fast, and Brett Pesce as they lost in the Eastern Conference Final to the Florida Panthers. Fast forward to the 2025 Playoffs, and they did not have Jalen Chatfield and Sean Walker. All of those were due to injuries. Now, this is the healthiest Hurricanes team in recent seasons. Plus, the goaltending is in another universe, while special teams have been doing their jobs, more so the penalty kill, but the power play is warming up.

Also, the Hurricanes’ depth is the best it’s ever been, and they’re getting contributions from everywhere. As long as the defense and goaltending stay locked in, that will go a long way. Plus, once the top line of Sebastian Aho, Seth Jarvis, and Svechnikov really gets going, this could be a tough Hurricanes team to beat. In every game, they’ve never strayed from the system and have won in different ways. The Hurricanes have proven they can win from a multi-goal lead to being down two goals; they never stopped fighting.

It’ll be interesting to see who they’ll face in the Eastern Conference Final against either the Buffalo Sabres or the Montreal Canadiens. Either way, the Hurricanes are on an historic run, and they seem to be the team to beat in the Eastern Conference. For now, they can rest up and practice as they wait for their next opponent. They deserve a break after sweeping two series in a row and are now 8-0 to begin the playoffs.