Sebastian Aho is an NHL star, but if you ask anyone who watches the Carolina Hurricanes closely, Aho is a superstar. He is the driving force behind a team that ranks in the top three in the NHL standings. Here’s a look at how good has Aho been for the Hurricanes this season.
Aho’s Under-the-Radar 2025-26 Season
Aho is tied for second on the Hurricanes in goals (17), and leads the team in assists (35) and points (52) through 50 games. He is five goals behind the leader, Seth Jarvis, but he has been dishing out assists consistently over the last few weeks.
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Since Jan. 1, Aho has 14 assists in 11 games for an average of 1.3 assists per game, including seven in the last three games. Three of those five were against the New Jersey Devils on Jan. 17, when he had the primary assist on all three of Andrei Svechnikov‘s goals. After the 4-1 win over the Devils, Svechnikov stated, “My line with Fishy and Jarvy, they just made great plays tonight. Fishy just kind of created the space for me on all three goals. I just kind of had to shoot the puck. Amazing plays from them.” A statement like that shows how much Aho means to his teammates as he sets them up to score goals and help the team win games.
Despite only having three goals in January and none in the last nine games, Aho has still been vital to the team’s production. He has 17 points through 11 games, while also being a plus-5 and winning 55.5% of his face-offs.
Aho ranks 20th in the league in points, only seven behind the Minnesota Wild’s Kirill Kaprizov (59) for 10th. His 35 assists put him 20th in the NHL as well, only five behind the Montreal Canadiens’ Nick Suzuki (40) for 10th.
Aho was one of the first six players to be named to Finland’s Men’s Olympic team ahead of the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina next month. He’s been a pivotal part of the national team for over a decade, but will be participating in his first Olympic Games. Aho was featured in the new NHL YouTube featured series called “NHL My World”, which goes behind the scenes with some of the players heading to the Olympics. The one involving Aho discussed his journey from Finland to Raleigh and how his career has gone since joining the Hurricanes.
Aho, who is in the second year of an eight-year, $78 million deal signed ahead of the 2023-24 season, has more than lived up to his $9.75 million annual average value (AAV). He’s averaged a point-per-game or more per season for most of his career.
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Aho has been one of the main keys to the Hurricanes’ success since early December, along with Svechnikov, Jarvis, and Nikolaj Ehlers. No matter who’s on his wing, he finds ways to get them the puck for a high-danger scoring chance.
Aho has continued to add to his already impressive presence within the franchise record books this season. Since relocation, Aho is second all-time in goals (300), 22 behind Eric Staal for the record. He is also second in assists (383), points (683), third in hat tricks (eight), and is the Hurricanes/Hartford Whalers franchise leader in shorthanded goals (21) and game-winning goals (66).
When his career is over, Aho will be on the Mount Rushmore of the greatest Hurricanes of all time.
