Every team goes through a rough patch during an 82-game season – the Winnipeg Jets recently lost four straight, while the New York Rangers lost five consecutive games and traded their captain after threatening to waive or bench him. The Carolina Hurricanes, meanwhile, are in a better spot than analysts predicted they would be before the start of the season.
Some believed they would be in a wild-card spot or miss the playoffs entirely. As of Dec. 10, the Hurricanes are 17-9-1 with 35 points – three points behind the second-place New Jersey Devils in the Metropolitan Division with three games in hand. Despite playing the same number of games as the Washington Capitals, the Hurricanes are only five points back on a team many thought would finish fifth or worse.
Yes, the Hurricanes are 4-5-1 in their last 10 games, with one win in their last five, but it is not time to make trades just to make trades. The team had no expectations coming into the season, especially after many thought they took a massive step back after losing some key players in free agency. After 27 games, they are still in a good spot and can push themselves forward, like they did last season. There is no reason to panic.
Don’t Push the Red Button
While their stretch of games since the Utah HC matchup hasn’t been the best, this is still Rod Brind’Amour’s team, who has coached them to six straight first-round playoff wins and two Eastern Conference Final appearances. Furthermore, the leadership group of Jordan Staal, Sebastian Aho, Jaccob Slavin, and Jordan Martinook has been in place since 2018-19 and continues to hold the team to a high standard.
Seth Jarvis is a homegrown talent who will one day lead the league, while Martin Necas is having a franchise record-setting season for points dating back to their days as the Hartford Whalers, with 42 points in 27 games – he scored 53 in 77 games in 2023-24 and 71 points two seasons ago. He has a chance to surpass his career-best points total by a wide margin before the 4 Nations Face-Off tournament.
Related: Hurricanes Players & Brind’Amour Share Thoughts Following 5-3 Win Over Avalanche
There is also the depth-scoring contributions from Jack Roslovic (13 goals), Eric Robinson (17 points), and Shayne Gostisbehere (24 points) who were all signed as free agents in the summer. Gostisbehere is three points off a point-per-game pace, which any team would love to have on their team, and how many people thought Jackson Blake, as a rookie, would make this much of an impact? With 10 points, he is within the Top 10 in scoring among NHL rookies (ranked eighth) and ranked third in goals with seven.
Defensively, Slavin is still the best defensive defenseman in the NHL with only two penalty minutes and going for his third Lady Byng Trophy after receiving a contract extension on July 1. Dmitry Orlov and Jalen Chatfield are a combined plus-30 on the season (Orlov Plus-17, Chatfield Plus-13) as one of the best defensive pairs in the league. They constantly hold the opposition at bay while contributing offensively.
While the team’s goaltending might be a bit shaky, Pyotr Kocehtkov is holding his own, taking the bulk of starts for the second straight season with Frederik Andersen out after undergoing knee surgery. The Russian netminder has an 11-4-0 record with a 2.68 goals-against average (GAA) and a .893 save percentage (SV%) which is still good despite missing a few games due to concussion protocol. His 11 wins are 10th in the NHL, while his GAA is 20th among goalies with 10 games or more played. His SV% is tied for 33rd, mainly due because of giving up three or more goals when only facing 25 or fewer shots.
That said, Kochetkov has been stellar for the Hurricanes, despite giving up some soft goals here and there and being too aggressive at times. He has come up big when the team needed him and is the goalie of the future.
Related: Hurricanes’ Necas Should Be in the Running for 2024-25 NHL Awards
Last season, the Hurricanes struggled from the end of November through early December, losing four games to start their Western Canada road trip. After a players-only meeting following their loss to the Vancouver Canucks, they went on a run that saw them finish the season only three points back of Presidents’ Trophy-winning Rangers.
All teams go through rough patches, and this is nothing new for the Hurricanes. They fought through it in 2023-24 and made it to the second round of the playoffs, with expectations of them winning it all. This season, however, there are no expectations which in the past has been a motivator for the team (2005-06 being picked dead last but winning the Stanley Cup) and as of now, they are using that. Carolina is still within striking distance of the division lead. Once everyone is healthy (Andersen) and all 18 players in front of the goalie get humming again, fans will see the 5-1-0 road trip team they saw during the North Carolina State Fair trip.
We just need patience. Mentally, the team needs to get back to what has worked for them before, playing 60 minutes of Hurricanes hockey, with no lapses in focus within a structured system they know how to play. Just take a deep breath and step back from the big red button.
Hurricanes Host Sharks
The Hurricanes host the San Jose Sharks at Lenovo Center to kick off their four-game homestand on Tuesday. The puck drop will be at 7 p.m. Eastern on FanDuel Sports South and 99.9 The Fan for the radio call. Necas is a goal away from reaching 15 on the season and two assists away from 30. Fans might want to tune in and see if Necas can get to 15-30 in only 28 games as the team looks to turn a corner.
