How Mark Jankowski is making the most of his playoff opportunity with Hurricanes
Had there not been a last-second trade, had he not been uprooted and sent to the Carolina Hurricanes, Mark Jankowski might be on vacation this week, perhaps hitting a golf ball and tanning himself.
Instead, there he was Tuesday night, leaping over the boards at the Lenovo Center to dash across the ice and celebrate the Canes’ Stanley Cup playoff series win over the New Jersey Devils.
Made a healthy scratch in the first three games of the series, Jankowski was inserted into the lineup in Game 4 as the fourth-line center, replacing Jack Roslovic. Carolina won the next two to close out the first-round series in five games, and Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour said Thursday he might stick with Jankowski when the second-round series begins against the Washington Capitals.
“I think his game overall is a little bit of a playoff style,” Brind’Amour said. “It’s very direct and I don’t want to say simple, because it’s not, but it’s a game suited for us at this time of year.”
While Roslovic offers more offensive skill and puts a right-hand center in the lineup, Jankowski has the size at 6-foot-4 and 215 pounds to withstand the rigors of what should be an uber-physical series with the Caps.
For much of this season, Jankowski was a member of the Nashville Predators, had former Canes defenseman Brady Skjei among his teammates and was happy enough in Smashville. That changed March 7, just moments before the 3 p.m. NHL trade deadline, when he was informed he had been dealt to Carolina. He soon was on the move.
“It was a whirlwind,” he said, smiling. “Pretty surreal.”
“Obviously in the position we were in in Nashville, and we did want to finish the season strong, but there wasn’t much of a chance of us making the playoffs,” he added. “And then you get traded ...”
Much of the attention and headlines that day were on the Canes sending disgruntled forward Mikko Rantanen to the Dallas Stars in a deal that brought winger Logan Stankoven to the Canes.
Stankoven said the night before the trade, he was told by friends that his name was being tossed about in trade chatter on social media, saying it was tough to sleep. Jankowski slept well.
The next day, Jankowski was hanging out with a few friends at his apartment well past 3 o’clock when he got the “time-to-pack” call.
“All of a sudden you’re on a contending team and ramping up to get ready for the playoffs,” Jankowski said. “It’s definitely a weird feeling to go from one to the other so quickly, but at the same time exciting to have the opportunity for the playoffs.”
It wasn’t a first-time thing for the 30-year-old native of Hamilton, Ontario. He was in 10 playoff games in two seasons with the Calgary Flames, who drafted him in the first round in 2012, and six games last year with the Predators.
Jankowski had a goal and assist, seven hits and won 20 of 34 faceoffs (58.8%) as the Preds lost the first-round series against the Vancouver Canucks.
“The intensity of the game, the speed of the game, is so different in the playoffs,” he said. “Everyone is more physical. Every single detail means so much and can be the difference in moving on or going home and your season being over.
“Everything is so much more amplified, especially the energy from the crowd.”
In his first game with Carolina after the trade, Jankowski had two goals and was named the game’s first star as the Canes smacked the Winnipeg Jets, 4-2. His quick start that night at the Lenovo Center added a little in-game pressure for the other new guy, Stankoven, who later scored in the win.
“I wanted to join the fun with ‘Janko,’” Stankoven said.
After the game, Brind’Amour noted Jankowski was experienced and “knows how to play.,” saying he should be a good addition. How well, how quickly? Jankowski had eight goals in 19 regular-season games with the Canes – that after scoring four in 41 games this season in Nashville.
“Just trying to get open and I was able to cash in on my chances,” Jankowski said.
In short, Jankowski has done all that Brind’Amour has asked of him, playing well enough defensively, killing penalties and making the most of his playing time.
“He’s filled in kind of everywhere we’ve needed it, which is good,” winger Seth Jarvis said. “We have a guy who can play up and down the lineup, special teams, and then contribute like he has.”
Jankowski averaged about 14 minutes in playing time in the two playoff games against the Devils. He earned his first playoff point with Carolina when he assisted Jackson Blake’s goal in Game 5 as the Canes rebounded from a 3-0 deficit.
“I was ready to go,” Jankowski said. “We have a lot of depth and that’s something we take a lot of pride in and something you need to get to where we want to go.”
Jankowski said he grew up a Buffalo Sabres fan and that his family had season tickets. He was 11 years old and watching in 2006 when the Hurricanes won a seven-game thriller against the Sabres in the Eastern Conference final on their way to the Stanley Cup.
Jankowski said he also was at the playoff game in 1999 when Brett Hull’s controversial goal won the Cup for the Dallas Stars.
“I was really young and don’t quite remember it.” he said, smiling again. “But it was Game 6 and Hull had his foot in the crease and scored in triple overtime in Buffalo to win the Cup.”
Under NHL rules at the time, a player’s skate could not be in the crease when a goal was scored. But the ruling was a good goal and the Stars won their only Stanley Cup.
Jankowski said he has seen the Cup only once – on display at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto. He did not touch it, he said.
“I’m waiting,” he said, “for the real thing.”
This story was originally published May 2, 2025 at 6:00 AM.
