Hurricanes injuries mount on long road trip: ‘We really leaned on our depth’
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Canes face mounting injuries on long road swing, forcing lineup changes.
- Coach Brind’Amour cites extended absences; recalls Nystrom, Legault.
- Depth steps up: Jarvis, Bussi and Reilly fill roles amid roster strain.
The Carolina Hurricanes are winning games, but going through some worrisome early season attrition.
The Canes, on their longest road swing of the season, edged Colorado 5-4 in a shootout on Thursday behind goalie Frederik Andersen’s 44 saves, but forwards William Carrier and Eric Robinson both left the game with injuries, and defenseman K’Andre Miller was a game-time scratch.
Carolina head coach Rod Brind’Amour said after the game that both Carrier and Robinson could be sidelined for an “extended period.”
The Canes, who play at Dallas on Saturday, recalled forward Bradly Nadeau on Friday from the Chicago Wolves, their American Hockey League affiliate.
Miller went through the pregame warmup Thursday at Ball Arena but was unable to go. Joel Nystrom, quickly recalled from the Wolves of the AHL, arrived just before the game and made his NHL debut.
“We really leaned on our depth,” said forward Seth Jarvis, who scored a shorthanded goal in the first period and the only shootout goal. “You had guys all around who really stepped up.”
Brind’Amour said Miller, who was slowed in preseason by an undisclosed injury, could be out “a while.”
“It’s tough on the injury front right now,” Brind’Amour said. ”Especially with the blue line being down, that’s really tough on the guys.”
First wave of Canes injuries
The Canes (6-1-0) lost defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere to a lower-body injury in the third game of the trip, against the Los Angeles Kings. Carolina’s best D-man, Jaccob Slavin, did not make the trip because of a lower-body concern.
Slavin did play in the first two games of the season, wins over New Jersey and Philadelphia at home, but remained in Raleigh when the team left for the West Coast. Slavin did not play in any preseason games while also missing practice time — Brind’Amour has said the veteran did not have any surgery or procedures performed before training camp began.
Also staying behind: goalie Pyotr Kochetkov, who has a lower-body injury. He was replaced by goalie Brandon Bussi, who Carolina claimed off waivers from the Florida Panthers.
Bussi won his NHL debut at San Jose and added a second win against the Kings.
Hurricanes’ patchwork defense
Gostisbehere, who had seven points in five games and was tied for the NHL lead in plus/minus rating (+9), left the team after the Kings game to go back to Raleigh. Brind’Amour said the D-man “tweaked something” and did not believe the injury was serious.
With Gostisbehere out, the Canes recalled defenseman Charles Alexis Legault from the Wolves. Legault, a fifth-round draft pick by Carolina in 2023, made his NHL debut against the Vegas Golden Knights.
Nystrom got in 27 shifts (16:02 in ice time) and Legault had 21 shifts (13:11) against the Avs. Nystrom put in three short shifts in the overtime period and was used on the power play and penalty kill during the game — the Avs had eight power plays, tying the score 4-4 on the eighth in the third period.
“The guys that we’re playing gave everything they had,” Brind’Amour said. “Against a team like that, it puts you on your heels.”
Nystrom, 23, was a seventh-round draft pick by Carolina in 2021 and spent five seasons in the Swedish Hockey League.
“He came in 15 minutes before puck drop and played well,” Jarvis said.
Slavin was placed on injured reserve on Oct. 21 to allow roster flexibiity and is eligible to be activated at any time. The Canes’ next home game is Tuesday against Vegas.
The Canes signed defenseman Mike Reilly to a one-year, free-agent contract on July 1 and have quickly needed the NHL veteran, who spent time with six teams before coming to Carolina. Reilly, 32, has played in five games on the trip and averaged 18:44 in ice time, picking up three assists.
Looking forward
Carrier, who missed a big part of last season with an injury, started Thursday’s game but managed just three shifts before going out. On the third, he appeared to get tangled up with an Avs player off a faceoff and was soon headed to the Canes bench, showing some anger and frustration leaving the ice.
Robinson scored the Canes’ first goal and played 13 shifts before leaving the game in the second period with an upper-body injury.
With Carrier and Robinson out, forward Mark Jankowski will draw back in the Canes’ lineup Saturday after being healthy scratch the previous three games. Carolina brought in Nadeau, who had a strong preseason with the Canes and might help bolster a struggling power play — the Canes were 0-5 against the Avs and are 2-for-26 this season.
This story was originally published October 24, 2025 at 10:45 AM.
