Rachel Barkley
Thursday, the Carolina Hurricanes hit the road to play the Chicago Blackhawks, and will have some local reinforcements for the task.
The game is scheduled for 8:30 PM EDT.
After their overtime win against the Boston Bruins Tuesday night, the Hurricanes clinched the Metropolitan Division. However, in the contest, they lost top-pairing Jalen Chatfield to a lower-body injury. You can read all about the game here!
Wednesday, the Hurricanes recalled four players from their minor league affiliate, the Chicago Wolves, who are also playoff-bound and sit second in the AHL’s Central Division.
Those who will join the Hurricanes are the Wolves’ captain Josiah Slavin, leading goalscorer Bradley Nadeau, Skyler Brind’Amour, and Charles-Alexis Legault. They won’t have to travel far – the Wolves’ Allstate Arena and the Blackhawks’ United Center are only 17 miles apart.
In the Crease
For the Hurricanes, the likely starter would be Frederik Andersen, per the alternating tandem. Despite a bumpy season, Andersen has significantly improved since the Olympics, notching a 7-4-0 record in that time, with three of the four losses having been to teams whose desperation level overcame the Hurricanes. This season, his save percentage is .870, with a goals against average of 3.15 across a 14-14-5 record.
Meanwhile, the Blackhawks will likely return to Spencer Knight, who played in their previous game against the San Jose Sharks. He has taken the brunt of the starts throughout Chicago’s 78 games, with 52 to Arvid Soderblom’s 23. This season, his save percentage is .907, with a goals against average of 2.72 across an 18-23-11 record.
Expected Carolina Hurricanes Lines
Andrei Svechnikov – Sebastian Aho – Seth Jarvis
Taylor Hall – Logan Stankoven – Jackson Blake
Nikolaj Ehlers – Jordan Staal – Jordan Martinook
William Carrier – Mark Jankowski – Nicolas Deslauriers
Defense
Jaccob Slavin – Shayne Gostisbehere
K’Andre Miller – Sean Walker
Mike Reilly – Alexander Nikishin
Goaltenders
Frederik Andersen / Brandon Bussi
Expected Chicago Blackhawks Lines
Teuvo Teravainen – Connor Bedard – Nick Lardis
Tyler Bertuzzi – Anton Frondell – Ilya Mikheyev
Andre Burakovsky – Frank Nazar – Ryan Donato
Andrew Mangiapane – Ryan Greene – Landon Slaggert
Defense
Alex Vlasic – Louis Crevier
Wyatt Kaiser – Sam Rinzel
Kevin Korchinski – Ethan Del Mastro
Goaltenders
Spencer Knight / Arvid Soderblom
Special Teams
Carolina Hurricanes power play: 24.7% (5th)
Carolina Hurricanes penalty kill: 80.3% (12th)
Chicago Blackhawks power play: 18.0% (25th)
Chicago Blackhawks penalty kill: 83.9% (2nd)
Hurricanes Game Notes
With the recall of three forwards and one defenseman from the Wolves, it is all but certain that the Hurricanes will rest players in the upcoming game. However, it is unclear who will be rested, and how the lines will change due to that. As such, the line projection merely reflects those of the last game, with Mike Reilly drawing in due to Jalen Chatfield’s injury.
In the previous game against the Bruins, Eric Robinson was scratched, with Nicolas Deslauriers drawing in. No brawls ensued at the hands of the Hurricanes’ bruiser, but there was certainly chirping after Seth Jarvis sustained a heavy hit from Nikita Zadorov.
Wednesday, the Carolina chapter of the PHWA honored Brandon Bussi with the team MVP award for his dynamic contributions in his debut season, and Taylor Hall with the Josef Vasicek Award (also known as the Good Guy Award) for his outstanding cooperation with the local media. Additionally, Hall was also named as the Hurricanes’ nominee for the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy.
How To Watch
TV: FanDuel Sports Network South
Streaming: ESPN+
Radio: 99.9 The Fan
