The Carolina Hurricanes will play their first home game in more than two weeks when the Vegas Golden Knights visit Tuesday night in Raleigh, N.C.
But the Hurricanes might not look all that recognizable to their fans.
“It’s a huge concern with the injuries we have,” Carolina coach Rod Brind’Amour said. “It’s not sustainable.”
The Hurricanes finished a 4-2-0 road trip, winning six of their first eight games overall. However, the consistent road schedule has taken a toll, as a series of injuries has caused a string of roster transactions.
The Golden Knights will finish a three-game road trip aiming for a win after falling 3-0 at Florida and losing 2-1 in overtime Sunday at Tampa Bay.
“It’s not easy to win in this league,” Vegas coach Bruce Cassidy said. “I think our guys recognize that.”
Last week, Vegas handed the Hurricanes their first loss with a 4-1 victory before embarking on their road swing, with goalie Akira Schmid making 22 saves.
Hurricanes defenseman K’Andre Miller is day-to-day with a lower-body injury, while William Carrier and Eric Robinson appear to be more long-term absences.
“Nobody is coming back anytime soon,” Brind’Amour said.
Plus, defenseman Jaccob Slavin missed the entire road trip and goalie Pyotr Kochetkov has yet to play this season. However, defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere, who missed the end of the trip, and Kochetkov were both on the ice for Monday’s practice.
Charles Alexis Legault, Joel Nystrom and goalie Brandon Bussi have made NHL debuts, while Bradly Nadeau was also summoned to the club. At the beginning of this week, Carolina recalled defenseman Domenick Fensore from Chicago and sent Legault back.
The new arrivals with the Hurricanes have been playing in the same system with Chicago of the American Hockey League. But adjusting won’t necessarily come easy.
“You’re in the right spot and all of a sudden that guy is by you,” Brind’Amour said. “It takes time to get used to that pace.”
The Hurricanes ended their trip with Saturday night’s 3-2 loss at Dallas.
“We played some good hockey on the trip,” Hurricanes forward Sebastian Aho said. “Now the trick is go home and get back at it and mentally be ready for the next one.”
With so many lineup changes, getting special teams up to speed will be a priority for Carolina.
“We obviously have to score on the power play at some point,” Brind’Amour said.
The Golden Knights made progress in areas against Tampa Bay, something they’ll try to carry over to the next game.
“Let’s see if we can get to our game and stay out of the box,” Cassidy said.
With 16 points (six goals, 10 assists) in nine games, Vegas center Jack Eichel is averaging nearly two points per game.
“Looking forward, we have to find our game back, score some goals,” Vegas defenseman Jeremy Lauzon said. “I think we can be clearer with the puck in our exit (from the zone). That’s what we’re going to concentrate on here for Carolina.”
–Field Level Media
