3 Ways the Hurricanes Have Survived the Injury Bug

The Carolina Hurricanes have suffered the wrath of the hockey gods by way of defensive injury. Jaccob Slavin hasn’t played since the second game of the season and is still out a while, Shayne Gostisbehere has endured two stints on the injured reserve, Jalen Chatfield received an illegal check to the head and is out indefinitely, and K’Andre Miller is only just back from a lower-body injury himself.

However, that wasn’t enough. Mike Reilly got the boot of the skate in a very sensitive area against the Minnesota Wild, Joel Nystrom missed a period after getting a puck in the face, and the most recent victim is Charles Alexis Legault, who had his hand cut open by the skate of Nicolas Robertson. The Hurricanes’ injury replacements are getting injured. That doesn’t include Frederik Andersen, Pyotr Kochetkov, Seth Jarvis, Jesperi Kotkaniemi, Eric Robinson, or William Carrier, who have all endured injuries themselves.

Yet, despite the plague of injuries the Hurricanes have endured, Carolina currently remains toward the top of the Metropolitan Division at 12-5-0 and is in the fight for the Metropolitan Division title. Injuries have plagued the Hurricanes’ roster, and the organization continues to operate as usual.

That record puts Carolina on a 115-ish point pace. That’s without the best defensive defenseman in the NHL for most of the season, and an injury crisis that would derail most other teams. How have the Hurricanes fought off the adversity?

Outscoring the Problems

If you look in the book of hockey clichés, you’ll find “the best defense is a good offense.” Carolina has had to embody this. Carolina typically struggles with offense, but it’s scored at an impressive rate. As of Nov. 15, the Hurricanes are the fifth-highest scoring team in the NHL with 64 goals. Last season, the Hurricanes finished 10th in goal-scoring.

The Hurricanes have picked up meaningful contributions from almost every line. Sebastian Aho and Seth Jarvis lead the line, hovering around the point-per-game mark, and Jackson Blake continues to emerge, as he has 11 points.

Then, Logan Stankoven, Nikolaj Ehlers, Andrei Svechnikov, Alexander Nikishin, and Jordan Martinook are all around that 0.50 point-per-game rate. K’Andre Miller has eight points in nine games. The entire roster is pulling its weight to help the Hurricanes navigate the turmoil by outscoring their woes. The shock is that it is working.

The Kids Are Alright

In the absence of every defenseman the Hurricanes had under contract with NHL experience, Carolina has had to rely on unproven commodities from their prospect pool. Set aside the sensation of Nikishin for now; he was expected to be good. Perhaps not this good, but he was in the opening night lineup. The Hurricanes have had three different defensemen come up and play in the first 15 games. Charles Alexis Legault, Joel Nystrom, and Dominick Fensore.

Fensore is more of a power-play specialist, and he was used in a minimal capacity in the brief time he was on the roster, but the other two have stepped up massively. Nystrom has become one of the dependable defensemen for head coach Rod Brind’Amour. Nystrom has become a penalty-killing asset. He’s had to because of the penalty-killing pillars who are missing.

As for Legault, he hasn’t quite developed the same level of trust, but he’s filled in admirably, despite punching a skate blade. He’s built on his strong pre-season by earning his NHL debut and making it difficult for the Hurricanes management to send him back to the Chicago Wolves, Carolina’s American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate.

His physical approach may be old-fashioned, but his skating ability ensures he still fits in well with the Hurricanes’ system, and he has proven it by playing a significant part in some confidence-building victories for the organization. Legault will now begin his mandatory stint on the sideline for the next three to four months after hand surgery.

The third rookie is Nikishin, who was expected to play, but not in this manner. Nikishin was expected to be eased into the league, with a more significant role towards the end of the season, rather than being thrust into this baptism by fire. Instead, he’s been thrown in the deep end and isn’t just floating; he’s thriving.

The biggest compliment you can give him is that the absence of Jaccob Slavin has not destroyed the Hurricanes’ season because of Nikishin. He’s not the only one, but he’s been the biggest piece of the puzzle, filling the hole Slavin leaves. Nikishin’s sensational start to the season is the biggest reason Carolina is coping with the injuries.