Hurricanes hit with discouraging Frederik Andersen injury

The Carolina Hurricanes are one win away from booking their ticket to Round 2 of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs — but they might have to play Game 5 against the New Jersey Devils without their starting goaltender.

Frederik Andersen was injured in the second period of Sunday afternoon’s 5-2 victory at the Prudential Center in Newark, and was unable to return. He was crashed into by Devils forward Timo Meier early into the frame; Meier was given a major penalty for goalie interference, but it was rescinded after a video review, per NHL.com’s David Satriano.

Andersen was able to skate off the ice, but the injury certainly didn’t look good. Canes head coach Rod Brind’Amour didn’t have a concrete update on the 35-year-old on Monday.

“He’s going to get checked out tomorrow,” Brind’Amour said, per Satriano. “So, obviously he wasn’t good enough to continue, so that’s not a good sign, but I don’t have any other information. We’ll know more I guess tomorrow.”

Andersen has been excellent over the last two years when healthy, but he’s struggled to stay on the ice for long periods. He missed a huge chunk of the regular-season in 2023-24 with blood clotting and started just 22 games this year after undergoing surgery for a knee injury.

The Danish goaltender went 13-8-1 with a 2.50 goals-against average, .899 save percentage and one shutout during the regular-season. He was lights out in the 2025 playoffs before the ailment, going 3-0 with a sparkling 1.59 GAA and .936 SV%.

Pyotr Kochetkov performed admirably in Game 4

Andersen going down with another injury is brutal for both player and club — but the Hurricanes boast a more-than-capable backup in Pyotr Kochetkov, who was the starter for long stretches in the regular season.

And he was excellent in Game 4, making 14 saves on 15 shots in Sunday’s win. Without a start in over a week, the Russian looked calm and composed between the pipes, helping Carolina open up a 3-1 lead in the series.

“He’s a capable goalie,” captain Jordan Staal said of Kochetkov, per Satriano. “He’s been really good for us, and a big win for him and I’m sure his confidence. He got us moving forward during the regular season and tonight was no different. We’ve always been comfortable with either goalie.

“You’d love to have Freddie back as soon as you can, but ‘Koch’ did a really good job stepping in.”

Kochetkov had an up-and-down regular season, managing a 27-16-3 record with a 2.60 GAA and .898 SV%, along with two shutouts, in 47 starts. Although he’s struggled in his postseason career — he’s 1-4 with a 3.73 GAA and .870 SV% — he looked solid on Sunday.

Carolina would love to get Andersen healthy for Game 5, but even with Kochetkov between the pipes, they’ll have a great chance to win the series on home ice. New Jersey will be missing key defensemen Luke Hughes and Brenden Dillon for the tilt, and remain without superstar forward Jack Hughes.

The Hurricanes will look to advance to the second round for the fifth consecutive year when puck drops at the Lenovo Center on Tuesday night.