Hurricanes Rule Starting Goalie Out for Game 5

The Carolina Hurricanes will officially be without starting goalie Frederik Andersen in their Game 5 contest against the New Jersey Devils. Following an injury sustained in Game 4 that forced him out of the game, the veteran netminder's status for the upcoming game became questionable. After missing the team's morning skate, even further doubt was cast on his availability.

Following the Hurricanes' latest on-ice session, the team's head coach confirmed that Andersen will miss Game 5. Speaking to the media, Rod Brind'Amour ruled him out for the possible elimination game and updated the goalie's status as day-to-day.

"He’s day to day and he’s out tonight," Brind'Amout stated.

With Andersen out, the Canes made a few adjustments. Pyotr Kochetkov will make his first start of the postseason after making 14 saves on 15 shots against in relief of Andersen in Game 4. Brind'Amour expressed confidence in Kochetkov ahead of the game, citing his trust in the young goalie.

"He's played half the games this year, I think," he said. "This isn’t like you’re putting in a guy that we don’t trust or hasn’t played a ton of games for us. We have a lot of faith in him."

In fact, Kochetkov played more than half of the regular season games for the Hurricanes. Starting 47 games this year, he posted a record of 27-16-3 with a 2.60 goals-against average and .898 save percentage. With Andersen dealing with injuries throughout the season, Kochetkov has proved reliable time and time again.

Now, he must come up big again with the chance to close out the Devils. With Andersen listed as day-to-day, he could return in the second round. If Kochetkov gets a win in Game 5, he will seal the Hurricanes' first-round series victory and give his running mate even more time to recover.