Hurricanes Activate Shayne Gostisbehere, Place Eric Robinson On IR
The Carolina Hurricanes are getting a major boost to their defensive core ahead of tonight’s marquee matchup against the Vegas Golden Knights. The Hurricanes announced that they’ve activated Shayne Gostisbehere from the injured reserve and have placed forward Eric Robinson on it in a corresponding roster move.
Despite missing the team’s last three games with a lower-body injury, Gostisbehere is still leading the team in scoring among defensemen. Before going down with the injury, the Pembroke Pines, FL native scored one goal and seven points in five games with a +9 rating, averaging 16:01 of ice time per game. Although his ATOI appears relatively low, it’s essential to note that Gostisbehere only skated for 4:06 in his most recent game on October 18th.
One of the most noticeable differences in Gostisbehere’s game has been on the defensive side of the puck. He’s had a pair of quality offensive campaigns between the Detroit Red Wings and Hurricanes since the 2023-24 season, but has hovered around an 88.0% on-ice save percentage at even strength (oiSV%).
This season, albeit in far fewer games, Gostisbehere got off to a great defensive start, averaging a 66.7% CorsiFor% (CF%) at even strength, and a 94.1% oiSV%. His CF% remains the highest on the team for players who have appeared in five or more contests, while his oiSV% is second on defense behind rookie Alexander Nikishin. In no uncertain terms, Gostisbehere was a primary reason the Hurricanes got off to an undefeated start through their first five games.
Meanwhile, Robinson heads to the IR after suffering an upper-body injury against the Colorado Avalanche on Thursday. According to an update from the team a few days later, Robinson isn’t expected back with the team anytime soon. He scored one goal and four points in seven games to start the 2025-26 campaign, averaging 9:57 of ice time per game.
Injury Notes: Hurricanes, Maple Leafs, Blackhawks, Sharks
Carolina Head Coach Rod Brind’Amour told Chip Alexander of the Raleigh News that K’Andre Miller could be back shortly, however, Jaccob Slavin could be absent for “a while”. Miller has not played since October 20th, but has been off to a great start in his Carolina tenure with four points in six games. Meanwhile, Slavin was placed on IR last week with a lower-body injury, appearing in the Canes’ first two games before going back down. The ailment has bothered the star defenseman throughout October, and the team has been vague on further details.
Carolina has been great so far despite missing both defensemen, with a 6-2-0 record. Based on Brind’Amour’s comments, it seems a real possibility Miller could be all set when his Hurricanes go to Madison Square Garden to take on the Rangers next week, after an offseason blockbuster sent the talented 25-year-old to Carolina.
Elsewhere across the league:
- Nick Barden of The Hockey News Toronto updated earlier today that William Nylander and Calle Jarnkrok could play versus Calgary tomorrow, as both are dealing with lower-body injuries. Additionally, veterans Scott Laughton and Chris Tanev could rejoin the team later in the week ahead of Saturday’s tilt in Philadelphia. Nylander, who missed just his second regular season game since 2020-21, has dazzled with 14 points in 8 games so far. Laughton was injured in the preseason and has yet to debut in 2025-26, as he looks to get more comfortable as a Leaf, having put up just 4 points in 20 regular season games after being traded to Toronto.
- Ben Pope of the Chicago Sun-Times shared this morning that two Blackhawks veterans, Ilya Mikheyev and Tyler Bertuzzi, did not appear at practice. Mikheyev left Sunday’s game versus Los Angeles after crashing hard into the boards. Thankfully, he is considered day-to-day as it appears a more serious issue was avoided. Meanwhile, Bertuzzi missed yesterday’s game altogether, and is also thought to be day-to-day. Chicago hosts Ottawa tomorrow, and they will hope to have their wingers back before long, as they try to stay above the .500 mark.
- Sunday’s big shootout win for the Sharks at Minnesota came at a cost, as Adam Gaudette left due to an upper body injury and did not return, as per the team. His status is unknown as San Jose hosts their in-state rival the Kings tomorrow night. The 29-year-old center has 3 goals in 9 games.
Hurricanes Recall Domenick Fensore, Assign Charles-Alexis Legault To AHL
The Hurricanes have elected to swap their depth defensemen. The team announced that they’ve recalled Domenick Fensore from AHL Chicago and assigned Charles-Alexis Legault to the Wolves.
Fensore made his NHL debut in the final two regular season games last season, averaging over 19 minutes a night with Carolina resting many of their regulars. The 24-year-old has gotten off to a strong start in the minors this season, picking up three goals and four assists in just four games; his seven points are second-best among all AHL defenders while he leads all Wolves players in that regard.
As for Legault, he received his first NHL recall a little more than two weeks ago. The 22-year-old signed as an undrafted free agent with Carolina back in 2024 and got into three games while on recall, logging just under 12 minutes per game while picking up for blocks and a pair of minor penalties. He had 14 points in 63 games with the Wolves last season.
Carolina’s back end has had more than its fair share of injuries in the early going this season, leading to some of these prospects getting opportunities. Jaccob Slavin has missed a couple of weeks with a lower-body injury, Shayne Gostisbehere has been out for a week with a lower-body issue, and K’Andre Miller has missed two straight games with a lower-body injury of his own. That has Carolina carrying nine blueliners on the salary cap right now but with the team comfortably below the Upper Limit, the extra players on the roster shouldn’t be impacting their plans much at this time.
Latest On K'Andre Miller, Eric Robinson, William Carrier
The Carolina Hurricanes issued several injury updates yesterday, via team reporter Walt Ruff. Head coach Rod Brind’Amour indicated that injured defenseman K’Andre Miller is considered “more day-to-day” than out long-term, while injured forwards Eric Robinson and William Carrier “won’t be coming back anytime soon.” Miller and Carrier are managing lower-body injuries, while Robinson is dealing with an upper-body ailment. Miller last played Oct. 20 against the Vegas Golden Knights, while both Carrier and Robinson last played Oct. 23.
The Hurricanes have gotten off to an exceptional start to their 2025-26 campaign, but these injuries threaten their significant positive momentum. Carolina dropped yesterday’s contest against the Stars by a 3-2 score. The loss of the aforementioned trio of players, combined with other injuries to Shayne Gostisbehere, Jaccob Slavin, and Pyotr Kochetkov, has tested Carolina’s depth to an extreme degree very early into this season. As a result of these absences, the Hurricanes have been forced to rely on players with little NHL experience to fill roles in their lineup: call-ups Joel Nystrom, Bradly Nadeau, and Charles-Alexis Legault had just three games of NHL experience combined before the start of 2025-26.
Hurricanes Recall Bradly Nadeau
The Carolina Hurricanes have recalled forward Bradly Nadeau from the AHL. Nadeau has scored in three games straight to start the Chicago Wolves’ season, with four points total. Carolina will now reward that hot start with the second mid-season call-up of the young pro’s career. He should help supplement the lineup while wingers Eric Robinson and William Carrier are out with injury. Both veteran wingers are expected to miss an extended period, head coach Rod Brind’Amour told NHL.com’s Walt Ruff.
Nadeau has already played in three NHL games. He made his NHL debut at the tail end of the 2023-24 season, after signing with the club following the end of his freshman season at the University of Maine. Nadeau was assigned to the minor-leagues for the majority of the 2024-25 season, but made two appearances in the NHL in the final games of the season. He has recorded one assist, two blocked shots, and two hits in the Hurricanes lineup.
While he’s still searching for a spark in the NHL, Nadeau has looked unquestionably productive in the minor leagues. He has 62 points across 67 career games in the AHL. His stat line is slightly stained by a minus-19, but Nadeau’s ability to drive play and create scoring chances has nonetheless proved reliable. He’s taken on a top-line role in the Wolves’ lineup, and steadied his play with support from veteran linemate Ryan Suzuki.
Nadeau could now have his first extended chance at the NHL lineup as Carolina addresses their injuries. Carrier and Robinson have both averaged 10 minutes of ice time through seven games this season, with three and four points respectively. That depth scoring has been a core part of Carolina’s league-best start to the season, and gives Nadeau a mark to shoot for as he steps in. He should be expected to rotate through the team’s bottom-six, at least until he can play his way into a loftier role.
Carolina Hurricanes Recall Joel Nystrom
8:20 p.m.: The Hurricanes announced that Miller will miss tonight’s game with a lower-body injury, so Nystrom will indeed make his NHL debut, wearing the colors of the Hartford Whalers.
8:00 p.m.: The Carolina Hurricanes have recalled defenseman Joel Nystrom from their AHL affiliate, the Chicago Wolves. The move positions Nystrom to potentially make his NHL debut in the Hurricanes’ game tonight against the Colorado Avalanche.
With star defenseman Jaccob Slavin placed on injured reserve on Tuesday, the club has recalled Nystrom to provide additional cover on defense. Nystrom, 23, fits a very different profile from the Hurricanes’ previous defensive recall, Charles-Alexis Legault. While Legault is a 6’4″, 215-pound right-shot blueliner with a game built around maximizing his size and strength, Nystrom is a 5’11”, 178-pound left-shot defenseman whose game is built around his quickness and ability to contribute on both ends.
Nystrom doesn’t arrive on the Hurricanes’ NHL roster with a huge amount of North American pro experience, though. He joined AHL Chicago in April after the conclusion of his SHL season with Färjestad BK, and has played in just seven games in North America, scoring two points. Hurricanes team reporter Walt Ruff even wrote today that Nystrom’s recall came “probably sooner than the team wanted,” even though the team’s hockey operations department thinks highly of his game.
Because of that, it’s possible Nystrom only gets the chance to participate in some NHL practices, travel with the team, and see NHL hockey up-close during this recall, rather than dress for any games. The team currently has K’Andre Miller, Alexander Nikishin, and Mike Reilly occupying its left-side blueline spots, and each player offers more North American pro experience than Nystrom.
In any case, the recall is a signal of the organization’s belief in Nystrom to make his presence known in the NHL sooner rather than later. This recall also has a potentially significant financial benefit for Nystrom, regardless of if he dresses for any games or not. As he’s playing out the final year of his entry-level deal, his salary is tied to a two-way structure. So, for as long as he can spend on the Hurricanes’ NHL roster, he’ll earn the prorated portion of his elevated $925K NHL pay rate, rather than the $80K salary he makes while he’s rostered in the AHL.
Hurricanes Place Jaccob Slavin On Injured Reserve
Prior to today’s game against the Avalanche, the Hurricanes announced they placed star defenseman Jaccob Slavin on injured reserve earlier in the week – Tuesday, to be exact – due to a lower-body injury. They’re operating with an open roster spot, which they haven’t filled, but the team said his placement was for the purposes of “roster flexibility.”
Slavin hasn’t played since Oct. 11, so he is eligible to come off IR at any time. There’s been no update on his status since the beginning of Carolina’s lengthy Western Conference road trip, which started back on Oct. 14 against the Sharks, in which they said he wouldn’t join the team to start the haul, but weren’t too concerned about the severity of his injury.
Carolina has weathered the storm without their top defender, only suffering their first loss of the season on Monday against the Golden Knights. They’re 3-1-0 without Slavin in the lineup and are still only allowing 2.25 goals against per game while controlling 58.9% of shot attempts at even strength. In two games before exiting the lineup, Slavin had a minus-one rating with 10 shot attempts in 18:32 of ice time averaged across the pair of appearances. His possession numbers were pristine as always, logging a 66.1 CF% with just a 40.0 oZS% at even strength despite being outscored 2-1.
The 31-year-old has finished top-20 in Norris Trophy voting in every season since 2016-17, his second in the league. While his offensive production dipped to 27 points in 80 games last year with a +16 rating, his lowest in six years, he still finished top-10 in Norris voting for the third time in his career. He’s never been a huge minutes-muncher, especially not in the past few years as the Canes have stripped him of power-play minutes in favor of names like Shayne Gostisbehere and now K’Andre Miller, and justifiably so. He still remains one of the most feared shutdown threats in the league, but with the Hurricanes’ established possession-heavy system, they’re able to usher in a next-man-up mentality rather seamlessly.
Slavin’s absence has allowed for names like offseason pickup Mike Reilly and rookie Charles-Alexis Legault to make their Hurricanes debuts, but the greatest recipient of his vacated minutes has been Miller, who’s averaging a career-high 23:32 per game and has a 2-2–4 scoring line in six showings to begin his tenure in Raleigh. It’s looking even more like Slavin will miss the final two games of the Canes’ road trip, but could be targeting a comeback when Carolina returns home on Oct. 28 against Vegas.
Gostisbehere To Miss The Rest Of The Road Trip
- While the hope was that Shayne Gostisbehere’s lower-body injury wasn’t serious, it will hold him out for at least the next two games. The Hurricanes announced that they have sent him back to Raleigh for further evaluation, meaning he will miss the last two games of their road trip. The 32-year-old got off to a hot start before the injury, picking up a goal and six assists in his first five games this season, notching at least one point in his first four outings.
Injury Notes: Gostisbehere, McCann, Liljegren
This afternoon, Carolina Head Coach Rod Brind’Amour told Michael Russo of The Athletic that the team believes Shayne Gostisbehere’s injury is not serious, and that he remains with the team on their trip west.
The offensive defenseman has been off to a dynamite start so far, with 7 points in just 5 games. Just two days ago, Gostisbehere left in the Canes’ win over Los Angeles due to a lower-body-injury.
Despite the good news, Gostisbehere will be absent tonight vs Vegas, as Charles-Alexis Legault is expected to make his NHL debut. The 6’4” defenseman was drafted in the fifth round of the 2023 draft by Carolina, turning pro last season with AHL Chicago, where he was a steady presence in 63 games for the Wolves.
Elsewhere across the league:
- The Seattle Kraken announced earlier today that key forward Jared McCann would not play in tonight’s game at Philadelphia, due to a lower-body-injury. It is expected that the 29-year-old will be day-to-day, thankfully not worse as Seattle is currently missing Kaapo Kakko, Frederick Gaudreau, and Ryker Evans due to injury. In McCann’s place, top prospect Berkly Catton has made his NHL debut.
- Max Miller, San Jose’s beat reporter, noted earlier today that defenseman Timothy Liljegren returned to the ice as a normal participant. The Swede remains on the team’s injured reserve, having been placed last week with an upper-body injury, however, he seems to be ramping up for a return on Thursday as the Sharks travel to take on the Rangers.
Shayne Gostisbehere Leaves Game With Injury
Carolina Hurricanes defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere left last night’s victory over the Los Angeles Kings with a lower-body injury, according to a team announcement. After the game, head coach Rod Brind’Amour told the media, including team reporter Walt Ruff, that Gostisbehere “tweaked something,” and could add to the list of injured Hurricanes defensemen – one that already includes star blueliner Jaccob Slavin, who is out indefinitely with a lower-body injury of his own.
If Gostisbehere is to miss any games with this injury, beyond just the portion of the game he missed last night, it would be a serious blow to the Hurricanes defense. Despite playing in the fewest even-strength minutes per game of any Hurricanes blueliner so far this season, Gostisbehere quarterbacks Carolina’s top power play unit and is tied for the league lead in points by a defenseman with seven in five games. In Gostisbehere absence, offseason addition K’Andre Miller took over the team’s top power play unit, and in terms of who could draw into the lineup in the case that Gostisbehere misses game action moving forward, rookie Charles-Alexis Legault is in position as the team’s current spare blueliner.