Hurricanes’ Eric Robinson Could Be Out Through Olympic Break
The Carolina Hurricanes could face an extended stretch without one impactful winger. Eric Robinson could be out until the team returns from the Winter Olympics break on February 26th, head coach Rod Brind’Amour told Chip Alexander of the Raleigh News & Observer. Robinson left Carolina’s Monday win over the Buffalo Sabres in the first period after he was knocked awkwardly into the ice by Sabres captain Rasmus Dahlin. He was nursing his left shoulder on his way off the ice and has since appeared at practice with that arm in a sling.
Robinson has returned to the utility role he carved out in the Hurricanes lineup last season. He has 10 goals, 15 points, and an offense-best plus-seven in 44 games this season. Those marks are well in-line with the 14 goals, 32 points, and plus-14 – all career-highs – that Robinson posted in his first year with Carolina. Even from a bottom-six role, the 30-year-old winger has proven to bring a routine, positive impact.
The Hurricanes brought Jesperi Kotkaniemi back into the lineup after a healthy scratch, following Robinson’s injury. Kotkaniemi made good work of the return, recording one assist, two shots, and three hits in Thursday’s shootout loss to the Chicago Blackhawks. He could stick in the lineup for at least six more games should Robinson indeed sit out through the Olympics. Carolina could also see this as a chance to reward one of their top prospects with the AHL’s Chicago Wolves. The Wolves are led in scoring by Justin Robidas, Bradly Nadeau, and Felix Unger-Sorum – all candidates to earn a brief recall if Robinson lands on injured reserve.
East Notes: Malkin, Tanev, Robinson, Lightning
Back in June, a report from Josh Yohe of The Athletic indicated that the Pittsburgh Penguins had little interest in extending franchise icon Evgeni Malkin beyond the 2025-26 campaign. Additionally, Pittsburgh’s play-by-play voice, Josh Getzoff, shared that General Manager Kyle Dubas would meet with Malkin during the Olympic Break to discuss his future.
In a new update from Yohe, that remains the plan from the Penguins’ perspective. Yohe indicated that Malkin wants to sign a one-year extension in Pittsburgh, is willing to take a paycut on his current salary, and doesn’t want to play anywhere, regardless of whether it’s with a playoff contender or not.
He’s turned back the clock this season, scoring 10 goals and 35 points in 33 games — already 15 points away from matching last year’s totals. Additionally, in an unexpected fashion, the Penguins are remarkably competitive this season, currently in a divisional playoff spot in the Metropolitan.
Still, injury troubles have plagued Malkin in the past two years, and Pittsburgh may be more interested in moving its available dollars elsewhere. Despite their competitiveness this season, the team has already shown a willingness to move out veterans, evidenced by their trade of netminder Tristan Jarry last month. Regardless, considering they will meet in a few weeks, more will be known about Malkin’s future relatively soon.
Additional notes from the Eastern Conference:
- A few weeks ago, David Alter of The Hockey News reported that the Toronto Maple Leafs and defenseman Chris Tanev have not decided upon surgery to repair his groin injury. According to Nick Barden of The Hockey News, that remains the status quo. Barden relayed a quote from head coach Craig Berube saying, “He’s still working through things. He hasn’t got surgery yet. We’re still working through things.” Berube went on to add that Tanev is the one who is hesitant about surgery, not the Maple Leafs.
- The Carolina Hurricanes are expecting to be without one of their bottom-six forwards for the foreseeable future. The Hurricanes shared that forward Eric Robinson will be “out for an extended period [of time]” with an upper-body injury. He was seen at the rink today in a sling. Carolina will likely place the nine-year veteran on the injured reserve.
- The Tampa Bay Lightning aren’t moving anytime soon. According to Eduardo A. Encina of the Tampa Bay Times, the Lightning have signed a six-year lease extension with Benchmark International Arena, keeping them in the stadium through the 2042-43 NHL season. Additionally, Hillsborough County has agreed to include $250MM in the agreement for arena renovations, while the organization will contribute $75MM.
Afternoon Notes: Robinson, Gostisbehere, Rooney
A new injury hit the Carolina Hurricanes during Monday’s game against the Buffalo Sabres. Forward Eric Robinson left the game with roughly eight minutes left in the first period after being awkwardly knocked down by former teammate and Sabres captain Rasmus Dahlin. Robinson appeared to be nursing his left shoulder as he left the ice and has been designated with an upper-body injury.
Robinson has continued to offer all-around utility in a bottom-six role this season. He has 10 goals, 15 points, and a plus-seven in 43 games this season. His performance has been a nice continuation on a strong debut with the Hurricanes last season. Robinson recorded 14 goals, 32 points, and a plus-14 while playing in all 82 games last season – all career-highs. He missed his first games as a Hurricane in late October, when an upper-body injury forced him out of six games.
Other notes from around the league:
- The Hurricanes were again without defenseman Shayne Gostisbehere on Monday per NHL.com’s Walt Ruff. It was Gostisbehere’s fourth straight absence due to a lower-body injury and illness. The 32-year-old defenseman has now missed 14 games on the season. Despite that, he still leads the Hurricanes blue-line in scoring with six goals and 32 points in 35 games. He has 10 more points than K’Andre Miller, who ranks second. Gostisbehere will have a clear path into an important role when he returns from another absence.
- The Utah Mammoth have assigned center Kevin Rooney to the AHL’s Tucson Roadrunners. He has served as an extra forward all year long and played his only NHL game in late November. Rooney has built a more prominent role in Tucson, where he has seven goals and 10 points in 20 games. He will slot back into a familiar role with the Roadrunners and could be a top call-up option when Utah needs another hand.
Hurricanes To Activate Two Off IR, Recall Gavin Bayreuther From AHL
There are plenty of injury updates from Carolina heading into their game tonight against Buffalo. Chip Alexander of the Raleigh News & Observer relays (Twitter link) that wingers Eric Robinson and William Carrier will suit up tonight, meaning they will be activated off injured reserve. However, the news isn’t all good as defenseman Jalen Chatfield is now out indefinitely; head coach Rod Brind’Amour is uncertain if the blueliner is dealing with a concussion after taking a hit from Minnesota’s Tyler Pitlick on Thursday. That resulted in the team announcing that blueliner Gavin Bayreuther has been recalled from AHL Chicago with Chatfield landing on injured reserve as the corresponding move.
Robinson had a breakout year last season, his first in Carolina. He picked up 14 goals and 18 assists (both career bests) in 82 games, earning himself some much-desired job security as he signed a four-year, $6.8MM deal in advance of free agency back in June. The 30-year-old got off to a nice start to this season as well, collecting three goals and an assist in seven outings despite his playing time dipping below 10 minutes a night. He has missed a little more than two weeks with an upper-body injury, landing retroactively on IR ten days ago.
Carrier, meanwhile, was injured in the same game as Robinson last month, suffering a lower-body injury. His first season with Carolina in 2024-25 was injury-riddled as he only was able to suit up in 43 games where he had 11 points and 156 hits, not a great return in the first season of a six-year deal. This season, the 30-year-old has a goal and two assists through his seven outings in a little over 10 minutes a night of action. With Carolina having two open roster spots following yesterday’s demotion of Bradly Nadeau to the minors, no other moves need to be made to activate Carrier and Robinson.
As for Chatfield, he has been his usual steadying presence on the back end. In the second season of a three-year, $9MM deal, the 29-year-old has three assists and 14 blocks in his first 13 games while averaging just under 20 minutes a night. He has once again been a big part of Carolina’s penalty kill, carrying the second-highest ATOI among their blueliners in that situation while they sit well above the league average in shorthanded success rate. Chatfield will now miss at least a week as a result of the IR placement.
Bayreuther returned to North America for this season after spending the 2024-25 campaign in Switzerland, signing a one-year, two-way deal back in July. He cleared waivers at the end of September and has spent the full season so far with the Wolves, tallying three goals and three assists in nine games. Bayreuther has 122 career NHL games under his belt over parts of four seasons, the most recent of which came back in 2022-23 with Columbus.
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.
Metro Notes: Hurricanes, Rempe, Trocheck
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.
Other notes from the Metropolitan Division:
- Injured New York Rangers pivot Vincent Trocheck isn’t a candidate to return any time soon, head coach Mike Sullivan told the media (including the New York Post’s Mollie Walker) yesterday. Trocheck remains on long-term injured reserve (LTIR) with an upper-body injury, isn’t skating yet, and Sullivan directly said his return to play “isn’t imminent.” The Rangers have shifted veteran Mika Zibanejad back to his natural center position in response to Trocheck’s absence, and Zibanejad has started to heat up, scoring two goals and four points in his last three games. For the Rangers to make a serious push to gain ground in the Metropolitan Division early this season, Zibanejad, 32, will need to continue to produce and prove that he can handle some of the responsibilities left behind by Trocheck.
- Physical forward Matt Rempe will not travel to his hometown of Calgary for the Rangers’ upcoming game as he is still being evaluated for an upper-body injury, relays Newsday’s Colin Stephenson. Rempe appeared to suffer the injury in the process or aftermath of fighting Ryan Reaves during the Rangers’ Oct. 23 loss to the San Jose Sharks. The 6’9″, 261-pounder had played a steady fourth-line role in all of the Rangers’ nine games so far this season, and in response to his injury, the club called up 2021 first-rounder Brennan Othmann, who himself has been the subject of recent trade buzz.
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.
Hurricanes Sign Eric Robinson To Four-Year Extension
The Carolina Hurricanes have signed forward Eric Robinson to a four-year, $6.8MM contract extension per a team release. The deal will carry an annual cap hit of $1.7MM, per Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman.
Robinson has found a healthy stride in the latter half of his pro career. He originally went undrafted, and didn’t earn NHL acclaim until signing an entry-level contract with the Columbus Blue Jackets at the end of the 2017-18 season. Robinson was coming off of four impressive seasons at Princeton University. His rookie season in the AHL in 2018-19 was marked with solid impacts and hard effort – ultimately earning Robinson 24 points in 45 AHL games and the first extended NHL stint of his career, where he went scoreless in 13 games.
But Robinson wasn’t deterred – and continued to provide a strong impact to the AHL lineup through the start of the 2019-20 season. After just 14 games, Columbus made the move to promote him to a menial fourth-line role. He began rotating in-and-out of the lineup, though never managed much in the way of scoresheet impact. Prior to this season, his career-years stood as a 27-point performance in 67 games of the 2021-22 season, and 24 points in 72 games of the 2022-23 campaign.
Columbus relinquished Robinson last season, shipping him off to the Buffalo Sabres for a menial return. But Robinson began to show flashes of impact in the Buffalo lineup – even through scoring just nine points in 40 games. His stat line wasn’t enough to convince Buffalo to re-sign him, but it did catch the eye of new Carolina Hurricanes general manager Eric Tulsky, who signed Robinson to a one-year, $950K contract last summer.
That proved to be one of the more lucrative deals of the NHL season. Robinson posted 14 goals and 32 points while appearing in all 82 games of Carolina’s season. He was a low-stakes, high-reward lineup addition for a Hurricanes team that routinely relies on impactful pieces down the lineup. With that performance, Robinson has now earned the first million-dollar deal of his eight-year NHL career – and solidified a contract through his age-34 season.
Hurricanes, Eric Robinson Discussing Extension
An extension for winger Eric Robinson with the Hurricanes “sounds like it will happen,” Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet wrote in his “32 Thoughts” blog Tuesday. The 29-year-old became eligible to sign one on Jan. 1 after inking a one-year, $950K pact with Carolina in free agency last summer.
Robinson’s decision to take a prove-it deal with the Canes has worked out quite well for both sides. Carolina gained some much-needed cost-effective forward depth after losing Jake Guentzel, Stefan Noesen and Teuvo Teräväinen to the open market. At the same time, Robinson thrived in a depth role and positioned himself to land a significant raise on his next contract.
The Hurricanes have some important UFAs-to-be again this season, namely Brent Burns and Dmitry Orlov on the back end and another valuable depth scorer, Jack Roslovic, up front. It makes sense that general manager Eric Tulsky wants to get business done early with at least one of them.
Robinson is likely looking for stability after being traded from the Blue Jackets, where he started his career, to the Sabres last season and then landing with Carolina in free agency. He’s posted nine goals and 11 assists for 20 points through 41 games, on pace for a career-high 40 points while averaging 12 minutes per game.
Normally deployed as a checking winger with heavy defensive zone usage, Robinson’s offensive zone deployment under Rod Brind’Amour has skyrocketed. After starting over 60% of his 5-on-5 faceoffs in the defensive zone throughout his seven years in Columbus, he’s started 62.8% in the offensive end since arriving in Carolina. He’s also receiving semi-meaningful penalty kill minutes for the first time since the 2022-23 campaign.
His offensive pace likely puts his next contract in the $3MM neighborhood per season, with Dakota Joshua‘s recent four-year, $3.25MM AAV extension with the Canucks likely serving as a blueprint. The New Jersey native has never earned an AAV of more than $1.6MM on any of his five NHL contracts.
Hurricanes Sign Eric Robinson
The Carolina Hurricanes are expected to sign forward Eric Robinson to a one-year deal with a cap hit of $950K, per David Pagnotta of The Fourth Period (Twitter link). Robinson spent last season with the Buffalo Sabres, where he recorded nine points across 40 games.
Buffalo acquired Robinson in December, dealing a conditional 2025 seventh-round pick back to the Columbus Blue Jackets – though Columbus would only receive the pick if Robinson played in 45 games. He fell just shy of that mark and is now moving on from Buffalo, effectively giving the Sabres a trial run of his services.
Columbus originally signed Robinson as an undrafted free agent in 2018, following the end of his tenure at Princeton University. He spent the 2018-19 season with the AHL’s Cleveland Monsters, where he scored an evenly split 24 points in 45 games. The strong AHL year was enough to earn Robinson 13 appearances in the NHL that year, though he’d go without a point. Still, he caught the ice of someone in Columbus, and would earn a consistent role as the team’s extra forward in 2019-20. Robinson served that role proudly, and even managed a career-high of 10 goals and 27 points in the 2021-22 campaign.
Robinson couldn’t hang onto his modest scoring in Buffalo, as he faced hefty pressure for his role on the team’s fourth line. He should receive some relief with the Hurricanes, who sit three forward spots shy of a full roster with $23.874MM in cap space. Carolina still needs to re-sign or replace restricted free agents Martin Necas, Seth Jarvis, and Jack Drury – with the latter offering the most competition for Robinson’s spot on the bottom line.