Hurricanes’ Pyotr Kochetkov Placed On IR, Potentially Out For Season
The Carolina Hurricanes have placed goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov on injured reserve. Kochetkov has been battling a hip injury since the start of the season. He missed all of October and the last week of November due to the issue. Now, after being forced out of the lineup for a third time, Kochetkov has elected to undergo surgery to address the injury, head coach Rod Brind’Amour told Chip Alexander of The News and Observer.
Kochetkov has only played in nine games this season. He was successful in those appearances, posting a 6-3-0 record, .899 save percentage, and 2.33 goals-against-average. He also had one shutout on the year. Kochetkov’s stat line ranked second in Carolina’s goaltending room across the board, behind emerging starter Brandon Bussi.
Bussi will be who Carolina leans on in Kochetkov’s absence. The 27-year-old has posted 12 wins, a .910 Sv%, and a 2.10 GAA in the first 14 games of his NHL career this season. He has been a standout in the minor leagues since signing with the AHL’s Providence Bruins out of college in 2022. Bussi posted a first .922 Sv% in the first 37 games of his AHL career, spanning the 2021-22 and 2022-23 seasons. That entrance into the league earned Bussi an AHL all-star recognition in 2023 – an accolade he followed with 23 wins and a .913 Sv% in 41 games with Providence in 2023-24.
In competition with Michael DiPietro, Bussi fell to a .907 Sv% in 33 AHL games last season. That slip prompted a move to the Hurricanes this summer, which has quickly paid off. Bussi has not appeared in the AHL yet this season and could have a clear path to a true starter’s role ahead of struggling veteran Frederik Andersen.
In a corresponding move to Andersen’s IR designation, the Hurricanes have also recalled defenseman Gavin Bayreuther. He will help the team back up a handful of game-time decisions on defense, Brind’Amour told NHL.com’s Walt Ruff. Bayreuther spent last season with Lausanne HC in Switzerland’s National League. He scored 23 points in 52 games, a small scoring spark that seems to be bleeding into this season. His 13 points in 24 games rank second on the Chicago Wolves’ blue line behind Domenick Fensore. Bayreuther hasn’t played in the NHL this season, his last game being back in 2023, though he has been recalled as a backup once by Carolina.
With their shifting lineup, the Hurricanes will hope surgery helps Kochetkov return to form. He has posted a sub-.900 save percentage across his last 56 NHL games, dating back to the start of 2024-25. The performances have been a steep drop from the 38 wins and .910 Sv% Kochetkov recorded in 69 games through his first three NHL seasons. He is a fringe starter when healthy and should still fill a need in Carolina’s lineup on the other side of his recovery. Kochetkov carries a $2MM cap hit through the end of next season.
Hurricanes Reassign Justin Robidas Amid Injury Updates
The Carolina Hurricanes saw a wave of roster updates come through during Saturday morning’s practice. Notably, winger Justin Robidas was not at practice, as he’s been reassigned to the AHL’s Chicago Wolves. Robidas won’t skate in Saturday’s match against the Manitoba Moose but should be back in time for Sunday’s rematch.
Forward William Carrier also missed practice. It is unclear if he has sustained a new injury after appearing in Friday’s win over the Winnipeg Jets. Goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov did sustain a lower-body injury that forced him out of Friday’s game, and Saturday’s practice. Defenseman Jaccob Slavin also remained out, per NHL.com’s Walt Ruff.
In better news, Ruff adds that forward Jordan Staal participated in practice despite being questionable with an illness, and center Jesperi Kotkaniemi continued to work in a non-contact jersey.
Carolina continues to face a heap of injuries despite getting Shayne Gostisbehere and K’Andre Miller back into the lineup recently. They have been forced to play hot potato with much of their lineup, routinely cycling through their lines. The Hurricanes have had six different forward lines, and 10 different defense pairings, play in at least 50 minutes of even-strength ice time this season. Their most-used forward line has been Jordan Martinook, Staal, and Carrier – a trio that could be broken up if Carrier sustained another injury. The most-used defense pairing has been Miller and Sean Walker, who reunited recently after Miller missed six games.
The Hurricanes have felt the brunt of that shuffle over November. They started the month with a 4-1-0 record, but have fallen into a back-and-forth over the last two weeks. Carolina is 4-3-2 in their last nine games, and haven’t won back-to-back games since Novmber 8th and 9th.
Injuries have forced Carolina’s healthy skaters to step up. Sophomore winger Jackson Blake ranks fourth on the team in scoring with 15 points in 24 games. Robidas was also contributing to the offense, netting one assist and a 50 percent faceoff percentage through two games in a bottom-six role.
Robidas now have three points in the first four games of his NHL career, including a pair of games he played in last season. He has been an electric scorer in the minor leagues and currently ranks third on the Wolves with 12 points in 16 games. Chicago is trying to break out of their own November slump, posting a 2-4-0 record over their last six games but winning last Wednesday’s game against the rival Rockford IceHogs by a lofty 8-4. Robidas should help the Wolves keep that offense rolling as they look for better outcomes in December.
Hurricanes Recall Pyotr Kochetkov From Conditioning Stint
Sunday, 7:10 p.m.: Kochetkov’s conditioning stint wound up being short-lived as the Hurricanes announced that they’ve recalled him, along with defenseman Domenick Fensore, from Chicago. Kochetkov made 22 saves on Saturday against the Marlies while Fensore, sent down just yesterday, was held off the scoresheet for the Wolves this afternoon.
Friday, 5:31 p.m.: Kochetkov will be returning to game action, just not for the Canes just yet. They’ve assigned him to the AHL’s Chicago Wolves on a conditioning stint, which can last up to two weeks. He remains on the active roster during this time.
Friday, 12:23 p.m.: Hurricanes goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov is off injured reserve and will be available to dress for the first time this season when they take on the Bruins on Saturday, the team announced. Defenseman K’Andre Miller landed on IR in a corresponding move retroactive to Oct. 20, so he’s eligible to come off at any time.
Kochetkov was in and out of the lineup during the preseason with an undisclosed injury. That led the Canes to make a claim for Brandon Bussi on waivers, snagging the Panthers’ anticipated No. 3 option off the wire. Kochetkov’s return kept getting pushed back. He was initially labeled day-to-day to start the year, but during the first weekend of the campaign, the team ruled him out for at least another week. He landed on injured reserve a few days later and, nearly two weeks after he was last expected back in the lineup, he’s finally cleared to play.
For now, Carolina will carry three goalies. Bussi has earned the right to stay on the roster with a 3-1-0 record, .916 SV%, and 2.25 GAA in his first four NHL starts. He’s saved 3.6 goals above expected, per MoneyPuck, and has been the superior option to starter Frederik Andersen thus far, albeit in a less taxing workload – although Bussi has started two of Carolina’s last three games.
At the moment, it’s Andersen’s playing time that’s most vulnerable with Kochetkov now being a factor. The 13-year vet has been middling out of the gate, posting a .892 SV% and 3.11 GAA in six appearances with a 4-2-0 record. Carolina is playing better defensively this year in front of Bussi than Andersen, though, so those above-average numbers at face value still translate to 0.9 GSAx, according to MoneyPuck.
The 26-year-old Kochetkov is kicking off the third season of a four-year, $8MM extension he signed in 2022. The 2019 second-round pick is looking for a redemption campaign in 2025-26 after a pedestrian 2024-25 campaign in which he logged a .897 SV%, 2.60 GAA, and two shutouts in a career-high 47 starts. Those aren’t horrible numbers by any stretch, but were a significant step back from his .911 and 2.33 marks that earned him All-Rookie Team honors the year prior.
Miller has missed the last four games with a lower-body injury and only just resumed skating. Before his injury, he was operating as Carolina’s de facto No. 1 defenseman after inking an eight-year, $60MM deal this summer as part of a sign-and-trade with the Rangers. Through his first six games with the Canes, he had four points and a +1 rating while averaging 23:32 of ice time per night. He’s one of three top-six defensemen that the Canes are currently missing, joining Shayne Gostisbehere and Jaccob Slavin.
East Notes: Hurricanes, Samuelsson, MacEwen
Carolina Hurricanes head coach Rod Brind’Amour issued injury updates to two key players today: Jaccob Slavin and Pyotr Kochetkov. As relayed by team reporter Walt Ruff, Slavin is still “being evaluated” for a lower-body injury, and is currently questionable to travel with the team on its upcoming six-game road trip. Additionally, Kochetkov will not travel due to his own lower-body injury, though they did add the caveat that he may join the team on the road at some point. Finally, Brind’Amour said that waiver addition Brandon Bussi will get to start a game “at some point” on their road trip.
While the full extent of Slavin’s injury is not known at this point, any extended Slavin absence would be a massive loss for Carolina. Slavin is the team’s most important defenseman and is in the eyes of many the league’s premier shutdown defender. He was the team’s number-one defenseman last season and averaged nearly three minutes a night on its penalty kill. Meanwhile the loss of Kochetkov is also notable, though the Hurricanes are more well-equipped to handle his absence. They already have experienced veteran Frederik Andersen on their roster, and Bussi’s resume from the AHL suggests he very well could be able to handle a backup’s workload while Kochetkov recovers.
Other notes from the Eastern conference:
- The Buffalo Sabres announced today that defenseman Mattias Samuelsson did not play in today’s game against the Colorado Avalanche due to an undisclosed injury. Head coach Lindy Ruff said that “the initial prognosis on the injury was positive,” and expressed optimism that Samuelsson would be ready to play in time for the team’s game Wednesday. Samuelsson played alongside Jacob Bryson in the team’s Saturday game against the Boston Bruins, and saw his spot filled by 2019 first-rounder Ryan Johnson for today’s contest.
- New Jersey Devils head coach Sheldon Keefe told the media today, including The Hockey Writers’ Mark Scheig, that forward Zack MacEwen will miss “an extended period” after leaving the team’s Saturday win over the Tampa Bay Lightning early. Keefe elaborated that MacEwen suffered an injury late in the team’s game, and will be out indefinitely. MacEwen played nine shifts in his lone game with the Devils, registering two shots, a hit, and a blocked shot. The 6’4″ grinder was slotted into the Devils’ fourth line and was recently acquired by the team from the Ottawa Senators.
Pyotr Kochetkov To Miss At Least One Week
Carolina is one of the rare teams choosing to carry three goaltenders this season and that depth is going to come in handy early on. The team announced that Pyotr Kochetkov will be out for at least a week due to a lower-body injury, noting that while it’s not a serious injury, the recovery timeline is longer than head coach Rod Brind’Amour was hoping for.
The timeline of at least a week suggests that Carolina intends to place him on injured reserve. That designation means that a player must be out for at least a week. But with a full 23-player roster, putting Kochetkov on IR would allow the Hurricanes to bring someone up from the minors, though likely not a goalie with Brandon Bussi already with the team after a late-camp waiver claim.
Kochetkov has been the de facto starter the last two seasons, at times on merit and others with Frederik Andersen being on the shelf. Two years ago, it looked like the 26-year-old had taken a big step forward when he posted a 2.33 GAA and a .911 SV% in 42 outings.
However, things didn’t go quite as well last season. While he made a career-high 47 starts, his numbers weren’t as strong, checking in at 2.60 GAA and a .897 SV% while he struggled in the playoffs, playing to a 3.60 GAA and .855 SV% in just four outings, two of those coming in relief. In between, he dealt with a concussion and noted after the season that he had been playing through an injury.
With Kochetkov on the shelf, Andersen now becomes the clear-cut starter, a role that he hasn’t been able to hold onto for extended stretches in recent years due to his own injuries. Over the last three seasons, he hasn’t made more than 33 starts in a single one so if Kochetkov’s absence winds up being more longer-term, Andersen will be tested much more than he has been in recent years while Bussi could get a chance to make his NHL debut as well.
Goalie Notes: Vasilevskiy, Kochetkov, Vladar, Nedeljkovic
Lightning star Andrei Vasilevskiy will indeed get the start for Tampa’s home opener against the Senators tonight, head coach Jon Cooper told Benjamin Pierce of NHL.com. It’s the expected result following a bit of a saga during training camp that saw his workload early on limited. He practiced to start camp, but then disappeared from sessions for over a week due to what Cooper called “player management,” and there was enough concern about his status for the start of the season for the Bolts to claim Pheonix Copley off waivers from the Kings as insurance. Vasilevskiy ended up returning to practice in late September and made a preseason appearance against the Panthers, though, so it seemed for a while that opening night wouldn’t be a concern. With the reigning Vezina runner-up firmly back in the fold, there might be a deal in place to return Copley to Los Angeles, Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet wrote earlier this week.
More updates from the world of goaltending:
- Hurricanes tandem partner Pyotr Kochetkov will not dress against the Devils tonight after being “nicked up” in preseason, head coach Rod Brind’Amour told Walt Ruff of NHL.com. He’s day-to-day, and his injury offers up the missing context as to why Carolina claimed Brandon Bussi off waivers from the Panthers earlier this week. Frederik Andersen will get the start and will presumably see a higher-than-normal workload until Kochetkov returns – a risky bet considering injuries have limited Andersen to an average of 24 starts over the last three years. Bussi would be in line for his NHL debut should he see action during this stretch.
- Free-agent signing Daniel Vladař is getting the start over Samuel Ersson as the Flyers open their season tonight, head coach Rick Tocchet told Charlie O’Connor of PHLY Sports. It was essentially a coin flip between the two, Tocchet said, signaling they’re likely set to receive similar workloads out of the gate. Both struggled in preseason samples, but Vladař was the better of the two with a .875 SV% and 2.32 GAA in a pair of appearances. Ersson played three exhibition games, logging a .841 SV% and 4.44 GAA.
- In another toss-up, the Sharks are going with veteran addition Alex Nedeljkovic between the pipes to kick off their season over top prospect Yaroslav Askarov, relays Curtis Pashelka of the Bay Area News Group. It’s an earned reward for the 29-year-old, who stopped all but one of the 53 shots he faced in two preseason showings for San Jose for a staggering .981 SV% and 0.50 GAA. Askarov, while still locked into a full-time NHL role for the first time this year, struggled in exhibition play with a .855 SV% and 3.79 GAA in a team-high three appearances.
Snapshots: Kochetkov, Juntorp, Jobst, Behm
Hurricanes goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov is coming off a bit of a quieter year after his save percentage went down from .911 in 2023-24 to just .897 last season. It appears there might be a reason for that as the netminder recently told Sports.ru’s Dmitry Shevchenko that he started playing through some injuries in November with some lingering throughout the season; the only time he missed was due to a concussion. Kochetkov is set to partner up with Frederik Andersen as the tandem in Carolina once again next season and the Hurricanes will likely be counting on him to play at least 40 games for the third straight year. They’ll be hoping that a healthier Kochetkov will be a better one between the pipes.
More from around the hockey world:
- Still with the Hurricanes, prospect Nils Juntorp has signed with Boras HC in Sweden’s HockeyEttan, per a team announcement. The 21-year-old was a sixth-round pick by Chicago in 2022 and his rights were moved to Carolina in the Mikko Rantanen and Taylor Hall trade back in January. Juntorp had 20 points in 33 games with HC Dalen last season while also getting into three games at the second-tier Allsvenskan level.
- After spending the last four seasons in Buffalo’s system (including 2024-25 on an NHL contract), free agent forward Mason Jobst won’t be returning for a fifth, relays Bill Hoppe of the Olean Times Herald. The 31-year-old was the captain with AHL Rochester last season and had 37 points in 70 games after putting up 50 points in 64 outings in 2023-24. Jobst has 295 career AHL games under his belt, giving him veteran status which certainly is playing a role in limiting his marketability so far.
- Blackhawks prospect Nathan Behm announced on his Instagram page that he has committed to Arizona State University for the 2026-27 season. The winger was a third-round pick back in June, going 66th overall after a solid season with WHL Kamloops that saw him record 31 goals and 35 assists in 59 games. He’ll return to the Blazers for the upcoming season and then kick off his college career the following year.
Hurricanes’ Frederik Andersen To Be Evaluated For Injury
Despite securing a commanding 3-1 lead in their Round One series against the New Jersey Devils, the Carolina Hurricanes could have a different look between the pipes for their remaining games. After colliding with Devils’ forward Timo Meier in front of the net only 24 minutes into the game, Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman passed along a note from Carolina head coach Rod Brind’Amour indicating the team would evaluate netminder Frederik Andersen for an injury when the team returns to Raleigh.
It’s difficult to speculate on the specificity of the injury. Still, video footage appeared to show Meier making contact with Andersen’s head, and Andersen’s right leg becoming contorted once he falls backwards into the net. There was no penalty called on the play, and Brind’Amour expressed his frustration clearly, telling Cory Lavalette of the North State Journal, “If it goes in, it’s 100% goalie interference, right?”
In the postgame press scramble, Meier claims there was no ill intent on the play, telling team reporter Amanda Stein, “I’m trying to get behind Svechnikov and get open for the passing lane. And Svechnikov pushed me in, obviously no intent there, and hope he’s not injured too bad. But nothing on my side that I could have done differently.”
Despite any possible disciplinary actions against Meier, the Hurricanes face familiar challenges with their goaltending. Andersen failed to appear in more than 40 games for the fourth time in five years during the 2024-25 campaign, largely due to a knee injury that kept him on the injured reserve for three months.
Still, he provided quality goaltending when healthy, managing a 13-8-1 record in 22 games with a .899 SV% and 2.50 GAA. It’s not quite the efficiency Carolina has been used to from Andersen over the last several years, but it’s more than enough considering the team playing in front of him.
Due to Andersen’s various injuries over the last several years, the Hurricanes have allowed netminder Pyotr Kochetkov to receive many of the starts. Kochetkov had an up-and-down year during the regular season, finishing with a 27-16-3 record in 47 games, a .897 SV%, and 2.60 GAA. He filled in nicely for Andersen today, posting a .933 SV% in approximately 36 minutes of gameplay.
It’ll be interesting to see how the Hurricanes manage if Andersen should miss any time. They’ve averaged 3.5 GF/G through four games against the Devils, indicating they may not be able to win on their offense alone. Kochetkov hasn’t proven a valuable goaltender in the past come postseason play, but that will have to change this spring if Carolina has any hopes of continuing without Andersen.
Injury Updates: Stanley, Arvidsson, Kochetkov, Kylington, Chinakhov
The Jets welcomed back Logan Stanley to their lineup tonight with the team announcing (Twitter link) that the blueliner has been activated off injured reserve. The 26-year-old has been banged up this season, missing time with a knee issue and most recently a mid-body injury that kept him out for the last eight games. Between those, Stanley has three points, 17 blocks, and 12 hits in 11 games while averaging 15:13 per night, the second-highest ATOI of his career. With his activation, Winnipeg now has a full 23-player roster.
Other injury updates from around the NHL:
- Oilers head coach Kris Knoblauch told reporters including Daniel Nugent-Bowman of The Athletic (Twitter link) that winger Viktor Arvidsson won’t suit up on their current road trip, meaning he’ll miss the next three games. The 31-year-old has missed the last six games due to an undisclosed injury and is currently on injured reserve. Arvidsson is in his first season with Edmonton after signing a two-year, $8MM contract over the summer. However, he’s off to a quiet start with just two goals and three assists in 16 games.
- Hurricanes goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov is listed as doubtful for tomorrow’s game against Florida, team reporter Walt Ruff reports (Twitter link). Kochetkov remains in concussion protocol but head coach Rod Brind’Amour wants to get him in a practice before getting him back into a game. Kochetkov has a 2.42 GAA and a .909 SV% in 13 games so far this season. With him and Frederik Andersen out, Spencer Martin and Yaniv Perets are Carolina’s tandem between the pipes for the time being.
- The injuries continue to pile up for the Avalanche. Evan Rawal of the Denver Gazette relays (Twitter link) that defenseman Oliver Kylington is dealing with an injury and isn’t with the team in Dallas. The 27-year-old has had a quiet start to the season for Colorado, missing time due to illness and being healthy scratched at times. Overall, Kylington has suited up in eight games so far, picking up a goal and an assist but his playing time is just 12:10 per night, more than five minutes below his ATOI with Calgary last season.
- Blue Jackets winger Yegor Chinakhov was scratched in today’s victory over Calgary due to an upper-body injury, notes team reporter Jeff Svoboda (Twitter link). After a breakout performance last season that saw him record 16 goals and 13 assists in 53 games, the 23-year-old is on pace to beat those numbers as he has seven goals and seven helpers in 21 appearances so far, good for fourth on Columbus in scoring. Cole Sillinger returned from his upper-body injury to take Chinakhov’s spot in the lineup.
Metro Notes: Kochetkov, Stillman, Sillinger
Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Pyotr Kochetkov is out day-to-day (as per Elliotte Friedman of Sportsnet) . The 25-year-old will not play tomorrow night against the New York Rangers but could play this weekend depending on his status. Kochetkov suffered a concussion on Saturday night after he collided with teammate Sean Walker and entered concussion protocol yesterday. Hurricanes’ head coach Rod Brind’Amour didn’t have a timeline as of yesterday, noting that concussion recovery is hard to predict.
Kochetkov has been solid this season for Carolina, posting a 10-2-0 record with a 2.42 goals against average and a .904 save percentage. His underlying numbers have been terrific in 13 games, with a goals saved above expected of 3.9 (as per MoneyPuck).
In other Metropolitan Division notes:
- The Hurricanes have recalled defenseman Riley Stillman from the Chicago Wolves of the American Hockey League (Twitter link). The 26-year-old hasn’t appeared in an NHL game since the 2022-23 season and will likely be Carolina’s seventh defenseman tomorrow night when they take on the Rangers. Stillman spent all of last season in the AHL with the Rochester Americans and has suited up in four games this year, tallying a single assist. Stillman has played parts of five seasons in the NHL, registering four goals and 22 assists in 158 games.
- Aaron Portzline of The Athletic is reporting that Columbus Blue Jackets forward Cole Sillinger will miss tomorrow night’s game against the Montreal Canadiens with an upper-body injury. Sillinger took a skate to the head halfway through Columbus’ victory over Carolina on Saturday night, but the Blue Jackets haven’t officially stated the reason for Sillinger’s absence. His loss will be a big one for the team as the 21-year-old is fifth in team scoring with three goals and nine assists in 20 games. He also plays on both the power play and the penalty kill, which will leave Columbus shorthanded on both sides of their specialty teams.