Brandon Bussi making his NHL debut at 27, taking over Carolina’s crease and setting records along the way is one of the best stories of the season. If he keeps it going and leads the Hurricanes to a Cup, it’ll go down as one of the best stories of all time.
After spending three-plus years in the Boston Bruins’ system without a single NHL call-up, Brandon Bussi was ready for a change of scenery. But he didn’t expect that opportunity would come in North Carolina.
On July 1, the 27-year-old signed a one-year contract with the Florida Panthers. With Jeremy Swayman and Joonas Korpisalo entrenched as the Bruins’ primary tandem and his creasemate, Michael DiPietro, delivering solid numbers with AHL Providence, Bussi saw the Panthers offer him a situation with greater upside and a higher minor-league salary than he’d ever earned with the Bruins.
“I was excited to go to Florida and see what was going to happen there,” Bussi said. “They treated me really well during training camp. I had a good camp, and I liked the people that were there. But hockey can work in mysterious ways, right?”
On Oct. 4, Pyotr Kochetkov went the distance in his only appearance of the 2026 pre-season. In 64:33 of game action, he made 26 saves in a 3-2 overtime loss. Less than 24 hours later, one day before teams were required to finalize their opening-day rosters, Bussi learned that instead of heading to Florida’s AHL affiliate in Charlotte, he’d be rerouting 150 miles northeast to Raleigh after being grabbed off waivers by the Hurricanes. Kochetkov had sustained a “lower-body injury,” and the Canes needed insurance.
“We’d been after this player for a long time,” said Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour. “I’d heard the name, for sure, but I hadn’t seen him play.”
Bussi immediately realized this season was going to look different for him. “When you see your name on the opening-night roster, and you’re at least backing up in the first game of the year, it’s something you dream about – being in the NHL,” he said.
Carolina started the season with three goalies: Bussi, Kochetkov and veteran Frederik Andersen on its roster. With Bussi on the bench and Kochetkov’s status initially undisclosed, Andersen delivered a pair of wins. Then, things got interesting. As the Canes headed west for a six-game road trip, Kochetkov was moved to IR. In Bussi’s first visit to the West Coast, he got the nod to start in San Jose, and late-night hockey agreed with him. He made 16 saves to start his NHL career with a 5-1 win.
When you see your name on the opening-night roster, it’s something you dream about–Brandon Bussi
When Kochetkov returned to action in early November, Bussi was 3-1-0, with a 2.25 goals-against average and .916 save percentage. The organization kept all three stoppers with the big club, but Kochetkov missed five more games after Thanksgiving. Then, after Christmas, the team announced the 26-year-old was undergoing surgery that could keep him out for the rest of the season.
Playing behind a stingy Canes defensive structure that suppresses shots well, Bussi thrived. On Dec. 11, Bussi set an NHL record when he logged his 10th win in just his 11th game. By the end of 2025, he was 13-1-1. He set another record at his 20-win plateau (24 games), and again for 25 wins in 29 games. At the trade deadline, he was riding a nine-game winning streak, and the Hurricanes were perched atop the Eastern Conference.
“It’s the old tale about getting an opportunity and then making it count, right?” Brind’Amour said.
For a team with Stanley Cup aspirations, Bussi’s contributions have arguably been as important to Carolina as what Matthew Schaefer has done for the New York Islanders. But you won’t see Bussi’s name on any Calder Trophy ballots this spring. He’s nine years older than Schaefer, and two years over the NHL’s Calder cutoff age.
Look at Bussi today and you’ll see a stopper with great size at 6-foot-4 and 218 pounds. He catches right, like only a handful of other NHL crease-keepers, and he is known for his aggressive style that challenges shooters.
Brandon Bussi finished the 2025-26 season with 31 wins, a .895 save percentage and a 2.47 goals-against average in 39 games. (James Carey Lauder-Imagn Images)But like three-time Vezina winner Connor Hellebuyck, who was passed over in his first draft before being snagged by the Jets in the fifth round as a 19-year-old, Bussi also came close to falling through the cracks. For both, a key part of their development path came in Texas as part of the Tier II North American League. Hellebuyck played for the Odessa Jackalopes, while Bussi suited up for the Amarillo Bulls.
The late-blooming Bussi didn’t see his career path truly begin to take shape until a strong age-20 season with the USHL’s Muskegon Lumberjacks opened the door to Western Michigan University, where the idea of a potential NHL career first took hold.
When Bussi arrived in Kalamazoo in 2019, former Los Angeles Kings and St. Louis Blues coach Andy Murray was running the program. In 2021-22, Bussi’s junior year, the coaching reins were handed to Pat Ferschweiler. He helped guide the Broncos to the NCAA tournament that year (and a Frozen Four championship last season). And Bussi appreciates the development time he spent at the school.
“The coaching staff there produces professionals,” Bussi said. “Most importantly, good students. But they produce professional hockey players with the systems they play, the workouts, all that stuff.”
Eleven days after he backstopped the Broncos to the 2022 title game in the tough NCHC, Bussi signed his entry-level contract with the Bruins. He made his professional debut with Providence April 16, 2022 – just shy of his 24th birthday. When he left, he sat fourth in P-Bruins history with 63 wins over 111 games played.
Bussi believes that his experiences along his unconventional journey have prepared him for the pressure-cooker that is the best hockey league in the world.
“Even going back to junior, there was a lot of grinding – a lot of success and a lot of failure,” he said. “But I think when failure or things that don’t go your way happen, it’s good for you as long as you take it in stride and make a positive out of it. I’ve seen a lot of things. Nothing really shakes me. I’m fortunate to be with a team that is driven to want to win, and it doesn’t matter how you win in the end. It just matters that you get it done.”
Brind’Amour agrees: “He was ready for it, and he’s never really looked back. It’s been a good story for us and for him, and we obviously hope it continues.”
In February, Bussi, who’s making the NHL minimum this year, signed a three-year, $5.7-million contract extension that guarantees him an NHL-level salary into his 30s and a level of job security he has never had before. But the charter jets, elite cuisine and five-star hotels that define NHL life have not erased the fond memories of his journey to the big time.
“That stuff is nicer than the American Hockey League,” he said. “But I do partially miss those bus rides. That’s where you did a lot of bonding because you’re with your team in a tight space for so long. But yeah – obviously the food and the flights make things a little easier.”
This article appeared in The Hockey News' Playoff Special 2026 issue.
Playoff Special 2026 provides an NHL power ranking, as well as features on Dallas Stars defenseman Miro Heiskanen, the Buffalo Sabres being back in contention, the top 100 Rangers for the team's centennial season, and more.