Hurricanes to rest stars in finale. Will Kochetkov return?
What - Game 82 (52-22-7)
When - 7 p.m., Tuesday, April 14
Where - UBS Arena; Elmont, NY
How to Watch - FanDuel Sports Network South, MSGSN
The Carolina Hurricanes will play their final regular season game of the year tonight against the New York Islanders.
The Hurricanes are coming off of a 3-2 shootout loss to the Philadelphia Flyers, but they have to be feeling pretty good about themselves regardless as they locked up the top spot in the Eastern Conference on Monday as well.
And much like the last three games, Carolina is expected to rest a good portion of starters. Who that may be, we don't currently know as the team has been rotating who plays and who sits.
What we assume though is that Pyotr Kochetkov, who was ruled out for the year due to undergoing surgery in late December, will make a return against New York.
The Russian goalie was recalled yesterday from a conditioning stint down in the AHL with the Chicago Wolves.
I'd also expect to see Swedish winger Felix Unger Sorum make his NHL debut as he was recalled as well.
The 2023 second round pick has had a big year in the AHL, tripling his production from his first year in North America.
And as of this morning, the Hurricanes have made another set of recalls, bringing up defensemen Joel Nystrom and Ronan Seeley on an emergency basis.
The Islanders have been eliminated from postseason contention for the second year in a row and won't have much to play for in their regular season finale.
Streaks
- Andrei Svechnikov (6g, 2a) has points in seven straight games and has scored in three straight.
- Logan Stankoven (7g, 3a) has points in seven straight games.
- Sean Walker (2g, 5a) and Jackson Blake (1g, 7a) have points in six straight games.
- Nikolaj Ehlers (1g, 4a) has points in three straight games.
- Sebastian Aho (1g, 1a) has points in back-to-back games.
Milestone Watch
- Seth Jarvis is one goal (33), assist (35) and point (67) away from tying a career high in each category.
- K'Andre Miller is one goal shy of tying his career high (9).
- Alexander Nikishin is three points shy of matching the franchise record for points by a rookie defenseman (35).
- Eric Robinson is two goals shy of matching his career high (14)
Game Notes
- Carolina is 2-0-0 against New York this season.
Key Matchups
Projected Starting Goalies
- Pyotr Kochetkov: 6-2-0; 0.899 Sv%; 2.33 GAA
- David Rittich: 14-9-3; 0.894 Sv%; 2.78 GAA
Leading Scorers
- Goals - Seth Jarvis (32) / Bo Horvat (30)
- Points - Sebastian Aho (80) / Mathew Barzal (71)
Power Play
- Carolina - 25% (4th)
- New York - 16.7% (30th)
Penalty Kill
- Carolina - 80.3% (11th)
- New York - 80.8% (9th)
Hurricanes Projected Lineup
Taylor Hall - Logan Stankoven - Jackson Blake
Nikolaj Ehlers - Jesperi Kotkaniemi - Bradly Nadeau
William Carrier - Mark Jankowski - Nicolas Deslauriers
Felix Unger Sorum - Skyler Brind'Amour - Eric Robinson
Alexander Nikishin - Sean Walker
Mike Reilly - Charles Alexis Legault
Ronan Seeley - Joel Nystrom
Pyotr Kochetkov
Frederik Andersen
Injuries and Scratches: Brandon Bussi, Jaccob Slavin, Jalen Chatfield, Andrei Svechnikov, Sebastian Aho, Seth Jarvis, Jordan Staal, Jordan Martinook, K'Andre Miller, Shayne Gostisbehere
Islanders Projected Lineup
Victor Eklund - Bo Horvat - Simon Holmstrom
Brayden Schenn - Mathew Barzal - Calum Ritchie
Anders Lee - JG Pageau - Emil Heineman
Kyle MacLean - Casey Cizikas - Liam Foudy
Adam Pelech - Matthew Schaefer
Carson Soucy - Tony DeAngelo
Isaiah George - Scott Mayfield
David Rittich
Ilya Sorokin
Injuries and Scratches: Marc Gatcomb, Adam Boqvist, Ryan Pulock, Ondrej Palat, Anthony Duclair, Semyon Varlamov (knee), Pierre Engvall (ankle), Alexander Romanov (shoulder), Kyle Palmieri (knee), Max Shabanov (UBI)
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