Carolina Hurricanes goaltender Antti Raanta left the game against the New York Islanders with a lower-body injury. He appeared to make an awkward movement to try and make a save, and was immediately in discomfort.
Antti Raanta will not return to today’s game due to a lower-body injury.
— Hurricanes PR (@CanesPR) April 24, 2022
Antti Raanta Leaves Game With Lower Body Injury
Antti Raanta suffered the injury during the second period of the Hurricanes’ 5-2 win against the Islanders on Sunday. This required rookie Pyotr Kochetkov to go into the game.
Raanta, 32, has played 27 games this season with a 2.43 GAA and a 0.913 Sv%. This is also Raanta’s first season with the club, as he spent last season with the Arizona Coyotes. Before that, he played for the New York Rangers, and the Chicago Blackhawks. He signed with the Hurricanes in free agency this past offseason for 2 years with a $2 million cap hit.
The Hurricanes also lost Frederik Andersen to injury as well, so their entire starting tandem is now injured.
How This Affects the Hurricanes
This hits the Hurricanes hard, as they are quickly approaching the playoffs, now down their starting goaltender. They also have a rookie goaltender in Kotchekov taking the helm as the starter while the two main goalies are injured. Kotchekov recently spent time in the KHL with Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod on loan from the Hurricanes. With Torpedo, he recorded a .926 sv% and a 2.23 GAA in 23 games. He should be a solid replacement for Raanta and Andersen for now, but it is unknown how far Kotchekov can carry them until Andersen and Raanta get back. The Hurricanes only have two games remaining in the regular season until the Stanley Cup Playoffs begin. Although they are practically cruising through the final regular-season games, it is a big blow for them to lose their entire starting tandem in a short amount of time.
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