The Carolina Hurricanes enter the 2024-25 with many positions seemingly locked up. The first line will likely include Seth Jarvis and Sebastian Aho with one of Jack Roslovic or Andrei Svechnikov, with Martin Necas also having a shot. This rotation may have more to do with how the second line shakes out. The third line will likely see Jordan Staal between Jordan Martinook and William Carrier. And the defensive pairs seem pretty set already. But while the two top goaltenders are set, there is still a battle there while lines two and four see some spots for grabs. Let’s look at three top Carolina Hurricanes positions for battle this year.
Carolina Hurricanes Top Three Position Battles for 2024-25
Second Line Centre
To start off the list, we look at a position that Carolina has seemingly been searching for since losing Vincent Trocheck. Jesperi Kotkaniemi is the player penciled into the second line centre spot right now, but barely so. Kotkaniemi has been a perplexing player who has underperformed statistically but actually played ok from an analytics standpoint. He held a 55.9 xG percentage last season while playing right over 900 minutes. Whether it is bad luck or something else, he just couldn’t seem to produce on the scoresheet close to the rate he should have. He had a 37 GF rating compared to a 47.75 xGF. But if he can put together some more production while playing a strong and reliable defensive game that allows his linemates to work, he may solidfy his spot here.
If not, then there is Jack Drury who has shown he can handle this role too. Penciled in as the fourth line centre right now, Drury has all the work ethic needed to earn his way into an elevated role. Drury ended up tied with Kotkaniemi in points with 27 last season, but played five less games. He is another two-way centre who plays a Rod Brind’Amour game. The question is whether he has more room to grow offensively or if he has hit his ceiling.
Outside of these two players, barring a trade, there is not anyone else really pushing for this spot. Sure there are some wild cards like if Ryan Suzuki finally found his game or if Necas gets a shot at centre. Roslovic could play centre too. But most likely these two are it. But as seen above, they are so close that it is a tight competition.
Starting Goaltender
It’s no secret that Carolina will go with Frederik Andersen and Pyotr Kochetkov in net. Spencer Martin is all but guaranteed to be the number three guy too. But unlike the last few years, there may be a bigger battle for the starting role. Last season was a little odd for the Hurricanes goalies. Andersen missed much of the season with a blood clotting issue. However he returned and played very well to finish out the season. Kochetkov manned the fort in tandem with Antti Raanta while Andersen was out. He started off struggling but really picked it up before the end of 2023. When Andersen returned, he and Kochetkov rotated starts almost evenly and it worked very well.
But then the playoffs started and Brind’Amour decided to lean on the veteran netminder in Andersen. While his regular season numbers ended at a .934 SV% with a 1.84 GAA, his playoff numbers dropped to a .895 SV% and a 2.62 GAA.
But now another year forward, it seems like it is time, or very close to it, for Kochetkov to settle in to take over the starting role. With so much turnover in the offseason and a seemingly transitional year for Carolina, it may be time to give Kochetkov a little more reps. Andersen should still be a reliable goaltender, but at age 34 we may see Kochetkov start take over. At the end of the day, Brind’Amour will likely utilize a rotation between the two. And that is probably the right move. But how that time is split will be a battle worth watching.
The Fourth Line Wingers
The last Carolina Hurricanes position up for grabs is a little more of a collective “wingers” spot. Depending on who wins the second line centre spot above, the other will likely be the fourth line centre. But who flanks him on the wings is largely up for grabs. Those with NHL experience include Brendan Lemieux, Tyson Jost, Eric Robinson as well as some PTOs like Sam Gagner and Rocco Grimaldi. But there are also young players looking to earn an NHL role including Jackson Blake, Bradly Nadeau and Felix Unger-Sorum.
Lemieux brings a lot of grit and NHL experience while Jost is a former top ten draft pick looking to put together his offensive game at the NHL level. Robinson too has shown brief stints of NHL productivity in the past but more likely is a depth player at best. Then there is Gagner who could provide a ton of NHL experience. The question for him is if he can keep up with Brind’Amour’s demanding style of play. If he earns a contract he may be in and out of the lineup due to this.
If one or multiple of Blake, Nadeau or Unger-Sorum take a spot or two here, it will be because they proved they can provide something better or more consistently than those mentioned above. It could also be because the team wants to give them some experience as some of the team’s top prospects. Blake may have the strongest two-way game out of the three and also is the most physically mature. Therefore, he would seem like the most likely to slide into this spot. But what everyone shows will make that determination. It’s not always the best to play prospects with offensive potential for limited minutes on the fourth line. So this may lead to these players spending more time playing elsewhere.
In addition to those mentioned above, there is also Jaccob Slavin‘s brother Josiah Slavin who could make a run for a fourth line spot. He has only played a handful of NHL games but could show something to give himself a shot. There is also Juha Jaaska. Jaaska put up 30 points in 57 games in the Finnish Liiga last season. At the end of the day, these winger spots could, and likely will, have a number of combinations. But its these final spots that provide arguably the most competition.
Main Photo Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
