In a brutal turn of events, the Carolina Hurricanes goalie situation has taken another tough hit as Pyotr Kochetkov suffered an injury in Saturday night’s shootout loss to the Columbus Blue Jackets. This comes as especially tough news to the Canes, as the other starting goaltender, Frederik Andersen, is expected to be out for an estimated eight to 12 weeks after undergoing surgery Friday.
Pyotr Kochetkov Injury Hurts Canes
Midway through overtime, Blue Jackets defenceman Zach Werenski and Canes defenceman Sean Walker approached the net. Eyes locked on the puck, Kochetkov came to the back right corner of the crease to poke check the puck out of the Blue Jackets’ possession. However, the angle and speed of the tangled blueliners were not favourable for the 25-year-old goaltender. Shortly after getting the puck to his tape, he had a hip to his head as Walker clipped him – a nasty collision to the head, as well as a rough twist as he hit the ice.
Kochetkov went to get aggressive with the poke and was run into by his own teammate.
Just incredibly unfortunate. pic.twitter.com/34zDhymbZA
— Walt Ruff (@WaltRuff) November 24, 2024
The incident led to much concern from those on and off the ice, as the Canes Nyetminder laid motionless behind the net for over 30 seconds before Doug Bennett, the Hurricanes Head Athletic Trainer, was able to get him moving. He was able to stand and skate with his own power, but the severity of the injury and what all was injured is currently unknown.
Rod Brind’Amour did not have an update on Pyotr Kochetkov post-game.
“We already have one goalie down. This is not ideal, that’s for sure. I don’t know where we are at [with Kochetkov’s injury]. It didn’t look great.”
The #Canes are scheduled to be off on Sunday. pic.twitter.com/XxdOACcFS4
— Walt Ruff (@WaltRuff) November 24, 2024
The Next Man Up
After the injury, Spencer Martin stepped into the crease in relief of Kochetkov. With two minutes and some change left in overtime, Martin made a save on a Cole Sillinger wrister. The game ultimately went to a shootout. Martin allowed one goal from Sean Monahan, whereas the next two players missed the net entirely.
Martin is the next man up for the red frame, fulfilling his role as the backup goaltender. With the information we have now, this is not expected to change. However, whenever a goaltender takes to the crease, a backup is crucial. The question is, “Who will serve in that role for Martin?”
Carolina’s Next Steps
This setback will be a real test for first-year general manager Eric Tulsky. The next game will be Monday at home against the visiting Dallas Stars. Even if all tests go well for Kochetkov, it is still highly unlikely for him to enter the crease. All fingers point to Martin being the Carolina goalie to start. In a recent interview, Tulsky mentioned feeling comfortable with calling up Yaniv Perets if need be. However, with three games played on the season, Perets currently sits at the bottom of the Chicago Wolves’ goalie stats with a save percentage of .825% and a goals-against average of 3.67. Tulsky did mention another Wolves’ goalie to consider, which is the man at the top of the stats ranking – Dustin Tokarski.
Ticking Away
Tokarski has experience across five different NHL teams since the 2009-10 season. The 35-year-old Saskatchewan native has played 80 games in the NHL and recorded two shutouts. In his NHL career, he boasts a save percentage of .902% and a GAA of 3.15.
Signing a professional tryout contract with the Wolves on November 2, he has played three games. Two of those games being back-to-back shutout wins. This season, he has earned a save percentage of .963% and a GAA of 1.01.
Tokarski s no stranger to helping Carolina to some extent, either. In 2019, he played for the Carolina Hurricanes’ then AHL affiliate, the Charlotte Checkers. In the quick goalie swap between the New York Rangers’ AHL affiliate, the Hartford Wolfpack, and the Charlotte Checkers, his veteran presence helped the Checkers win the Calder Cup, which was the second of his AHL career.
What It Pyotr Kochetkov Injury Means
The Hurricane goalie situation is far from ideal. However, there are options for the team to consider. Whether it is signing a new goalie, a callup, or a trade, management is going to be pretty busy. However, the Canes have dealt with this sort of thing before. Just last season backups had to take the reins for nearly a month due to Andersen and Kochetkov’s coinciding absences. The next few games have a story of their own to tell.
Main photo by: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images
