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Last Word On Hockey’s Puck Drop Previews are back for the 2026-27 season! As the regular season approaches, Last Word will preview each team’s current outlook and stories to watch for the upcoming year. We’ll also do our best to project how things will go for each team throughout the campaign. Today, we’re previewing the 2026-27 Carolina Hurricanes. The 2026-27 Carolina Hurricanes The champs are here! Carolina finally vanquished its demons and finally hoisted its first Stanley Cup Championship in 20 years. Carolina finally got over that dreaded Eastern Conference Final hurdle to reach the Stanley Cup Final. The Hurricanes struggled in the first few games of the season, but changed momentum when they inserted Brandon Bussi in between the pipes. Carolina rallied and was able to dispatch the Vegas Golden Knights in six games. The Canes were helped by not having the Florida Panthers in the postseason. However, that likely won’t be in the case this season with all of the improvements made in the offseason. Despite this, Carolina is in the top three to repeat as Stanley Cup champions. The Canes do know they’ll be in for a fight from the Panthers, Tampa Bay Lightning, and other teams in the East. However, Carolina has finally gotten its Stanley Cup and will have more confidence. 2025-26 Season Recap The Canes are the champions, and that means they’ll have a massive target on their back. Teams will play up to the champs in order to knock them out. However, there were plenty of unknowns in last year’s squad. A waiver claim may have been the move that defined the season in getting Bussi from the Panthers. Bussi had mostly been an AHL goalie, but he thrived behind the a strong offence and defensive group. The Sound Beach, New York native got off to a hot start and carried the Canes for the first half of season. Frederik Andersen picked up the slack when Bussi struggled after the Olympic break. Carolina won itself the Metropolitan Division crown and rolled through the first two rounds of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. The Canes completed sweeps of the Ottawa Senators and Philadelphia Flyers. Carolina then took care of business against the Montreal Canadiens to set up a showdown with Vegas. The Hurricanes ran into difficulty in the first few games of the series before head coach Rod Brind’Amour made the change in goal. Carolina galvanized behind Bussi and tightened things up on the defensive end to get its hands on the Stanley Cup. 2026 Offseason The biggest thing Hurricanes general manager Eric Tulsky wanted to do is know what pieces he wanted to keep and what pieces needed to go. However, it was a pretty uneventful summer in the Piedmont. Carolina did extend depth forwards Nicolas Deslauriers and Mark Jankowski in the offseason. The Hurricanes didn’t bring in anyone from outside of the organization that will contribute. Most of the moves made involved AHL players. However, there were some departures over the summer in the triangle. Andersen signed with the Edmonton Oilers to put himself into the mix in their crowded crease. John Carlson came over at the deadline from the Anaheim Ducks, but ended up signing with the Lightning. Mike Reilly also will not come back in free agency. Lineup Projections | LW | C | RW | | Nikolaj Ehlers | Sebastian Aho | Andrei Svechnikov | | Taylor Hall | Logan Stankoven | Jackson Blake | | Bradley Nadeau | Jordan Staal | Jordan Martinook | | William Carrier | Mark Jankowski | Eric Robinson | Extras: Seth Jarvis (injured); Jesperi Kotkaniemi, Felix Unger Sorum, Nicolas Deslauriers The Top Six One of the major question marks is who will step in for Jarvis, who will miss significant time to start the season. This opens up a spot in the top six and gives the Canes a massive headache at the beginning of their title defence. Aho, Ehlers, and Svechnikov all had some issues putting the puck in the net during the playoffs. However, all are proven regular season scorers. The line of Hall, Stankoven, and Blake helped power Carolina to the Stanley Cup. Hall looked like a Hart Trophy winner at times, while Stankoven got off to a hot start in the postseason. Blake didn’t look out of place and made contributions to the cause. The Bottom Six Staal, the reigning Conn Smythe Trophy winner, turned back the clock in the postseason and provides leadership in a depth role. However, he can step up if there are injuries. Nadeau may likely beat out Kotkaniemi for a spot on the third line. Martinook is another strong veteran that plays a 200-foot game and does whatever is asked of him. Carolina’s fourth line can also throw its weight around salt games away. Carrier, Jankowski, and Robinson are a strong bet to stay together for most of the season. However, Robinson could also miss the start of the season. We could see Deslauriers slide into Robinson’s spot in the lineup. Unger Sorum will likely be the next man in if there are more injuries. Kotkaniemi may be on the way out and looking for a fresh start. Defensive Pairings | LD | RD | | Jaccob Slavin | Jalen Chatfield | | K’Andre Miller | Sean Walker | | Shayne Gostisbehere | Alexander Nikishin | Extras: Charles Alexis Legault, Joel Nystrom The Top Four Slavin is Mr. Consistent and is heart of one of the best defensive groups in the league. He’ll like do most of his work with Chatfield on the top pairing. Carolina was hurt by missing Slavin for a portion of the season. However, having Slavin back for more of the season will do wonders for the team’s shot suppression stats. Miller and Walker formed one of the best second pairings in the league. They were strong at not giving up goals at full strength. However, they were hard-luck victims of having a terrible .876 save percentage when on ice. Any improvement will see those numbers change. Bottom Pairing The main question is what to do with Nikishin, who is seeking a new contract. Nikishin had a great rookie season with 11 goals and 33 points, but he’s still unsigned as of press time. We could see Legault move into that third pairing if Nikishin is traded. Gostisbehere has always been great at moving the puck and can be a strong quarterback of the second power-play unit. Goaltenders | Goalies | | Brandon Bussi | | Pyotr Kochetkov | Extra: Zachary Sawchenko It’ll be odd not seeing Andersen in between the pipes. However, Bussi seemingly made the Danish netminder expendable. The 28-year-old racked up 31 wins in the regular season, but struggled at the end of the campaign. However, Bussi’s heroics led to the Hurricanes winning the title. Kochetkov was injured for most of the season, but is more than capable of carrying the load if Bussi should falter. The Hurricanes are able to spend money in other spots due to only paying a total of around $4 million for both netminders. Players to Watch Andrei Svechnikov: He’ll likely have to step up his game for the 2026-27 Carolina Hurricanes with Jarvis being out of the lineup for a good chunk of the season. He did get 31 goals last campaign, but had been declining in the few seasons before that. Seth Jarvis: It will be interesting to see if the vaunted forward can get off the blocks quickly when he returns to the lineup. Carolina will definitely miss the Olympic silver medalist in the lineup. Jarvis plays a physical game and one wonders how he’ll do when does return. Brandon Bussi: We’ve seen one-season wonders before in the league. Will Bussi be like a Jordan Binnington or will he be more like a Jim Carey? The Hurricanes have the added security of Kochetkov waiting in the wings. However, Bussi has earned his spot as starter for the 2026-27 Carolina Hurricanes. Prediction for the 2026-27 Carolina Hurricanes The 2026-27 Carolina Hurricanes are unburdened by previous Stanley Cup Playoff failures. They may skate with a lot pressure on them. However, teams will still want to knock off the champions. One wonders if there will be a Stanley Cup hangover for the champions. However, Brind’Amour always seems to get his team up for any challenge. He’ll have his team prepared and they are one of the most well-disciplined teams on the defensive end. It’s hard to repeat, but Carolina could be a team that’s built for a task such as that. Main photo by: Lucas Peltier-Imagn Images